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Evolve Development and Hassell architects have come together to create South Melbourne’s ‘Jewel’, a 65 apartment development at 244 Dorcas Street.
The seven levels of apartments at <a href="https://jewelsouthmelbourne.com.au/" target="_blank">Jewel</a> are expected to attract 60% owner occupiers and 40% investors. New residents are likely to move into the $45 million project by late-2016.
All apartments come with a storage and bicycle space, while all apartments except for all 19 one bedroom apartments and five of 15 ‘premium’ one bedroom apartments have car spaces.
In total, nine one bedroom plus study apartments and 22 two bedroom, two bathroom apartments will include parking.
A retail tenancy, with a car space, will also be featured in the development.
<img src="/images/2014/12/11/south-melbourne-dec-11-one.jpg" alt="">
The one bedroom apartments, spanning 45.1 square metres internally plus a further 4.9 square metre terrace, have price indications of $395,000 to $440,000.
The ‘premium’ one bedroom apartments will be priced from $450,000 to $575,000. They range from 48.5 square metres to 52.3 square metres internally with a 5.4 square metre to 24 square metre terrace.
One bedroom plus study apartments, spanning 56.4 square metres to 58.1 square metres internally, plus a 5.2 square metre to 28 square metre terraces, will be priced from $540,000 to $620,000.
The two bedroom, two bathroom apartments will range from $685,000 to $960,000, with internal sizes of 61.5 square metres to 93.9 square metres. They will feature terraces spanning from 7.0 square metres to 69.2 square metres.
The development is expected to achieve a 4 star/green star sustainability rating. Some of its features include solar power for the common areas’ electricity and a 15,000 litre rainwater tank in the basement.
Evolve director and founder Ashley Williams said that they are a Melbourne-only developer and the Jewel apartments are in a sought after location.
“Given the high quality of architecture and finishes we expect Jewel to appeal mostly to owner occupiers looking for an oasis to call home, with commanding sea and city views, with  the popular South Melbourne lifestyle at the doorstep,” said Williams.
Evolve Development has completed $11.8 million Keilor project The Orchard, $190 million Southbank project The Guilfoyle and $127 million Melbourne CBD Queens Road project Monarc. They are currently working on other projects in Epping, Williamstown and Mickleham. Future projects are expected to be seen in Southbank, Clyde, Hillside and Wollert.
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jduke-EHk3XBmHkn

South Melbourne's 65 apartment Jewel development launched

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Recent housing finance figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show positive signs for new home building moving into early 2015.
Comparing October 2013 and October 2014 in Tasmania, the increase is 61.5%. Meanwhile, the Northern Territory and the ACT also scored double figures with 35.1% and 12.3% increases.
Victoria, Western Australia, Queensland and New South Wales all recorded increases of 9.5%, 8.5%, 4.2% and 1.2% respectively.
South Australia, however, declined by 3.3%.
The Housing Industry Association’s economist Diwa Hopkins noted that comparing the results from 12 months ago some big gains have been realised, particularly when looking at the total number of owner occupier loans for new housing.
 “While total lending to owner occupiers, excluding refinancing, eased by 1.4% during the month of October, loans to those constructing a new home expanded by 1.5% to a level that is 14.6% higher than 12 months previously,” said Hopkins.
“On the investor side of the ledger, lending for the construction of rental housing or housing for resale remained strong during the month. The value of lending edged higher by 0.5% to be 24.3% higher than a year previously,” she said.
Hopkins pointed to APRA’s updated guidelines on supervision of lending practices and the flexibility of their approach, and expressed that it is important that residential construction is affected as a result.
“There has been a string of disappointing data updates to the wider economy in recent weeks, but the residential construction sector has remained fairly resilient. Policymakers should be working to ensure that the sector can continue to be a key source of strength in the wider economy as the re-balancing of domestic growth continues to take effect,” she said.
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New home building activity set for a strong 2015: HIA

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At present, the New South Wales government allows two storey houses to be put through a 10 day planning approvals under the current housing code.
However, Urban Taskforce’s CEO Chris Johnson says that this quicker approval code should be extended to more developments to assist with Sydney’s supply problems.
While he acknowledges that taller towers will be crucial in this mix, he says that unsurprisingly they do take longer to be assessed.
For mid-rise apartments, of six to eight storeys, he suggests that a 30 day approval could be brought in.
“With Sydney’s projected population growth requiring a doubling of the number of homes over the next 50 years, we must encourage more mid-rise apartments as a major component of housing such large growth,” he said.
“We cannot rely only on two storey houses so a mid-rise apartment code with 30 day approvals will be needed.”
They have created a two page Complying Code that could be introduced for mid-rise apartments.
The requirements in the code include specific rules for setbacks, heights, landscaping, parking, apartment size and so on, and also requires architects to design the development.
“The planning system does not need vast volumes of complex rules. Our code respects the context and the amenity of neighbours as well as requiring an expert to deliver a quality result,” he said.
“Mid-rise apartments represent a third way to deliver housing between two storey houses and high-rise apartment towers. At a height of six to eight storeys these apartments are family friendly with parents able to keep an eye on children playing in a common garden. They also blend into the landscape well as the Australian gum tree grows to height similar to an eight storey building."
He also suggested that large areas featuring 1960s walk up flats could be renewed under the new code.
“The proposed mid-rise apartment code would be a strong signal from the government that it supports this building type as a preferred way to house the growing future population,” he said.
The full <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/urbanideas/december2014/" target="_blank">Complying Code is available online (page 6)</a>.
{mijopolls 70}
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Is 30-day approval for mid-rise apartments the solution for Sydney’s supply?

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With a number of experts now tipping a rate cut next year, 1300HomeLoan’s managing director John Kolenda is adding his voice to the crowd.
In fact, he notes that with significant drops to consumer confidence the evidence for a potential cut is becoming increasingly compelling.
The Westpac-Melbourne Institute survey of consumer sentiment is now at the lowest point in more than three years, he said.
This drop offsets a slightly better than forecast rise in the number of home loans in October – at 0.3%, 0.2% higher than expected.
“There’s growing expectations that the RBA will have to further ease its cash rate in the coming year due to deteriorating economic conditions and all eyes will be on how the retail sector fares over Christmas,” said Kolenda.
“Consumers are worried about the outlook for the economy and job security. Negativity about the federal government’s ability to get its budget measures through the Senate has also weighed on the minds of consumers.”
“Unlike other central banks around the world, the RBA has plenty of room to play with and the question may be when they have to act next on rates, not if,” he said, noting that the falling Aussie dollar may also cause a drop.
Yesterday <a href="/expert-insights/finance/nabs-alan-oster-says-30-chance-of-three-2015-rate-cuts">NAB’s Alan Oster suggested that up to three rate cuts may be seen next year.</a>
In October, <a href="/expert-insights/finance/interest-rates-expected-to-rise-for-three-years-here-s-when-the-first-hike-will-be-finder">every expert surveyed in Finder’s monthly Reserve Bank Survey tipped the next rate movement to be up</a>. Since then, the number of experts expecting a cut has been on the rise. Here are <a href="/expert-insights/finance/the-experts-who-are-now-predicting-a-2015-rate-cut">the other experts expecting a drop</a>.
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1300HomeLoan adds voice to crowd of rate cut forecasters

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While the economy’s not booming, it is improving, according to CBRE’s Market Outlook Australia report.
The report notes that average yields are expected to decrease next year in retail and industrial property.
Offices are expected to see stabilising average yields.
<img src="/images/2014/12/10/cbre%20dec%2010%20one.png" alt="">
Source: CBRE
However, while 2014 has seen a downward shift in yields in all three sectors and varying conditions in tenant markets, 2015’s limited rent growth expectations should be seen as a slight positive coming off of a softening yield year.
“Our broad view is that prime yields will stabilise through the year as the rent cycle is weak and IRRs remains steady. Further softening in Perth/Brisbane offsets modest compression in Sydney/Melbourne in 1H 2015,” the CBRE report noted.
Looking towards industrial, however, they noted that prime warehouse continues to perform well in comparison to secondary stock. Those with prime warehouse assets may see some rental growth.
Larger format retail and sub-regional/neighbourhood centres are also expected to outperform in the retail category, while those with prime retail may not have such a good 2015.
For the majority of commercial assets it seems CBRE is predicting a slow growth environment.
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Commercial rent expectations for 2015: CBRE

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A number of property industry members have told us about this data scraping website house.ksou.cn, yet it seems very few know where it has come from.
<img src="/images/2014/12/10/house-dec-10-breakout.jpg" alt="">
Offering sold prices for free in an easily accessible Google-style way, <a href="https://house.ksou.cn/" target="_blank">house.ksou</a> also offers a ‘School’ function that allows you to search schools and gives you information as to the type of school, how it performs and other details.
The portal has been the source of discussion on property forums for some time, particularly in regards to whether the data is accurate.
This unusual property portal has seen much speculation as to its ownership in recent days and as to where the data comes from, so use it as a starting point and not as your only research hub. It hosts some Google Adsense advertisements.
It also doesn’t cover every area in Australia, with best coverage in Victoria and New South Wales.
Auction results, profiles of suburbs and new home information are also listed and it provides the option to subscribe to sold results through an email sendout.
The URL is registered to a Beijing address, unsurprising given the .cn extension, and appears to have been registered on 6 June, 2005.
The profiles of suburbs clearly explain that the site is geared towards Chinese buyers. When you click into ‘suburb profile’ and look at who is born overseas, ‘Chinese suburb’ is at the top of the list. This shows you popular suburbs for Chinese buyers.
Millers Point, Chatswood, Burwood, Ultimo, Artarmon, Hurstville, Chatswood West, East Wood, Hurstville Grove, Homebush, Campsie, Homebush West, Ashfield, Carlingford, Carlton, Kingsgrove, Penshurst, Beverly Hills, Harris Park, Parramatta, Narwee, Marsfield and Allawah are the New South Wales areas <a href="https://house.ksou.cn/suburbtop.php?sta=nsw&amp;cat=Born+Overseas&amp;name=Viet+Nam" target="_blank">noted as having double figure percentages of Chinese people in the area</a>.
The ‘About Us’ page is just as elusive as the rest of the site.
“House sales data is quite open and transparent in Australia, weekly auction results, recent sold prices on famous realestate (sic) websites and agent websites etc. (sic)," it says.
“However, the data is scattered on many corners of the internet, and the detailed historic sales data must be paid for,” it explains.
It notes that their idea was to build a free “home sold price website” that automatically collects data from many sources for home buyers.
Their FAQ notes that the data is updated daily, with the oldest home auction record in 2008 and that the data comes from “weekly auction results, realestate (sic) agents and famous realestate (sic) websites”.
Property reports on the site are not completely up to date. We double checked some recent settlements (in the past three months) that we have been aware of and found that the records still retain their older details.
On FlatMates.com at least one user has linked to this site instead of a mainstream listings portal to advertise a room available for rent in St Kilda.
Property Observer has requested comment through the available Feedback form on the website.
If you have a tip on where this site comes from and the source of the data, email: <a href="mailto:jduke@propertyobserver.com.au" target="_blank">jduke@propertyobserver.com.au</a>
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What do you know about property portal house.ksou?

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Finder.com.au’s co-founder Fred Schebesta has urged Australia’s banks to become more accountable and independent.
Speaking about the Financial System Inquiry report released over the weekend, he said that we welcomes the inquiry, which makes clear that Australian banks are not even close to being globally competitive.
“Australian banks are not even close to being globally competitive in so many ways. This is insular thinking from an insular country that needs to think about actually being globally competitive for any future chance of expanding,” Fred Schebesta said.
He went on to say that Australia needs to “stop being a little island”.
“Start earning profits not just from Australia but from all around the world. Australia could become the new global Switzerland of finance with global banks around the world,” he said.
“Comparatively, the Australian financial system is a joke – we’re isolated and currently pretty terrible at integration. There’s some huge risks, for example the big four banks are so similar in business structure that it’s crucial they take on more capital – if something comes along and cripples our economy, we’re going to see all four crumble in the exact same way.”
He said that the Inquiry is a wake up call for Australia with one of the main issues being a lack of transparency.
“It’s great to see that a key message from the Inquiry was the need for more transparency. It’s about time it was seriously recognised that guidance and disclosure needs to be improved, especially in general insurance,” he said.
“It’s not fair that some institutions purposefully hide who they are owned by because they don’t want people to know that they favour or conflict with the provider. Institutions need to understand that hiding their identity makes them untrustworthy to the public.”
He said that all financial and any advice from comparison sites, brokers, financial institutions and others in Australia should disclose their ownership structure. He also said that more disclosure around pricing is necessary.
“This will give consumers a much clearer perspective on the incentives that are driving the decisions of that entity,” explained Schebesta.
“I think consumers will start getting more independent advice which will mean better financial outcomes for Australians.”
You can read <a href="/expert-insights/finance/how-mortgage-comparison-websites-make-money">Property Observer’s analysis of how comparison websites make money here</a>.
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Australian financial system is “a joke”: Finder.com.au

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North Ryde development Ryde Garden features a number of apartments, some with views to the city, and architecture and interiors by Bates Smart Architects.
CBRE is now advertising the “last chance” to get up to $12,000 off when purchasing a one, two or three bedroom apartment in <a href="https://www.rydegarden.com.au">Ryde Garden</a> priced from $530,000.
The three apartment buildings that make up Ryde Garden come with rooftop gardens. It notes that the current advertised prices are "discounted" by $12,000.
Developed by Hong Kong listed development company Country Garden, who also <a href="/expert-insights/buying/ryde-garden-debut-for-country-garden-australia">previously expressed interest in buying Harry Triguboff’s Meriton</a>, it is their Australian debut and features around 830 dwellings.
In<a href="/expert-insights/buying/strong-off-the-plan-sales-at-country-gardens-ryde-garden-project"> June, it was reported that they’d had strong off the plan sales</a>, achieving $186 million in a six hour launch spree. Prices for one bedroom apartments started at $488,000, with two bedroom apartments from $688,000 and three bedroom apartments from $888,000.
Country Garden purchased the site in late-2013 and the project is slated for completion in 2017.
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Apartments at Ryde Garden 'discounted' by up to $12,000

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Yesterday, APRA stated that they had sent letters to all authorised deposit taking institutions (ADIs) outlining the steps they intend to take to enforce residential lending practices.
APRA noted that they would be increasing supervisory oversight onto lending.
Here are five comments to note:
<ol>
<li>“Interest rates remain at historically low levels, household leverage remains high, and housing loans represent a large and increasing concentration on many ADI balance sheets. Strong competition in the housing market is also evident, which is accentuating pressure on lending standards. Against this backdrop, housing credit growth has accelerated, with lending to property investors particularly strong; the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has noted that this could be funding additional speculative activity in the market.” </li>
<li>“There are a number of additional regulatory and supervisory tools that APRA can apply to address emerging risks, building on the enhanced monitoring and review of recent years. These include additional supervisory monitoring and oversight, supervisory actions involving Pillar 2 capital requirements for individual ADIs, and higher regulatory capital requirements at a system-wide level. Beyond this, there are also more direct controls such as regulatory limits on lending activities, as introduced in other jurisdictions to manage risks emerging in the housing market.” They do note that they do not propose increases in system-wide capital or to introduce new regulatory limits, but does say they will keep them “under active review”. </li>
<li>Higher risk lending includes, for example, a high proportion of lending at high loan to income ratios (LTI), lending at high loan to valuation ratios (LVRs), lending on an interest-only basis to owner-occupiers for lengthy periods and lending at very long terms. In the current environment, where an ADI is undertaking large volumes of lending in these categories, or increasing this higher risk lending as a proportion of new lending, this will be a trigger for the consideration of supervisory action.” </li>
<li>“Given the currently very strong growth in investor lending, supervisors will be particularly alert to plans for rapid growth in this part of the portfolio. For example, annual investor credit growth materially above a benchmark of 10 per cent will be an important risk indicator that supervisors will take into account when reviewing ADIs’ residential mortgage risk profile and considering supervisory actions. The benchmark is not intended as a hard limit, but ADIs should be mindful that investor loan growth materially above this rate will likely result in a supervisory response.” </li>
<li>“The serviceability buffer assumed by ADIs as part of this assessment accommodates not only future changes in interest rates but also unexpected changes in borrower income and expenses. Practice in setting the serviceability buffer varies across the industry, with some assessments allowing borrowers to take on debt at very high multiples of their income.”</li>
</ol>
APRA notes that a prudent serviceability buffer is at least 2% above the loan product rate, with a minimum floor assessment rate of 7%.
They do suggest that “good practice” is the maintain a buffer and floor rate above these levels rather than operating at the minimum expectation, and that those who do keep to the minimum will more likely face further supervision.
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Five comments from APRA about lending standards

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The odds of your self managed super fund getting an Auditor Contravention Report (ACR) are just 53 to one, according to information provided by Chris Hocking Strategies.
An ACR is a notice that super law has been contravened in your self managed superannuation fund (SMSF) and that they have been detected and reported to the Australian Tax Office (ATO).
With 11,000 ACRs issued in 2013/2014, Chris Hocking Strategies explains that the ATO has made it obvious that those trustees who identify and actively address the contraventions will be viewed more favourably, with each ACR assessed by the ATO as either low, medium or high risk.
Your accountant or financial adviser should be speaking to the ATO for you in these situations. If you need to speak to the ATO then do so when you have prepared yourself, they suggest.
Low risk: Will be dealt with by a letter or phone call to trustee within eight weeks of the ATO receiving the ACR from the auditor.
Medium risk: A phone call to the trustee is likely to discuss the contraventions.
High risk: The SMSF will likely receive a comprehensive or full audit to look for additional problems.
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Odds of SMSFs getting a contravention report are 53 to one

Property developer One Living, backed by former Macquarie banker turned investment manager Chris Green’s investment firm, has unveiled plans to bring more institutional capital into housing to help address the national supply crisis.

The New York-based investor has focused his firm, GreenPoint Partners, on addressing the supply shortage hitting middle market housing in Australia.

It is backing the new One Living business to develop more than 1000 units along the eastern seaboard. The new firm is starting with a development on Mona Vale Road, on the border of Mona Vale and Pymble, in Sydney’s Northern Beaches, with around 140 apartments planned. They are eyeing off more sites across the city.

With cost pressures rising in the industry, One Living’s model is to be a vertically integrated developer-builder, so it can respond directly to the housing gap by removing the cost inefficiencies embedded in traditional residential delivery.

“We are building a platform designed to operate at scale and starting in a market where there’s a clear need for quality, attainable housing,” One Living joint managing director Joseph Scuderi said.

“It’s that missing middle – it’s that attainable end of housing… that’s what most Australians invest into and what Australians can actually afford.”

<img alt="Mona Vale" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="798dfa93-4941-4db6-a696-31e9dc18e81c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%202.31.50%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=mKBqi5C_DmeiXS.AtJkcR8LQIxqCqmFi" />

GreenPoint Partners brings years of experience assembling and scaling real estate operating businesses across major markets. And Green sees a big opportunity in Australia.

“For its size, sophistication and importance to the community, Australia’s living sector has remained largely under-institutionalised, which represents significant opportunity,” Green said. “GreenPoint identified that gap, assembled the right team, and is backing One Living to build a platform that is aligned to market needs.”

Green said being a builder-developer would give the company the capacity and flexibility it required to deliver reasonably-priced homes.

“We want it to be at that attainable level; not super high end luxury but at that attainable level,” he said.

<img alt="Mona Vale" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="74a5344a-4b26-4d4a-ada3-056b1220be77" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%202.32.15%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=vY8hXHO4reBMdO8ZXMWCNtGZJofUPQ3j" />

&nbsp;

One Living will undertake a component of affordable housing in its schemes, which it will own and operate, and it could also run build-to-rent on some sites.

Green praised local policy settings.

“The NSW government is being very supportive, strategic and pragmatic in terms of how do we generate more supply of housing,” he said. “We think it’s actually positive for development and the bit that’s been lacking at that attainable level is that it’s lots of relatively small private developers, whereas we want to create an institutional platform.”

One Living is also&nbsp;looking at high-density projects and could take on more institutional funding in the future.

“The way we will be able to achieve economies of scale is through size,” Green added.

Joel Robinson

One Living enters Sydney's new apartment market with Northern Beaches site acquisition

It's been several years since there's been an opportunity to buy a brand new townhome in Melbourne's coastal suburb of Mordialloc. Even apartment developments in recent times have been few and far between in the area.

Local developer LDS Property identified the gap in new housing, securing a site on White Street, directly opposite&nbsp;Woodlands Golf Club Mordialloc. They've recently launched&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-townhouses/wm-residences-mordialloc-102-white-street-mordialloc-vic-3195">WM Residences</a>, just 13 townhouses which they have already started building.

Projects by Buxton Director Heath Thompson, who is selling WM Residences, says the townhouses x that perfect middle ground be

"Mordialloc residents have had limited options to downsize within the suburb, often forcing them to look elsewhere despite long-standing ties to the area," Thompson says.

"With very little comparable new supply coming to market, projects like WM Residences are well placed, particularly as buyers look to capitalise on current conditions amid constrained supply."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134646 project_image_fid=6109]

The development, designed by regarded architecture firm&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/ewert-leaf">Ewert Leaf</a>,&nbsp;adopts a deliberately restrained architectural approach, focusing on simplicity, durability and liveability rather than overt design gestures.

The boutique scale is central to the offering. With only 13 three-bedroom residences, each home is configured to prioritise functional layouts and everyday use, supported by private terraces and secure two-car garages.

Ewert Leaf’s design response leans into a calm, neutral material palette. Interiors are defined by oak flooring, white walls and soft finishes, creating a consistent and understated backdrop. The approach avoids trend-driven detailing in favour of longevity, with an emphasis on natural light and spatial clarity.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134646 project_image_fid=6110]

Beyond aesthetics, the homes are designed to meet contemporary performance expectations. Each residence targets a minimum 6-star energy rating, incorporating double glazing, comprehensive insulation and all-electric Bosch appliances.

The project’s location supports a walkable coastal lifestyle, sitting within close proximity to Mordialloc’s foreshore, Main Street retail strip and the train station. Local cafés and dining venues, including Suburbia Deli and Hendriks Café, are within a short walk, reinforcing the area’s established neighbourhood character.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134646 project_image_fid=6116]

While <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/mordialloc-vic-3195">Mordialloc</a> is often defined by its beach and pier, the project taps into other areas of day to day living, offering easy access to local food, casual dining and transport, rather than positioning itself purely as a lifestyle retreat.

WM Residences reflects a continued trend across Melbourne’s coastal suburbs towards smaller-scale, design-led townhouse developments, particularly on infill sites where proximity to amenity is already established.

With construction commenced prior to its market entry, the project aligns with a growing preference among buyers for developments with visible progress and defined delivery timeframes.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=134646]

WM Residences fills gap in Mordialloc townhouse market

&nbsp;

Developer GURNER™ Group has revealed $1.65 billion in residential sales nationally across the 12 months to December 2025, driven largely by the continued momentum of its Docklands wellness-focused precinct, Elysium Fields.

The sales result was generated across seven projects in Victoria and New South Wales, headlined by Elysium Fields, GURNER™’s $2.75 billion mixed-use precinct planned for Harbour Esplanade in Docklands.

The project has recorded more than $500 million in sales across the first three towers, equating to around 580 apartments sold.

The first tower, Helios, has now sold out of its 240 private residences, with GURNER™ preparing to release a premium penthouse collection comprising 15 three-bedroom penthouses in coming weeks.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370975]

Elysium Fields is being developed on the long-held 20,000 sqm Docklands site at 208-226 Harbour Esplanade, which had remained undeveloped for more than two decades prior to GURNER™ taking over the project around four years ago.

Construction has now commenced across four towers ranging between 18 and 30 storeys, with Hamilton Marino and Maxcon appointed as builders.

Once complete, the precinct is expected to comprise around 1,100 residences, alongside retail, hospitality and public realm uses integrated throughout the site.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370981]

Designed by Fraser &amp; Partners in collaboration with GURNER™ Design House, the project has been positioned around the developer’s broader focus on wellness-led residential living.

“We don’t sell apartments. We create a true luxury lifestyle that simply doesn’t exist elsewhere in the market today,” Founder and Executive Chairman Tim Gurner said.

“To deliver that requires an extraordinary level of detail, coordination and discipline across multiple verticals, from design and hospitality through to wellness and service.”

“We’ve always believed that living extends far beyond the physical residence. It’s about how you feel the moment you arrive, how you live day-to-day, and the ecosystem that supports that.” 
[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370977]

The project’s design places a heavy focus on landscaping, wellness amenities and biophilic design principles.

Plans include around 3,700 sqm of landscaped gardens and open space throughout the precinct, alongside a retail and dining offering spanning approximately 5,000 sqm.

The broader public realm strategy centres around what GURNER™ describes as the “Path of Life”, an urban forest and landscaped pedestrian environment intended to connect the various buildings and wellness spaces across the precinct.

The apartments themselves will incorporate a range of wellness-focused inclusions, including purified air and water systems, circadian lighting, antimicrobial surfaces, and optional in-home wellness upgrades.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370980]

Gurner said the company’s experience through its Saint Haven wellness clubs had directly informed the residential offering now being incorporated into Elysium Fields.

“We’re seeing a clear global shift toward longevity, performance and proactive health,” Gurner said.

“Our role is to deliver that in a way that feels seamless, highly private and beautifully resolved within the environments we create.”

A large component of the wellness offering is planned through the resident amenity and health facilities proposed within the precinct.

That includes plans for bathing and recovery facilities spread throughout the towers, incorporating mineral pools, saunas, steam rooms, flotation therapy, red light therapy and wellness lounges.

The developer is also seeking approvals for what it describes as a “reverse ageing medical clinic” within the precinct.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370978]

According to project information released by the group, the proposed facility would include cryotherapy, IV infusion therapy, infrared and dry saunas, PEMF beds, MRIs, DEXA scans, brain scans and blood analysis services.

Within the first tower, Helios, residents will also have access to a dedicated amenity offering known as the Sky Private Club.

The upper 15 levels of the building will include private lounges, dining spaces, rooftop amenities and optional private wellness studios integrated within residences.

The Helios tower itself comprises 260 apartments ranging between 60 sqm and 300 sqm, including a collection of penthouses.

That includes a planned two-storey penthouse spanning around 600 sqm with uninterrupted bay views.

The Elysium Fields precinct is being delivered in partnership with Digital Harbour Holdings, a consortium that includes the Liberman family, which controls the development rights across the Docklands site.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370979]

The sales result comes as GURNER™ continues expanding its national development pipeline beyond Victoria.

“We have a strong pipeline across Australia and are now focused on scaling into key markets including New South Wales and Queensland, while continuing to build on our Melbourne base,” Gurner said.

“We currently have more than $3 billion in the market, growing to over $5 billion by October, and expect to materially outperform last year in the 2026 calendar year.”

The result also reflects the continued strength of the upper-end apartment market in Melbourne, particularly for owner-occupier-focused product with large-scale amenity and lifestyle offerings.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=144441]

Record result anchored by the Group’s “utopian” Elysium Fields precinct – defying market headwinds in Docklands.

Elysium Fields drive Gurner to $1.65 billion in apartment sales over 2025

National Australia Bank (NAB) will fund <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/palmera-residences-gold-coast-18-garfield-terrace-surfers-paradise-qld-4217">Palmera</a>, a $1 billion, 52-level luxury residential tower being developed by Central Equity in one of the Gold Coast’s most tightly held coastal locations at Northcliffe.

The project, launched recently by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/central-equity">Central Equity</a>, one of Victoria’s largest private residential developers, comes at a time when construction funding for large residential developments has become increasingly competitive as lenders tighten exposure to the sector.

Multiplex has been appointed the builder, and construction is now underway.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=108274 project_image_fid=365784]

Since its first project, Central Equity has delivered more than 85 residential developments with a combined end value exceeding $8 billion.

Palmera reflects Central Equity’s growing focus on the Gold Coast luxury apartment market and continues a relationship between Central Equity and NAB that dates back to the late 1980s, when the bank funded one of Melbourne’s earliest inner-city residential towers at a time when high-rise apartment living in the CBD was largely unproven.

“NAB’s funding of Central Equity’s $36 million CBD development in the late 1980’s to the financing of the billion-dollar tower today highlights the long-term relationship between the two organisations in delivering major residential projects” said Central Equity Founder and Chairman Eddie Kutner.

He said NAB’s early support was instrumental in helping establish the company’s development model.

“When we commenced our first residential tower in the late 1980s the concept of funding off-the-plan apartments was still largely untested in Australia,” Kutner said.

“NAB recognised the opportunity early and supported the project when others were uncertain. That relationship has now continued for more than 37 years across many developments.”

[smartcode_project:default project_id=108274 project_image_fid=365771]

Central Equity was established in 1987 when Melbourne’s CBD and Southbank precinct were still dominated by warehouses and commercial buildings. Fewer than 100 residents lived in Southbank at the time, and large-scale residential development in the inner city was not widely considered.

Recognising changing demographics and lifestyle preferences, the company began developing high-rise residential projects designed to bring permanent residents into the city centre.

Central Equity has provided accommodation for approximately 40,000 residents across Melbourne’s CBD and Southbank, while also incorporating supporting infrastructure including essential lifestyle facilities like retail spaces, childcare facilities and neighbourhood activity centres.

Central Equity has spent many years assembling the Palmera development site on the corner of Garfield Terrace and Frederick Street in Northcliffe, creating a supersite of around 3,300 sqm.

The developer said the Palmera apartment tower reflects its long-term view of the Gold Coast as a growing and increasingly diversified economy.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=108274 project_image_fid=365768]

Supported by infrastructure including the light rail network, major road upgrades expanded education, hospital and medical facilities and continued expansion at the Gold Coast Airport with more international and domestic flights.

Positioned in the tightly held Northcliffe precinct, the 52-level tower will deliver 347 apartments, targeting buyers seeking a high-end coastal lifestyle, from downsizers to interstate investors.

Designed by Marchese Partners with interiors by DBI, Palmera has been conceived as a next-generation residential offering, featuring a collection of oversized apartments, with premium three-bedroom residences offering sweeping northern views stretching from Surfers Paradise through to Burleigh Heads.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=108274]

NAB funds $1 billion Surfers Paradise apartment development, Palmera

Two years after completing one of the newest developments in North Sydney, developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/aqualand-australia">Aqualand</a> is turning its attention to the rapidly evolving St Leonards apartment market.

The developer, which completed AURA by Aqualand on North Sydney's Walker Street, has lodged plans for a 5,918 sqm site at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/33-37-herbert-street-st-leonards-nsw-2065">33-37 Herbert Street, St Leonards,</a> seeking approval for a pair of residential towers rising above a shared podium opposite Royal North Shore Hospital.

The proposal forms part of the broader transformation underway across the St Leonards-Crows Nest precinct, where former industrial and commercial sites are increasingly being redeveloped into high-density mixed-use projects tied to major transport infrastructure.

<img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2cc428cf-fe70-4cac-9cd5-264ad53af62c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.56%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=otKSnHtbjAvAddOnovyXQMgcAwE6DMe1" />

According to the planning documents, the site sits “within the St Leonards–Crows Nest Strategic Centre, identified by the NSW Government as a key area for accommodating future jobs and housing across Sydney.”

The proposal has been designed by fjcstudio, formerly FJMT Studio, and is being progressed through the State Significant Development pathway due to its scale and affordable housing provision.

The scheme would comprise 413 apartments, including 46 affordable housing units, alongside retail and commercial uses fronting Herbert Street. The project would also include communal open space, landscaping, a swimming pool, gymnasium, children’s play areas and podium-level resident amenities.

Planning documents show the development would consist of a part-13, part-39 storey tower form positioned above a four-storey podium.

“The development comprises a unified podium that activates the street interface, and two setback towers to accommodate new housing supply while maintaining an appropriate human scale at ground level,” fjcstudio noted in its Design Report.

The northern and southern towers have been shaped to respond to the surrounding skyline while also limiting overshadowing impacts to nearby public open space, particularly Talus Reserve.

The design report said the differing tower heights were intended to “contribute to a varied skyline while responding to the surrounding built form context and solar access considerations.”

<img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="36da62dc-ff9e-41f2-a7e3-7be38373751c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.45%E2%80%AFAM_0.png?VersionId=Mo6Rp2r.XRLTzIfg_PEEpw8NepDH8UBs" />

The site sits directly opposite Royal North Shore Hospital and within walking distance of both St Leonards Station and the new Crows Nest Metro station.

While the site itself sits just outside the formal Crows Nest Transport Oriented Development boundary, the planning documents repeatedly reference its alignment with the broader TOD objectives reshaping the Lower North Shore.

“The site is located adjacent to St Leonards Station and in close proximity to Crows Nest Metro which is within the Crows Nest Transit Orientated Development Accelerated Precinct which has been identified by the NSW Government to support housing delivery,” the Design Verification Statement noted.

According to fjcstudio, the project has been designed to respond to the broader transition occurring across St Leonards, where increasing residential density is being concentrated around transport infrastructure and employment hubs.

“The broader precinct is undergoing significant change, with a mix of existing mid-rise buildings and newer high-density developments,” the report stated.

“Recent and approved projects indicate a consistent shift toward taller built form, typically organised as tower-and-podium typologies with more active ground levels.”

The proposal includes close to 6,000 sqm of retail and commercial space across the ground floor and podium levels, designed to create a more activated street edge along Herbert Street.

Aqualand’s plans would also introduce a landscaped podium shared between the two towers, with communal open space in the form of a podium rooftop designed to support resident interaction and improve urban greening outcomes. The scheme would also introduce pocket parks at the northern and southern ends of the site, including a landscaped area at the corner of Herbert and Ella streets designed to improve pedestrian amenity and soften the streetscape.

&nbsp;

The proposal is being progressed through the NSW Government’s Housing Delivery Authority pathway, which was introduced to accelerate housing supply across the state. The application was declared State Significant Development in April 2025 following an expression of interest process.

<img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="faf6d97d-2671-454f-b85a-fe1c6a7be608" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.49%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=diVd28OBVr5.YV.7prrOz.uAanwwwm7a" />

St Leonards has been particularly active with new developments in recent weeks. Developer SP Setia’s <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-sp-setia-targets-st-leonards-skyline-with-40-storey-tod-tower">plans for a new 42-storey tower</a> recently went on exhibition through the same pathway, while <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-stockland-plans-52-storey-538-apartment-st-leonards-tower">Stockland’s 52-storey tower proposal</a> was also recently unveiled.

Aside from the St Leonards project, which is expected to take around nine months to move through the approvals process ahead of a potential 2027 launch, Aqualand is also preparing to launch Boronia, a new apartment project in Roseville comprising around 111 apartments on Larkin Street.

The developer also has approvals in place for the next stage of the Barangaroo precinct, which will feature new residential, retail, hospitality and community uses, alongside a new metro entry across the five-hectare site.

More than 50 new retail destinations are planned for Central Barangaroo, alongside a 270-metre-long boulevard connecting Hickson Park to Nawi Cove. Together with Harbour Park, more than 50 per cent of the precinct will comprise public open space and parkland.

Jennifer Duke

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