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Last month Queensland Premier Campbell Newman <a href="https://www.theurbandeveloper.com/developments/new-casino-for-brisbane-cbd-qld-government-announces-eoi-process-for-new-precinct-development/" target="_blank">called</a> for expressions of interest to develop a major integrated resort casino precinct within the Brisbane CBD. The vision is for a new casino surrounded by six star hotels and upmarket retail, restaurant, convention and entertainment facilities.
This will potentially be one of up to three integrated resort casino projects planned for Queensland. Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney suggested the developments would provide a significant boost to the state’s economy through the construction and future tourism that would flow.
The initiative comes on the back of plans by NSW for a AU$1.5 billion integrated resort casino project at <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/business/packer-casino-gets-goahead-to-proceed-to-next-stage-20130704-2pdrv" target="_blank">Barangaroo</a> in Sydney.
This project was awarded to James Packer’s Crown Limited and is to include a 60-storey tower, a six-star hotel and associated facilities. Writing in the <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/business/barangaroos-competitive-tension-a-joke-20130705-2pfus" target="_blank">Sydney Morning Herald</a>, Michael Pascoe described the bidding process for the Barangaroo project as “flawed” and far from best practice stating that:
“Crown successfully manipulated the system from the outset to avoid going to tender against the world’s top casino operators for Sydney’s second ‘VIP gaming facility’ licence.”
Rather than seek an outcome that would represent international best practice in integrated resort casinos, the NSW government has opted for a duopoly that favours local incumbents who influence large sections of the media.
So why the sudden rush into casino projects?
The key factor is the desire to achieve economic benefits. A <a href="https://www.auscasinos.com/pdf/media/CasinosandtheAusEconomy.pdf" target="_blank">study</a> undertaken by the Allen Consulting Group in 2009 for the Australasian Casino Association painted a highly positive view of casinos. According to this report casinos are a major provider of tourism infrastructure and play a key role in the rejuvenation of urban environments.
Casinos are also major employers and they attract over one million international tourists to Australia each year. These same tourists spend around AU$5 billion during their visits. Individually each international casino visitor spends about twice as much as those who don’t visit casinos. In addition to these benefits, casinos provide substantial gaming taxes and licensing revenues to state governments.
A further <a href="https://www.crownresorts.com.au/CrownResorts/files/1d/1db9d9a2-3de5-4072-9a4a-486bb427cf8c.pdf" target="_blank">report</a> was undertaken by the Allen Consulting Group in 2012 into Crown’s proposal for the Barangaroo casino. This pointed to the need for such developments to help salvage the tourism sector.
Over the past 10 years Australia’s tourism sector has suffered due to the high dollar exchange rate. From a peak in 2000 at the time of the Sydney Olympics, Australia’s inbound tourism trade has steadily declined. While the number of Australians travelling overseas grew from 3.6 million to 7.4 million between 2001 and 2011, inbound tourism grew from 5 million to only 5.9 million in the same period.
Competing with Asia’s casino precincts
For many Australian state governments and their local casino operators the role model is Singapore. Two major integrated resort casinos have been developed at Marina Bay adjacent to the city’s CBD, and at Sentosa Island. At a cost of around AU$13 billion, these casinos opened their doors in 2010 and have been experiencing steady growth. Tourism revenues have reportedly grown by around 49% over the past three years. In 2011 tourism was <a href="https://thr.sagepub.com/content/12/3/139.short">contributing</a> US$14.8 billion, or about 4% of Singapore’s GDP.
The Marina Bay Sands resort complex covers 15.5 hectares and has 581,400 square metres of floor space. Only 3% of this is devoted to the casino. There is a 55 storey triple tower luxury hotel surrounded by retail, restaurants, plus convention and entertainment facilities, operated by the Las Vegas Sands Corporation.
Other major integrated resort casino developments are planned for Macau, Vietnam and the Philippines. All of these will seek to take advantage of the rapidly expanding flow of tourists from China.
According to the Allen Consulting Group the number of outbound Chinese tourists has grown from 10.5 million people in 2000 to 57.4 million in 2010. It is expected to grow to around 100 million and be worth US$838 billion by 2020. However, combine the growth in Chinese tourists travelling to Australia with this heightened interest in casino projects and there may well be some trade-offs to consider.
Casinos demand a holistic approach to integrated tourism
Not surprisingly as a stand-alone concept, casinos attract a fair share of adverse commentary on their social, political and economic impacts. However, there is a growing literature on the economic benefits of casinos to national economies.
Research has <a target="_blank" href="https://thr.sagepub.com/content/12/3/139.short">shown</a> a significant rise in the number of problem gamblers in Singapore since 2010, and police have noticed a sharp rise in crime relating to the presence of the casinos. Amongst these criminal activities are petty theft, cheating and prostitution.
Rosalind Stefanac writing in the <a target="_blank" href="https://business.financialpost.com/2013/04/02/can-casinos-spearhead-economic-development-efforts-in-canadas-cities/">Financial Post Magazine</a> critically poses two questions. First, are the economic benefits from casinos sufficient reason to offset the potential for detrimental social impact? Second, is the casino a viable source of ongoing revenue for a community?
For Australia the economic development potential of integrated resort casino developments is significant. As Deloitte has reported, tourism is one of five “super growth” industries that Australia can potentially develop as part of a “post-resources boom” economy.
However, the success of developments such as Singapore’s casinos is due to the strategic vision that lies behind their design. As “integrated resorts” these casinos must emphasise more than just a venue for gambling.
The purpose of the integrated resort within an economic plan is to advance the economy, generate employment and attract export earnings. This means integrated resorts must have an appeal for hosting many types of tourism and be attractive to a great many gatherings, conventions and exhibitions of a scale that generates ongoing attraction.
According to Andrew McEvoy, Tourism Australia’s Managing Director:
“… for success and long-term sustainability Australian tourism requires more than just effective marketing campaigns. It requires physical investment in tourism infrastructure, particularly hotel stock, as well as improved air links and increases in aviation capacity.”
Infrastructure and planning are critical
For some the inclusion of a casino within the resort complex becomes problematic due to the concerns over problem gambling and crime. However, any major tourism development must involve the building of significant infrastructure and this must be paid for either by the government or industry.
Research has <a href="https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/articleDetails.jsp?reload=true&amp;arnumber=4362212" target="_blank">suggested</a> a large scale systems engineering (LSSE) approach was critical to the development of that Singapore’s highly successful integrated resorts.
The focus of a successful tourist destination should be on the word “integrated” in an integrated resort casino. Singapore’s approach to its casino development was strategic and built upon a foundation that sought to deliver a strong economic benefit to the island state’s overall economy. Its vision was to “develop Singapore as a regional tourism hub”.
It is still too early to pass judgment on the nature of the casino developments being planned for Queensland. To date no Australian casino development has reached the same standards as that of Singapore, and none can be truly classified as representing integrated resort models. This is the case for Sydney’s Barangaroo development which does not appear to have been subject to the same level of scrutiny and global competitiveness that took place in Singapore.
Major casino developments of the type proposed for Queensland will attract significant international investment and have the potential to generate substantial returns to the local economy. However, they will also attract many critics and may have socially undesirable impacts if poorly managed.
Get things right and their impact on the economy, tourism and transport sectors and the enhancement of urban environments can be highly positive. Get things wrong and the outcome can be profoundly undesirable. Let’s hope the Queensland government gets it right.
 
<hr>
 Tim Mazzarol is Winthrop Professor, Entrepreneurship, Innovation, Marketing and Strategy at <a href="https://www.uwa.edu.au/" target="_blank">University </a><a href="https://www.uwa.edu.au/" target="_blank"></a><a href="https://www.uwa.edu.au/" target="_blank"></a><a href="https://www.uwa.edu.au/" target="_blank">of Western Australia</a>
Tim Mazzarol receives funding from the Australian Research Council, CBH Ltd, Capricorn Society, Ravensdown, Co-operatives WA and the WA state government. He is also President of the Small Enterprise Association of Australia and New Zealand (SEAANZ), a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to the advancement of research, education, policy and practice for small to medium enterprises.
 Antoine Musu is DBA Candidate at <a href="https://www.uwa.edu.au/" target="_blank">University of Western Australia</a>.
This article was originally published at <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>.
 
 
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/19558/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" height="1" width="1">
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Tourism and casinos: Can we gamble our way to prosperity?

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A debate about the role and size of the early stage venture capital community was sparked last week by David Gonski’s comments that Australian entrepreneurs are being driven overseas due to a lack of available funds.
Speaking at an Australia-Israel Chamber of Commerce event, the Australian Future Fund and Coca-Cola Amatil chairman declared the diaspora of Australian entrepreneurs heading overseas to find investment a “tragedy”.
“We need an industry that is involved in early-stage investment and I don’t think we can get that when the major pools of money are being judged on 30, 60, 90 or 180 days because these things take much longer,” Gonski said.
However, Venture Advisory executive director, Sydney Angels member, and investor Adrian Bunter told StartupSmart Gonski was incorrect in his assumption there is no adequate pool of funds.
“In some respects he said there were no early stage funds and the only option was to leave Australia in the early stage. But the reality is start-ups don’t need to leave to raise funds and there is a lot of investment activity going on here,” Bunter says.
According to a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.startupsmart.com.au/growth/growth-strategy/tech-start-ups-could-contribute-109-billion-to-local-economy-by-2033/201304229532">PwC and Google report</a> on the start-up ecosystem released earlier this year, there are over 500 angel investors, 10 angel groups and one sidecar fund, and almost $600 million in management by 20 venture capital groups.
“But there is always more money that can go into the system and he is right that a lot more needs to be done, especially from an institutional investor perspective. Most super funds don’t look at early stage start-ups and are more guided by those shorter couple of month return windows.”
Bunter says encouraging super funds to back start-ups will not be an easy task.
“It is very difficult for institutional groups to invest in start-ups because they’re so large. They’d need to allocate a significant proportion funds to see the returns their shareholders expect.
“Venture capital here really started to grow during the dot.com phase, and towards the peak of it, so venture capital doesn’t have a great track record over the last ten years or so. Therefore the super funds aren’t allocating much money to venture yet.”
Bunter adds the amount of early stage investing in Australia is probably considerably higher than the Google statistics imply, as much of the early stage investment comes from personal networks of family and friends rather than through networks and funds.
“There is a huge amount of investors who are comfortable with that level of risk, so concerns about high-risk investments are not exactly the problem,” Bunter says.
Concerns around the lack of funding at the series A-round level have largely been met, according to Kar-Mei Tang, head of research at national venture capital industry association AVCAL who addressed an <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.startupsmart.com.au/financing-a-business/australian-venture-capital-growing-and-set-for-a-shake-up-as-the-start-up-sector-matures/2013102411007">event for venture capital investors</a> in Sydney late last month.
“The start-up sector has been an emerging force over the last three years and we’re starting to see more founder investors and super angel activity which will filter through to venture capital,” Tang said.
Alan Jones is an investor and advisor for a range of start-ups including <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.startupsmart.com.au/growth/growth-strategy/bugherds-alan-downie-graduate-of-first-startmate-intake-shares-his-experience/2013102911041">BugHerd</a>, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.startupsmart.com.au/planning/business-planning/scriptrock-founder-discusses-startmate-and-moving-to-san-francisco/2013110111067">ScriptRock</a> and through the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.startupsmart.com.au/growth/business-advice-and-education/startmate-accelerator-opens-applications-for-fourth-intake/2013100710877">Startmate accelerator</a> program and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.startupsmart.com.au/financing-a-business/venture-capital/blackbird-ventures-venture-capitalist-rick-baker-tips-for-australian-tech-start-ups-aiming-for-silicon-valley/2013102911037">Blackbird Venture Capital</a> portfolio.
He told StartupSmart investing in start-ups would become increasingly popular as people seek investment options not shackled to commodity prices but instead driven by smart people tapping into new trends.
“People who are considering investing in start-ups often say it’s risky. But for those of us who are already doing it, we know we’re investing in people, technology and innovation. To me, that seems like a much safer investment than some of the other sectors where Australians invest such as mining, agriculture and aquaculture,” Jones says.
Jones says the tendency of Australian investors to pour money into industries vulnerable to fluctuating commodity prices needs to evolve.
“As no one in Australia has any influence on the future of commodity prices, it’s all speculation,” Jones says. “Sure, we have different challenges about gaining capital and getting permission to shoot for the moon, but usually when you start-up here, you’re servicing a global market and there are lots of options.”
While there is significant risk involved in investing in early stage companies, Jones says the early stage start-up investment community in Australia is growing as investors gravitate towards more personal connections with their investee companies.
“I’d rather back someone with a great technological idea, because the risks there are much more about picking the sentiment of customers correctly. The biggest thing about the tech start-up industry is there is no such as thing as a unique idea, so you need to find and back the team that will be the best at executing on their plans,” Jones says.

<hr>
This article first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.startupsmart.com.au/">StartupSmart</a>.
 
 
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Australian early stage investment is alive and growing, experts say

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The NSW Court of Appeal has opened the door for owners corporations for commercial buildings to bring claims of negligence for pure economic loss against builders - an action previously thought to be limited to subsequent purchasers of residential buildings.
Since the mid-1990s, the High Court has recognised the existence of a duty of care owed by a builder to a subsequent purchaser of residential premises for recovery of pure economic loss. It later refused, however, to extend this duty of care to a purchaser of a warehouse office building (Woolcock Street Investments Pty Ltd v CDG Pty Ltd (2004) 216 CLR 515).
Last month, the NSW Court of Appeal, in The Owners – Strata Plan No. 61288 v Brookfield Australia Investments Ltd [2013] NSWCA 317, found that the differences between the purchasers of residential and commercial properties are not as great as we might previously have thought. The key consideration for the court when establishing whether a builder owes a duty to a subsequent purchaser in respect of pure economic loss is the extent to which the purchaser is vulnerable.
The Owners - Strata Plan No. 61288 v Brookfield case concerned the construction of a mixed-use retail, restaurant, residential and serviced apartments building in Chatswood, NSW, in 1999.
The owners' corporation for the serviced apartments, which came into existence after completion of the building work on registration of the strata plan for the serviced apartments, discovered certain defects in the common property and, in November 2008, brought proceedings against the builder in negligence for pure economic loss.
The Court affirmed the importance of vulnerability of the plaintiff as a key factor in controlling the potentially expansive area of legal liability.  The vulnerability of the purchaser was a key factor in identifying the scope of the builder's duty of care to that purchaser.  Vulnerability refers to the purchaser's inability to protect itself from the consequences of the builder's failure to use reasonable care; whether than be in a physical sense (controlling the physical events that gave rise to the loss) or a legal sense (negotiating a contractual arrangement imposing liability on the builder).
The owners' corporation was found to be vulnerable in that the defects were latent and could not have been discovered by a purchaser exercising reasonable care; and there was no submission that the owners' corporation could in some way have protected itself by contract so as to impose liability on the builder.
While this case appears to expand the scope of a builder's liability to subsequent purchasers of buildings, the Court commented that this case does not in fact represent a radical change in the law, but is merely the application of existing principles to a novel set of facts.
 
<hr>
 Philip Dawson is a partner at <a href="https://www.claytonutz.com/?" target="_blank">Clayton Utz</a>.
 
 
 
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Court ruling allows commercial property owners corporations to bring negligence claims against builders

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Overall levels of home ownership are on a gradual decline in Australia, but the declines are sharp among younger households and people on low incomes. Generous government tax breaks for property investors are contributing to this decline in home ownership and an increasingly unequal housing market. Investors benefit from a 50% discount on capital gains tax (at a cost to the government’s budget of $4.4 billion per year) and negative gearing (costing $2.4 billion a year). Grattan Institute’s latest report, <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/publications/reports/post/renovating-housing-policy/" target="_blank">Renovating housing policy</a>, finds that these tax breaks not only fail to produce new housing, they are leading investors to bid up the prices of existing housing because of the tax benefits on offer. More first home buyers are locked out of the market as a result.
Grattan’s report proposes that the Commonwealth gradually ease these tax breaks, in conjunction with steps that stimulate new housing supply. These changes, outlined in the 2011 Grattan reports <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/publications/reports/post/the-housing-we-d-choose/" target="_blank">The housing we’d choose</a> and <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/publications/reports/post/getting-the-housing-we-want/" target="_blank">Getting the housing we want</a>, include reforming state and local planning systems so residents, developers, governments and local councils can achieve a long-term, negotiated approach to development.
But Grattan’s reform proposals to produce more housing and bring home ownership within the grasp of more Australians prompted a spirited defence of the status quo last week. An article by Nicola Trotman – “<a href="/news">Should negative gearing be abolished?</a>”, published in Crikey and Property Observer – quotes real estate industry players whose views are in part based on two myths.
Peter Bushby from the Real Estate Institute of Australia claims that tax concessions for investors help provide rental accommodation. But only 5% of money loaned for investment in housing in Australia goes toward building new housing. 95% goes to bidding up the price of existing housing. If new houses aren’t getting built, then one more taxpayer-subsidised investment property means one less owner-occupied home.
Historically low rental vacancy rates also show there is a shortage of rental properties, according to, among others, the Reserve Bank. And rents have gone up much more quickly than average wages over the last decade. If a discounted rate of capital gains tax and negative gearing are supposed to be getting new housing built, they’re doing a terrible job.
Both Bushby and Terry Ryder, of hotspotting.com.au, also state that restricting negative gearing in the mid-1980s caused the rental housing market to stall. Not true. In the two years from September 1985 in which negative gearing was restricted, lending for housing investment increased by 42%. Only two cities – Sydney and Perth – experienced increased growth in rents over this period, despite restrictions on negative gearing applying nationwide. And Sydney and Perth had been experiencing unusually low vacancy rates prior to the policy change. Growth in rents actually slowed in Melbourne, and other capital cities were stable.
Reform of tax concessions for property investors such as discounted capital gains tax and negative gearing won’t – and shouldn’t – happen overnight. But it’s important to be clear and honest about the consequences of these policies.
For most of the 1980s, a home buyer needed to save around a full year’s average income as a deposit for median priced housing. Now the corresponding deposit is roughly four times average annual income. Home ownership is heading out of reach for increasing numbers of Australians, and as Grattan’s report shows, tax breaks for property investors have contributed to the problem.
 
<hr>
 Jane-Frances Kelly is cities program director for the <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/" target="_blank">Grattan Institute</a>.
 
Paul Donegan is senior associate, cities for the <a href="https://grattan.edu.au/" target="_blank">Grattan Institute</a>. 
 
 
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Generous investor tax breaks contributing to unequal housing market

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Much was made of the September building approvals data yesterday <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/8731.0?OpenDocument" target="_blank">from the Australian Bureau of Statistics</a>, and with a 14.4% surge in approvals for new homes (seasonally adjusted), they certainly appear to remove any doubts that the home building sector has turned and has been accelerating (remembering this is historical data).
That’s critically important to the transition of the economy from the mining investment boom to a more traditional, housing-driven growth pattern sought by the RBA.
But there are a couple of points that need making. Much of the increase came from an 31.8% jump in new home units, townhouses and apartments, which is a very volatile part of the series. The same month in 2012 produced a big increase, with a 7.8% jump in total approvals, including an 18% rise in new home units and apartments. In July of this year, there was a 24.4% surge in new units, apartments and townhouse approvals and an overall rise of 10.8%. But in June there was a sharp fall of 12.6%, with approvals in home units, etc, down 37% for the year to June (the 2012-13 financial year).
This series depends heavily on approvals by local councils and tends to appear in the ABS data in bunches?—?as the above numbers indicate, it’s either feast or famine, and for that reason, the overall series is difficult to analyse. Even the trend series, which tends to smooth out the month-to-month changes, can be left behind by the big surges and falls in approvals in this area.
On trend, the September rise was 2.5% for all approvals (not 14.4%) and the year-to-date rise was 15.1%, not 18.6%. For the volatile apartments, etc, group, the trend increase in September was 5.6% for approvals against 31.8% for the seasonally adjusted figures. The year-to-date increase was 20.9% for the trend series against 31.9% for the seasonally adjusted.
The second point to be made is that the action is still in existing homes, not new home building, despite the latter hitting a three-year high in September, according to the Housing Industry Association. It’s the surging price of existing homes in Sydney that is catching the eye at the moment as competition between different groups of investors and private buyers are running into each other.
That’s why Reserve Bank governor Glenn Stevens specifically mentioned Sydney as the hotbed of investor competition in <a href="https://www.rba.gov.au/speeches/2013/sp-gov-291013" target="_blank">remarks made in Sydney on Tuesday</a>:
<blockquote>
“Investor participation in housing in Sydney, in particular, is becoming noticeably stronger. Over the past year, the rate of finance approvals for this purpose has increased by 40%.”
</blockquote>
When Stevens singles out one particular market, it’s a good idea to pay attention.
ABS figures show investors now account for 53.2% of all loans in New South Wales. In August, they borrowed more than $3.7 billion to invest in property. And the <a href="https://www.rba.gov.au/statistics/frequency/fin-agg/2013/fin-agg-0913" target="_blank">RBA’s credit data for September</a>, released yesterday, also confirmed the sharp growth in investor lending. According to the bank, investor lending for households grew 0.6% in September for a fourth successive month. That an annual rate of 7.2%, or twice the overall rate of growth in private lending and 50% faster than the 4.8% annual growth rate in all home lending the year to September. That helped total lending grow slightly faster than the 4.2% rate in loans to owner-occupiers in the year to September.
Data today from RP Data-Rismark showed a 1.3% rise in house prices last month in eight capital cities. Prices were up 7.9% for the year to October?—?but Sydney house prices jumped 2.4% in October, according to the survey. Prices rose 1.2% in Melbourne and 1.4% in Brisbane. But they fell 2.3% in Hobart reflecting some of the highest unemployment in the country in some areas). Prices in Perth dipped 0.2% in October and the annual growth rate fell to 9.4%. But in a separate survey yesterday, RP Data pointed out that adjusted for inflation, house prices still had a way to go. And compared to the stockmarket, property prices are still well behind. The ASX 200, the main index, was up 17% in the 20 months to October 31, and more than 20% in the past year.
And there are anecdotal stories of strong investor demand from offshore. <a target="_blank" href="https://www.crikey.com.au/2013/10/29/tips-and-rumours-996/">Crikey reported a tip</a> earlier in the week of a house that sold for $1.5 million above the reserve price (it went for $5 million) thanks to a bid from an offshore investor. It is easier for foreigners investing $5 million or more in Australia to secure an Australian visa. On top of this, there are also stories that Meriton, the country’s biggest apartment builder, is receiving strong demand from offshore (mostly China) for home units off the plan.
This is the sort of detail, by the way, that gets ignored in one of our favourite sub-genres in local financial reporting?—?the slavish reporting of views on<a href="https://www.afr.com/p/business/companies/central_banks_in_denial_about_asset_n251DLS54X6OedKno7G6wK" target="_blank">the Australian property market by foreign analysts</a> who assume that whatever applies in the UK or the US automatically applies here and therefore Australia?—?in its entirety?—?must have a property bubble.
In fact, the RBA is focused on how low interest rates are driving new home construction (its intended policy goal, along with hopefully driving the Aussie dollar down) versus driving higher prices for existing stock, and in Sydney in particular, which is the country’s biggest market but also one where the previous state Labor government oversaw a collapse in residential building. Talk about bubbles misses the point that the central bank is trying to engineer a transition from an investment boom back to Australia’s normal housing-led growth.
It’s a very different policy challenge to one facing banks in the UK, Europe and the US, where the problem is to create and sustain any growth at all.
 
<hr>
 This article first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.crikey.com.au">Crikey</a>.
 
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Keep property in context: Market is in transition, not in a bubble

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High expectations were placed on a bumper spring this season, with experts predicting our biggest property sales period in years. With record low interest rates and the election finally decided, talks of improved consumer confidence reached new heights.
It’s a little different for us down here in the Peninsula – unlike the rest of Melbourne our peak selling period is over the summer months. Don’t get me wrong, spring is still a busy period for us but I’d say we’re more in ‘ramp-up’ mode for the holiday season when our real estate frenzy really hits.
<img height="264" width="470" src="/images/stories/2013/11/01/peninsula-nov-1-breakout.jpg" alt="peninsula-nov-1-breakout">
Photo courtesy of Kevin Yank/flickr.
For the last 11 years, I’ve had my vendors tell me from as early as August that they’re happy to go on the market in spring; it was no different this year. Come the first day of September, we were away and racing.
One of the most interesting trends we’ve noticed this season is the rise of the auction. For holiday home markets like Rosebud, Dromana and Safety Beach where private sales have traditionally dominated, this spring we’re seeing a 70:30 split between auctions and private sales in favour of auctions. We have already conducted 10 auctions this spring alone - five years ago I’d be lucky if I had three auctions for the entire year. The hype around auctions in the broader Melbourne market has definitely started to trickle down to our area, with sellers beginning to see value in this sale method.
There’s also been a noticeable change in sentiment since the change in government – we found a lot of our vendors were fearful to sell before the election. September this year was a huge month for us with our sales nearly double the same time last year. We’ve also had really strong results this month with these properties in <a href="https://www.hockingstuart.com.au/?pagecall=property&amp;propertyID=2462208">Dromana</a> and <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-vic-rosebud-114620287">Rosebud</a> selling before auction and we’re expecting the same to happen to a four-bedroom home we have <a href="https://www.hockingstuart.com.au/3_PHILLIP_STREET_ROSEBUD_VIC_3939">in Phillip St Rosebud</a>.
{yoogallery src=[images/stories/2013/10/31/rose]}
We’ve also just listed a unique acreage – <a target="_blank" href="https://www.hockingstuart.com.au/60_OLD_WHITE_HILL_ROAD_DROMANA_VIC_3936">60 Old White Hill Road Dromana</a> – that will draw a lot of interest from retirees and holidaymakers.
{yoogallery src=[images/stories/2013/11/01/dro]}
Looking at buyer demand, the interest rate cuts have definitely made a difference but we’ve actually found the completion of the Peninsula Link in January to be the biggest driver for our market this year. People can now get to the Peninsula from the city in under an hour – before the freeway was open, you’d be looking at an average travel time of one and half to two hours depending on traffic. Our days on market have halved from an average of 120 days a year or two ago, to 60 days this year.
The other unique trend we’ve seen this spring has been in the rental market (which has shown particularly strong demand, we had more than 60 enquiries for a three-bedroom home we recently put on the rental market in <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-vic-safety+beach-411547723">Safety Beach</a>). We’ve had a few instances where people have chosen to lease a holiday home for the entire year after weighing up the benefits of outlaying $400-$500 a week rent for a year against mortgage repayments for 30 years. We’re finding that professionals in the 40-50 age bracket with disposable income are considering different ways to invest their money.
We’re definitely expecting stock levels and buyer demand to remain high moving into summer, with our activity really ramping up in January – I’m predicting a nominal increase in our sale prices and another interest rate cut before Christmas. But predicting interest rates is like predicting real estate; everyone thinks they know what’s going to happen when the truth is, no one actually knows what’s around the corner. All I know is if our results so far are anything to go by, I can guarantee it’s going to be a hot summer.
 
<hr>
Adam Alexander has 10 years experience in real estate on the Mornington Peninsula and is director of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.hockingstuart.com.au/?pagecall=misc&amp;pagemode=suburb&amp;contentID=106595">hockingstuart Rosebud.</a>
 
 
 
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The auctions are going to be a hot this summer: Mornington Peninsula state of the market

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Yarraville has been Melbourne’s best kept secret. Ten years ago, the median house price was just $316,000 and there was nothing more than a historic cinema and a milk bar. Fast forward to 2013 and the area is now bustling with shops, cafés and the Maribyrnong council has commenced work to improve traffic and roads in the area as part of the Yarraville Urban Design Framework.
Our median house price has now grown to $739,000 but is still viewed as one of the most affordable pockets within a 10 kilometre radius of Melbourne’s CBD when compared to the likes of Prahran, Richmond and Fitzroy which report median house prices of $837,500, $985,000 and $1,290,000 respectively.
<img alt="yarraville-oct-31-breakout" height="264" width="470" src="/images/stories/2013/10/31/yarraville-oct-31-breakout.jpg">
Photo: Sunset in Yarraville, courtesy Anthony W/flickr
It’s common knowledge the market hasn’t exactly been cracking hot the past couple of years, but things have definitely started to take a turn for the better this spring. We’ve seen an increase from one to two buyers per property earlier this year to three to four these past six weeks. Our office has recorded an average clearance rate of 90% compared to 70% last year, while days on market have decreased from 26 days last spring to 22 days currently. Our stock levels this spring have also nearly doubled, with only 40 properties on our books at the same time last year compared to the 76 homes we now have listed. Our increased activity is consistent with reports across broader Melbourne that a “spring boom” is erupting, with median house prices increasing by 14.9% since last spring.
There’s no doubt the market has been driven by record low interest rates and the federal election finally over – across the state agents have been reporting increased levels of activity in their local markets. For us, we also found a lot of people were gearing up to put their property on the market after the AFL Grand Final, with that and the election the trigger points for our spring selling season.
So where is all this extra interest coming from? Traditionally Yarraville has attracted young families and couples to the area, namely for the high supply of affordable, spacious period homes. However, one of the biggest trends we’ve seen this spring is a large influx of investors. It’s very unusual for us to see investors running neck and neck with first home buyers in our area but it’s evident they’re taking advantage of low interest rates.
For example, we recently sold a two-bedroom period home at <a target="_blank" href="https://www.onthehouse.com.au/reports/property_profile/5800756/71_Eirene_Street_YARRAVILLE_VIC_3013/">71 Eirene St</a> (pictured below) $96,000 above reserve due to investor bidding driving up the sale price. We’re also expecting high levels of investor interest at an upcoming auction in 74 Francis St Yarraville on the 30th November.
{yoogallery src=[images/stories/2013/10/31/yarra]}
So what’s in store for the rest of the year? Where interest rates are going is obviously the million dollar question – history tells us they can't remain at this level, so my bet is that they will start to increase in the first half of next year.
As for the Yarraville market, we’re definitely expecting to see investors and first home buyers continue to battle it out. Luckily for them there’s currently plenty of high quality stock so they’re spoilt for choice. But as per basic economic law of supply and demand, if the number of homes on the market continue rising at this level from eager sellers wanting to cash in on the ‘boom’, it will put buyers back in the driver’s seat. We’re awhile away from that yet – right now, it’s an even playing field but it won’t stay that way for long.

<hr>
Leo Dardha has 10 years experience in real estate and is director of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.hockingstuart.com.au/?pagecall=misc&amp;pagemode=agency&amp;agentID=3666">hockingstuart Yarraville</a>.
 
 
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First home buyers battling it out with investors: Yarraville state of the market

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Construction activity is not expected to recover to mining-boom levels and is due for anaemic growth – or real-terms decline – over the next two financial years, according to the Australian Industry Group’s latest construction outlook survey.
Engineering and commercial construction will come crashing down from its mining-fuelled 10.6% growth spurt in 2012/13 to grow 2% this year and 1% next year.
“This reflects weaker conditions across a range of infrastructure categories and resource-based heavy industrial sectors. However, telecommunications work is forecast to remain robust in line with the NBN roll-out and related investment. Levels of construction activity are also expected to hold up reasonably well in the oil and gas sector (despite a slower growth outlook) while civil projects (such as terminals and ports) are expected to still generate solid work in 2013/14 before weakening the following year,” the survey reported.
In 2014/15 commercial construction is due to recover to above-CPI growth of 4.4%.

<hr>
This article first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au">SmartCompany</a>.
 
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Anaemic growth predicted for construction sector over next two financial years

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Reserve Bank governor Glenn Stevens has today made clear the dollar is more likely to fall than rise, given the current economic conditions.
Speaking at an investment conference this morning Stevens said the current high Australian dollar is not supported by “levels of cost and productivity”.
“Moreover, the terms of trade are likely to fall, not rise, from here. So it seems quite likely that at some point in the future the Australian dollar will be materially lower than it is today,” he says.
He says US stimulus tapering “would lessen some of the difficulties we face in our own policy choices”.
Stevens also downplayed the fears of a house price bubble.
“Some rising in house prices is part of the normal cyclical dynamic, that it improves the incentive to build, and that a price rise reversing an earlier decline probably isn’t something to complain about too quickly,” he says.
“It has been a little too early to signal great concern.”
 
<hr>
 This article first appeared on <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au" target="_blank">SmartCompany</a>.
 
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Dollar likely to be “materially lower”, RBA governor Glenn Stevens says

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Building a new house is a big undertaking and there’s a good chance there’ll be a few stressful moments during the process.
Fortunately, there are plenty of steps you can take to minimise the problems. Load up your toolkit with some of these stress avoidance and management techniques, and keep your sanity along the way!
1. Have a clear idea about what you want to achieve from the outset
One of the best ways to avoid stress during a new build is by starting off with a comprehensive plan of what you want to achieve. There’ll always be issues you can’t account for, but making changes creates cranky builders and costs more in time and money. Spend some extra effort going over your plans before you start and you’ll save yourself unnecessary hassle down the line.
2. Back yourself
Once you’ve decided what you want, make sure you communicate your ideas firmly. You’ll probably come across a few tradespeople who do a bit of eye rolling when you tell them what you want, but it’s your build and it’s not necessary to justify your choices. There will be times, of course, when you need to weigh up the advice of professionals, but try to remember your goals and listen to your intuition. Hasty last minute changes can lead to substantial regret.
3. Make sure you understand everything
Misunderstandings can lead to a wide range of unnecessary complications, so make sure you ask lots of questions. If you’re not on a building site every day, there’s no way you can be expected to understand all the ins and outs of putting up a new home. Good tradespeople take the time to explain things thoroughly, without making you feel foolish and insecure.
4. Have realistic expectations 
Make sure you understand the costs and timing, and remember to expect the unexpected. Building is a multi-faceted process with lots of small steps, and sometimes things go wrong. Factor in a 10-20% budget contingency and add an extra six months to your build calendar so you won’t be overly stressed if the budget starts to creep or the building schedule hits a few snags.
5. Try to keep your emotions in check
This is probably one of the hardest things to do, especially if you’re building a home for your family. You want it to be right, and that’s understandable, but taking a step back and disconnecting your emotions a little can help you see more clearly. Building a new home should lead to happiness, not a heart attack, so if you find yourself getting angry or upset, take a deep breath and use your head instead. Solutions will be a lot easier to find.
6. Get Involved
Keeping an eye on things is important, especially if you don’t have a project manager or architect. If you spot any issues you can nip them in the bud before they get out of hand. Visit your site as often as possible and if you notice anything unusual, make sure you bring it up immediately. Don’t assume that it’s all under control, or that everyone knows the plan.
7. Maintain communication with your neighbours
No-one likes a raft of building trucks parked outside their home every day without an explanation or apology. Make an effort to let the neighbours know what’s happening, and offer them your mobile number if they want to discuss any issues.
Taking time to listen is often all it takes to keep the neighbours onside. Put yourself in their shoes, and offer some genuine understanding. Failing that, move on to some good old-fashioned bribery – a nice bottle of wine and a couple of movie tickets usually does the trick!
8. Spend some time on activities that don’t involve the build
The building process can be long and arduous so make sure you take some time out to clear your head. Unless there’s a bunch of urgent “do or die” issues sitting on your desk, factor in a couple of nights away or an afternoon on one of your hobbies. It will help reduce any pent up stress and re-ignite your enthusiasm for your project.
9.  See the stars
When it all gets too much, go outside at night and look up at the sky. Nothing puts it all in perspective like a couple of awe inspiring moments thinking about the size of universe. OK, so the builder ordered the wrong materials. Most things can be fixed, and in the grand scheme of things, it’s really not that bad.
Building a new home should be a positive experience, not one that leaves you feeling frazzled and disappointed. Although it’s nearly impossible to remove all the stress from the process, having realistic expectations, a comprehensive idea about want you want to achieve, good communication, and a time-out plan means you’re more likely to enjoy the experience.
And who knows… you might even want to do it all over again!

<hr>
Sam Crothers is the founder of <a href="https://www.houseplanology.com" target="_blank">www.houseplanology.com</a>, a home website that includes design and building resources, interviews with architects and designers, and a house plan directory. 
You can contact Sam at <a href="mailto:sam@houseplanology.com." target="_blank">sam@houseplanology.com.</a>
 
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Nine tips for maintaining your sanity while building a house: Sam Crothers

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/broadbeach-qld-4218">Broadbeach</a> offers plenty of reasons to live vertically, but moving from a substantial family home into an apartment can expose the compromises of high-density living. Privacy, room for guests and usable living space tend to matter more when an apartment is intended as a permanent home rather than an occasional coastal base.

A typical residential floor at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-eveleigh-broadbeach-7-9-surf-parade-broadbeach-qld-4218">The Eveleigh</a>, on Surf Parade,&nbsp;contains just four apartments. The 94-residence development by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/hirsch-faigen">Hirsch &amp; Faigen</a> is predominantly made up of expansive three-bedroom homes, with a limited collection of half-floor penthouses above.

Across the apartment floors, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/rothelowman">Rothelowman</a> has used the relatively limited number of residences to give each home greater access to natural light and outlook. Living spaces extend towards full-height glazing, while a series of bay windows frame selected views across the Pacific Ocean, city and hinterland rather than treating the building edge as a continuous wall of glass.

&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360965]

“The apartment floors deliver a collection of homes that embrace controlled outlook via a series of bay windows deliberately framing moments of view,” Rothelowman Director Kim Lowman said.

From outside, those projecting forms contribute to the tower’s faceted profile. Strong horizontal and vertical elements establish its proportions, while the changing position of the sun alters the light, shadow and reflection across the façade throughout the day.

The same attention moves inside the apartments, where the material palette combines warm timber, natural stone, metallic detailing and softer curved forms. Kitchens sit within the main living zone, with stone island benches, integrated joinery and European appliances, before the living areas extend towards the glazing and the outlook.

&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360981]

Three genuine bedrooms provide room to accommodate family and guests, while two secure car spaces and storage address some of the practical considerations that can become more noticeable when moving from a larger home. Feedback from the display suite has centred on the warmth and restraint of the interiors, with buyers commenting that the residences feel like homes rather than conventional coastal apartments.

A limited collection of half-floor penthouses occupies the upper levels, increasing the scale of the living spaces and adding private balconies and elevated finishes. From this position, the outlook extends between the ocean and hinterland.

Outside the private residences, The Eveleigh separates its shared spaces between the podium and rooftop. The podium is centred on wellness, with subtropical landscaping surrounding a swimming pool and pool terrace, yoga garden, private gymnasium, sauna and hot and cold plunge facilities. Landscaped retreats and pavilions provide additional places to sit away from the main recreation areas.

&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360966]

Higher in the building, a rooftop pavilion and private dining suite sit alongside resident lounge, barbecue and outdoor dining areas, opening towards panoramic views across the ocean, city and hinterland.

“Buyers are no longer just looking for an apartment, but a lifestyle where they can relax, reset, and enjoy a balanced way of living,” Hirsch &amp; Faigen Director of Sales Matt George said.

Interest to date has come from established owner-occupiers and interstate lifestyle purchasers, including buyers planning a future move to the Gold Coast. Many are coming from larger homes and want to reduce ongoing maintenance without giving up space for family and guests, privacy, two car spaces or the ability to entertain at home.

&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360969]

Much of that daily life can also take place beyond the building without requiring a drive. Kurrawa Beach and Pratten Park are an easy walk from Surf Parade, while Pacific Fair, Oracle Boulevard, The Oasis, restaurants, cafés, entertainment and public transport are also within walking distance.

The Eveleigh is Hirsch &amp; Faigen's fourth Gold Coast development since entering the market in 2021, following The Hemingway at Palm Beach, The Emerson at Kirra and Yves at Mermaid Beach. Each of the preceding projects sold out before completion.

“Broadbeach had been on our radar throughout our time operating on the Gold Coast,” the developer said. “Following our projects in Palm Beach, Kirra and Mermaid Beach, Broadbeach represented the natural next step for the business.”

The Surf Parade site brought together proximity to the beach, protected coastal outlooks and walkability to dining, shopping and recreation. Hirsch &amp; Faigen also identified the street as an emerging premium residential address, with enough separation from Broadbeach's busier destinations to retain a quieter environment at home.

The Eveleigh is now under construction by Maxcon, with completion forecast for mid-2028. Three-bedroom residences are currently available from $2.87 million.

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Joel Robinson

The Eveleigh brings house-like apartments to Broadbeach

A long-stalled Campbelltown development site is back in play, with new plans for 139 apartments set to supersede a mixed-use scheme approved almost a decade ago but never built.

The new proposal for 28 Cordeaux Street would deliver 116 market and 23 affordable apartments in a part 14-storey building, bringing a substantial new project into a Campbelltown market where new apartment supply remains limited.

Plans have been filed over the 3,092 sqm corner site at Moore-Oxley Street, around 600 metres from Campbelltown Railway Station and the city-centre retail core.

The site already carries a mixed-use residential approval dating to 2016. Doroch Architects has now been engaged on a larger replacement scheme, which is progressing as a State Significant Development Application following a Housing Delivery Authority determination in August 2025.

The apartment mix comprises 39 one-bedroom, 72 two-bedroom and 28 three-bedroom residences. Two-bedroom apartments make up just over half of the project, while three-bedroom homes account for 20 per cent.

<img alt="First look: New 139-apartment plans revive long-stalled Campbelltown city centre site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="136dd5b9-3791-4da6-9e31-76f533f5b4de" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Campbelltown%20da2.png?VersionId=LgOSy9nwf5u.MGswBBwaGGxuX8QpHSl_" />

Of the 139 apartments, 23 will be delivered as affordable housing under the in-fill affordable housing provisions of the Housing SEPP. The affordable component represents 15 per cent of the residential gross floor area and will be managed by a registered Community Housing Provider.

Doroch has sought to break the scale of the building into two distinct elements, with a masonry podium of around four storeys establishing the street edge before the residential tower steps back above.

The corner position has shaped that approach. Cordeaux Street faces toward the commercial and civic centre, while Moore-Oxley Street leads into the lower-scale residential neighbourhood to the south, and the design verification report describes the site as "bridging the commercial core to the north and established residential areas to the south."

The podium will be expressed predominantly in face brick, while the upper levels shift to brushed and grooved concrete cladding with darker metal detailing. Recessed sections, deep balcony edges and landscaping break down the upper form, with an approximately 11.8-metre setback to the northern boundary addressing the adjoining St Peters Anglican School.

<img alt="First look: New 139-apartment plans revive long-stalled Campbelltown city centre site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="c8b3d2d3-c561-4bfc-a5d9-a68c0c10dac1" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Campbelltown%20da1.png?VersionId=AeAEyJU02Gk2k5noUj2StziCvdQ7fW4B" />

Campbelltown has been starved of new residential developments in the last decade.

The only other notable development set to come to market this year is ALAND's Queen Square, a mixed-use precinct on over two hectares that will comprise apartments above a vibrant ground-level retail and hospitality dining precinct.

First look: New 139-apartment plans revive long-stalled Campbelltown city centre site

First Look: Sherlock Construction pitches apartments for low-rise Deception Bay

Queensland builder-developer MAYD has revealed the first look at its major North Kirra beachfront development, lodging amended plans that reduce the number of apartments and increase the proportion of larger residences.

The project is planned across a substantial 4,742 sqm amalgamated site spanning seven lots at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/2-6-pacific-parade-bilinga-qld-4225">2-6 Pacific Parade</a> and 27-33 Golden Four Drive in Bilin​ga, directly opposite Nor​th Kirra Beach.

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/mayd-group">MAYD</a> secured the site for $32.5 million in 2025, in what was one of the Gold Coast's largest property transactions of the year.

The development will be delivered across two stages, with the first stage carrying an estimated gross realisation value of around $360 million.

The latest amendments seek to reduce the overall apartment count and shift the project further toward the owner-occupier market, with larger residences designed for buyers wanting considerably more space than traditionally offered in a beachfront apartment.

The residential mix will include townhomes, oversized two-bedroom apartments, substantial three-bedroom residences and four-bedroom homes.

MAYD has appointed Cera Stribley to lead the architecture and interiors, with the Melbourne-based design practice drawing on the beachfront setting through a series of ocean-facing terraces and heavily landscaped balconies.

Strong horizontal forms and curved balconies will define the exterior, with subtropical landscaping integrated throughout the building to soften the built form and increase the connection between the residences and the beachfront.

The project will also include an extensive collection of resident wellness and lifestyle facilities, continuing the broader shift across the Gold Coast's luxury apartment market toward larger homes supported by resort-style amenity.

<img alt="MAYD" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="d1bcbb05-e659-4b47-8bd4-1e595315e2ad" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-27%20at%202.05.03%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=jj0XEud1X1DuLt7_KyElhjMdZGOXmLHP" />

MAYD Founder Todd Mould said North Kirra was increasingly appealing to buyers attracted to the more established, lower-density character of the southern Gold Coast.

"North Kirra presents one of the most compelling luxury residential opportunities currently emerging in Australia, combining absolute beachfront with the character and authenticity that buyers are increasingly seeking, and the same sense of tight-knit community that defined Burleigh and Currumbin perhaps 10 or 15 years ago," Mould said.

"With Gold Coast Airport on its doorstep, it also offers a level of accessibility that broadens its appeal across almost every market demographic."

The project comes as the southern Gold Coast continues to attract an increasing share of high-end apartment development and buyer activity.

Kirra in particular has emerged as one of the region's more tightly held beachfront markets, with its relatively low-density character, established surf and hospitality scene and proximity to Gold Coast Airport differentiating it from the higher-density markets further north.

Mould said those characteristics had informed the approach MAYD and Cera Stribley had taken to the project.

"We've worked closely with Cera Stribley to create a vision that is deeply connected to its surroundings," he said.

"Inspired by the coastline itself, the architecture has been shaped around space, privacy and resort-style living, creating a collection of homes that reflects the next generation of luxury on the southern Gold Coast."

MOTIV Managing Director Carly Cottam, who has been appointed to market the project, said buyer attention had continued to move south along the Gold Coast.

"Purchasers who may once have defaulted to Broadbeach, Main Beach or Surfers Paradise are increasingly recognising the value of a genuine beachfront location that offers lower density, strong amenity and a more established sense of community," Cottam said.

"Kirra has a powerful combination of growing demand and genuine scarcity. Beachfront supply is inherently constrained, the area remains relatively low density, and buyers are increasingly placing a premium on locations that feel established, uncrowded and authentic rather than heavily developed."

Cottam said the proximity to Gold Coast Airport was also proving increasingly important for interstate and second-home buyers.

"Being minutes from Gold Coast Airport makes it particularly compelling for interstate buyers, frequent travellers and second-home purchasers who can access an authentic coastal lifestyle almost immediately after stepping off a flight."

The acquisition takes MAYD's active development portfolio to more than $500 million, with the North Kirra project representing one of its largest undertakings to date.

MAYD is targeting an early 2027 launch.

First look at MAYD's North Kirra mixed-use precinct

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Castle Hill, the longtime hub of the Hills District, has been one of the major beneficiaries of Sydney's Metro expansion, with improved connectivity helping drive continued population growth, development and buyer demand across the Hills District.

But despite that growth, the suburb has seen relatively few major new apartment projects brought to market over the past 18 months.

Hills District developer Reve Group is looking to fill that gap with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/nova-r-ve-castle-hill-2-garthowen-crescent-castle-hill-nsw-2154">Nova Rêve</a>, a major new mixed-use precinct on the corner of Garthowen Crescent and Old Castle Hill Road, a short walk from Castle Hill Metro Station and Castle Towers.

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The project will comprise three residential towers alongside a hotel, restaurants, cafes and a skybar, more than 1,600 sqm of ground-floor retail and almost an acre of landscaped gardens.

It represents the largest project undertaken by Reve Group, the development arm of the Kassis family, which has been building across the Hills District for more than 30 years through Kassis Homes.

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Nova Rêve also represents a significant step up from the family's first apartment development, Grand Rêve, which was delivered nearby on Garthowen Crescent.

Grand Rêve introduced larger, house-like apartment layouts and premium inclusions including Wolf and Sub-Zero appliances to the Castle Hill market.

Nova Rêve takes that approach to a precinct scale, combining the residential component with hospitality, retail and substantial public and resident landscaping.

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Reve Group Managing Director Sam Kassis said the project reflected the family's three decades of building in the Hills, which has evolved from trophy homes on quarter-acre blocks to larger-scale apartment development.

"Grand Rêve was our first apartment project here and it showed us what this pocket of Castle Hill could be. Nova Rêve is the refinement of that idea: not just apartments, but a place the whole suburb can use," Kassis said.

A key part of that approach is the hotel, which has been designed to operate as an amenity for the wider Castle Hill community rather than solely hotel guests.

It will include restaurants, cafes, skybars and all-day dining, alongside conference and event facilities catering to business functions, community groups and private events.

At ground level, more than 1,600 sqm of shops and cafes will open onto the surrounding streets and landscaped areas.

Almost an acre of gardens designed by Land and Form Studios will run through the precinct, incorporating pathways, seating, barbecue areas and children's play spaces.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377680]

Reve Group's Romio Georges said creating an active ground plane had been central to the planning of Nova Rêve.

"There are gardens with pathways, barbecues, seating and play areas, shops and cafes opening onto the street, and a hotel with restaurants and a skybar that anyone in Castle Hill can walk into," Georges said.

The project's elevated position on one of Sydney's highest ridgelines will also provide apartments with outlooks toward the Sydney skyline, surrounding parkland and the Blue Mountains.

More than 80 per cent of the apartments will occupy corner positions, with Turner responsible for both the architecture and interiors.

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Jacob Robinson

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