<html><body>
Perhaps the billioniare entreprenuer Mike Cannon-Brookes, the co-founder of Atlassian, and his fashion-design industry wife, Annie aren't content at Centennial Park.
They were spotted inspecting the Queen Street, Woollahra listing, Clyde Cottage yesterday.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2016/07/26/clydecottage.jpg" alt="">
It was meant to be a Cinderella listing with the agent Clint Ballard expectant of a quick sale.
But it was February, when with ambitious $13.5 million hopes, Clyde Cottage came onto the market.
The restored one-time Woollahra childhood home of Dame Joan Sutherland even had a queue at its open for inspections which extended onto Queen Street.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2016/07/26/clydecottage2.jpg" alt="">
But it seems the interest came mostly from opera and architectural buffs.
By co-incidence the Atlassian tech billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes was spotted back then walking through the village, but showed no purchasing interest.
Cannon-Brookes and wife, Annie spent $12 million last year in Centennial Park after selling in Paddington.
For a time the Cannon-Brookes called Paddington their home at the former 1907 Myers warehouse emporium on Hargrave Street that had been converted into a four-storey, but eight level mansion by Duncan and Lyn Hardie. 
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2016/07/26/clydecottage3.jpg" alt="">
The adventurous adaption of the prior House of Desks outlet involved a $4 million plus 2005 conversion approval that then ranked among the dearest of Sydney's non-waterfront private residential projects.
Set on a 300 sqm block, it was sold at $10.5 million in late 2015 by the Cannon-Brookes.
Clyde Cottage, which has had a makeover by studiointernationale and May+Swan Architects, has been listed by the patient vendor, Singapore billioniare Ronald Ooi, who was educated in Sydney.
It last sold for $4 million in a dilapidated state.
The restoration and extension of Clyde Cottage retained the original residence at the front, and added two interconnected pavilions behind it that include the ultra-contemporary main living areas.
The house became Sutherland's home after her father died suddenly on her sixth birthday in the early 1930's and sold by the family sold in 1951.
Several years before her death Sutherland noted: "Unfortunately, from the time my family gave up the house, the deterioration set in.”
This article was first published in the Sunday Telegraph.
</body></html>

jchancellor-FAypfDUnLy

Mike Cannon-Brookes inspects Clyde Cottage, Woollahra

<html><body>
The Sydney actor Brendon Lunney is selling his tropical island, Turtle Island.
Set off the coast of Gladstone in Queensland for an expected price of about $4 million, it was one of only nine under freehold title. 
The 23-acre island which has its own helicopter pads, 15 large water tanks, vehicle accessibility via a car barge and a private jetty.
It has a development approval for a tourist resort. 
Lunney bought the island from property developer Steven Christofidellis, his wife, Marcia just two years ago for $2.145 million. 
</body></html>

Actor Brendon Lunney selling Turtle Island

<html><body><div class="page" title="Page 1">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
GUEST OBSERVER
There is no denying it: people around the globe have been gripped in a pandemic. It’s called the Pokemon Go craze, and it affects anyone from the age of five up to 50, taking over their smartphones to entice users on a journey around real landmarks and suburban streets in search of fictional Pokemon characters.
It’s augmented reality, but not as we’ve ever seen it before. Gamers can purchase ‘lure’ tools (with real money) to aid their quest and businesses are cashing in, too, creating Pokemon GO events and collaborating with the game’s creator, Nintendo to pay to have their business shop-fronts listed as Poke-gyms for users to train and strengthen their Poke-pack. 
But while many academics are lamenting the downfall of the world as we know it, the gamification of consumer habits also presents an exciting new frontier for businesses all over the world, particularly for the property and real estate industry. 
Already savvy agents are using the Pokemon craze to help attract tenants to rent properties and buyers to auctions – but the real opportunities lie not in the game itself, but what this new technology means for the future of real estate marketing and sales. 
Take the property and real estate industry for example. Just imagine the possibilities – when prospective buyers purchase a new home off-the-plan in a residential community, not only can they walk through the floor plan of their as-yet-unbuilt apartment (there are plenty of virtual reality providers already offering this service) but imagine taking it one step further and allowing these purchasers to walk the streets, step inside all the planned amenities and buildings, even have a virtual coffee in a virtual café – all from their mobile phone. 
Now imagine overlaying avatars - being other prospective or recent purchasers - as superimposed into a virtual blueprint of their future neighbourhood, and enabling buyers to meet and greet each other the virtual streets and even start conversations via messaging services – all from a smartphone App without leaving the comfort of their living room. 
There are also endless opportunities for collaborations – imagine developers working with interior designers or furniture retailers to offer virtual plug-ins so users can view how different furniture pieces will look in their home, then use third party APIs to enable purchasing of their favourite package for delivery in line with their new home reaching completion. 
The advent of this new technology presents an incredible opportunity for marketers to enhance the user experience and create ‘virtual communities’ that are tangible and real. 
It also opens up a swathe of opportunities to sell into different markets, as inspections can comprehensively be experienced from an augmented reality App. 
If Pokemon GO has taught us anything – apart from where Pokemon gyms are located and which Pikachus are harder to find, it’s that we have just entered into a new era of the gamification of buyer behaviours. Who knows just where it will take us but the pressure is now on property developers and agents to see who gets there first. 
Colin Lee is national sales director, Australian Properties International and can be contacted <a href="https://www.australianproperties.com" target="_blank">here</a>.
</div>
</div>
</div></body></html>

Pokémon Go and the gamification of the property industry

<html><body>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/57114/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">
GUEST OBSERVER
Four years after its announcement, the Queensland government last week cancelled the central plank in the Logan Renewal Initiative: the overhaul of Logan’s 4,900 public housing dwellings by a community-housing-provider-led consortium.
The initiative is a planned 20-year strategy to reshape Logan, an outer-suburban centre in Brisbane’s southeast. It would have been Australia’s largest and most-ambitious residential urban regeneration project.
Given its flagship status, and the hopes invested in it as a new form of public-private renewal partnership, the project’s abandonment could be a serious setback for Australian housing and urban policy.
So, why – presumably at a very substantial cost in compensation to the spurned regeneration partners – did the Queensland government walk away from the deal?
<h2>Why was the project canned?</h2>
The Logan area encompasses Queensland’s largest body of public housing. By the early 2000s, the Logan City Council had begun to see the resulting concentration of disadvantage as damaging to the area’s public image and reputation. As well as detracting from residents’ quality of life, high rates of crime and anti-social behaviour had become a perceived barrier to investment.
Partly in response to these concerns, but also building on an existing collaboration between its Labor predecessor and the council, the Newman LNP government began the Logan Renewal Initiative in 2012. From the government’s perspective this was to be just the first instalment of a broader plan to radically recast the state’s public housing system.
In 2014, after three rounds of bids and multiple modifications to the original specification, a consortium involving two NSW-based community-housing providers was revealed as the successful tenderer.
This proposal involved a new place-based management entity, Logan City Community Housing, and pledged the replacement of 1,000 outdated existing public housing units with 2,600 newly built homes – 1,600 of which would be social and affordable dwellings.
In early 2015, Queensland voters threw out the Newman government. But, nearly 18 months and very probably millions of dollars in set-up costs later, Housing Minister Mick de Brenni last week pulled the plug on the project. Instead, he is offering a A$17 million commitment to fund 70 new public homes over the next three years.
At least some of the seeds of the project’s failure were probably sown by the arguably reckless way it was originally rushed forward in 2012. Buttressed by a huge parliamentary majority and impatient to drastically reshape Queensland’s public services, the Newman government gave little priority to building public support for its radical plans – in housing, as in other areas.
Equally, the drawn-out tender process, with its multiple stages and changing requirements, speaks of excessive haste and/or policy over-reach in a state with little previous experience of urban renewal of the scale and complexity envisaged here.
de Brenni claimed:
The previous government’s privatisation plan was risky and unprecedented in scale.
However, he then went much further, declaring the now-doomed plan unacceptable in principle since:
It’s not the policy of this government to privatise essential services and I want to make it very clear that this includes public housing.
Privatisation is an incendiary term in political debate. It may be a technically accurate description for the transfer of public housing to the control of a non-government body in the form of a not-for-profit community housing provider. But whether this really amounts to the kind of deal normally evoked by the term “privatisation” in the public mind is highly debatable.
First, the “assets” concerned were to be retained in government ownership. They would have passed into community housing provider control only on a fixed-term lease. And the additional homes to be developed would also have returned to government ownership and control at the end of the scheme.
Second, since it is not a profit-making body, the acquiring community housing provider is not in this to exploit the opportunity to generate shareholder returns or to squeeze funding for local services.
To the contrary, in canning the Logan project the Queensland government has turned its back on around $800 million of direct investment in social and affordable housing, as well as significant educational and training opportunities for local people.
Third, in terms of its management of the former public housing stock, the would-be new landlord in any housing transfer project of this kind is subject to both contractual obligations and statutory regulation.
<h2>Inconsistent with Labor policy elsewhere</h2>
de Brenni’s declared interpretation of public housing transfers is also out of line with that of Labor colleagues federally and in some other key states.
In 2013, then-federal housing minister Mark Butler <a href="https://www.formerministers.dss.gov.au/12481/opening-address-powerhousing-australia-conference-melbourne-vic/">reaffirmed</a> the Labor government’s aim of boosting the community housing sector, recognised the role of public housing transfers in achieving this goal, and expressly favoured transactions involving ownership handover rather than those limited to short-term management outsourcing.
Meanwhile, South Australia’s Labor government is currently progressing a public housing transfer program aimed at levering in additional funding to upgrade the public housing stock. This funding would otherwise have been unavailable.
Also, Labor leader Luke Foley in 2015 challenged the NSW government by advocating a boost to the state’s community housing sector through the title transfer of 20,000 public housing units.
With Australia’s public housing withering on the vine and many estates falling further into social and physical decline, there is an argument that these problems could and should be fixed by governments directly. But, over decades, both federal and state/territory governments have shown themselves unwilling to take that responsibility.
This policy stance has also recently been backed by the mainstream view that the renewal of large estates should build in social and economic diversity through a private/public housing mix.
In any case, by whichever route it is to be achieved, a clear, bipartisan way forward to tackle these problems is urgently needed. Fundamentally, that would mean commitments to quantify the national cost of remedying public housing disrepair, to devise a funded estate upgrade and diversification program, and to fashion a sustainable financial and governance framework to assure the sector’s future.
Hal Pawson<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/hal-pawson-147969" rel="author"></a> is associate director - City Futures - Urban Policy and Strategy, City Futures Research Centre, Housing Policy and Practice, UNSW Australia and author for The Conversation. He can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/hal-pawson-147969" target="_blank">here</a>.
</body></html>

Ditching Logan’s public-private regeneration sets Queensland back on social and affordable housing

<html><body>
The buyers of horse breeder Frank Tagg's Rose Bay home, Lynton, have emerged as Swiss Reinsurance managing director Mark Senkevics and his wife, Kimberley.
They paid $7.6 million for the grand 1912 Edwardian home following the sale of their Wallaroy Road home in Woollahra.
The price went backwards through McGrath Estate Agents from when Tagg and wife Sally bought Lynton for $8 million in 2007 from property developer Piers Dawson-Damer.
Ballard Property agent James Ball listed Senkevics' BKH-designed Woollahra with $6 million hopes, but is likely to have secured $5.5 million plus from the Fay family purchase.
They had been there since 2004 when they paid Richard England, the chairman of agribusiness Ruralco, $1.895 million for the then home.
This article was first published in the Saturday Daily Telegraph.
</body></html>

Shock prestige price decline at Rose Bay

<html><body>
The Jamie's Italian chain and other iconic eateries controlled by the collapsed Keystone Hospitality Group have been put on the market by the receivers.
All 17 leasehold venues are for sale, after the group went into receivership last month after failing to renegotiate lending arrangements with its financiers KKR and Olympus Capital.
Keystone does not own any of the real estate in which it operates.
Ferrier Hodgson's Morgan Kelly and Ryan Eagle have appointed CBRE as the lead sales advisor.
The one caveat is that the Jamie’s Italian restaurants must be sold as a group.
“The Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Canberra and Parramatta Jamie’s Italian restaurants are some of the best performing Jamie’s Italian restaurants globally and offer a very attractive opportunity for the right partner. We will continue to work closely with the Jamie Oliver Restaurant Group with a view to identifying a new partner for their business in Australia,” Mr Kelly said. “This may be part of a whole of enterprise sale or as a separate portfolio.”
Short-listed parties will be invited to commence due diligence via a commercial-in-confidence data room before submitting formal offers. 
“Formal bids are expected to be submitted and assessed in September 2016, with the aim of reaching in-principle agreement with a buyer or buyers in late September 2016.”
Kelly is hopeful that sales will be finalised be for the commencement of summer trade.
The Australian reported the failed restaurant operator had been due to repay its international lenders $25 million on the eve of its administration.
But the company, which was until recently run by Southern Cross Austereo boss Grant Blackley, was instead yesterday pushed into receivership by its lenders, American private equity giant KKR and Singapore-based private equity outfit Olympus, which it owed almost $80 million.
Accounts show the company, which is now run by investment banker and shareholder Richard Facioni, lost $20 million last financial year after turning over $120 million.
The Keystone accounts show Mr Facioni and fellow directors Warren Duncan and Robert Webster had agreed with the private equity giants to restructure the business, including raising an immediate $5 million in fresh equity from existing shareholders and selling assets that included Bungalow 8, Cargo Bar, Kingsleys and Jamie’s Italian chain.
The AFR reported 60 creditors were present at the first creditors meeting. 
Speaking publicly for the first time, the directors revealed to AFR Weekend they were planning an initial public offering for the group to raise equity and pay back the secured debt of about $78 million. They and other shareholders also injected $5 million of their own money into the business late last year.
This leaves about $34 million of unsecured debt, which included $6 million owed to trade creditors. many of them were at the meeting on Friday.
Keystone executive chairman Richard Facioni said the individual venues were trading well, but at a corporate level, the group was carrying too much debt.
Facioni also explained that the $24 million loss in the last set of accounts which prompted their auditors PwC to raise a going concern issue was made up mostly of interest payments and expansion costs related to the purchase of Pacific Restaurant Group, which owned rights to Jamie's Italian and other venue expansions.
The group made $120 million in revenue last year.
</body></html>

Keystone selling all Jamie's Italian in one line

<html><body>
Karratha, then Port Hedland continue to bear the brunt of the collapsing WA property market, according to the REIWA March quarter data.
Median prices and sales of properties are derived from Landgate data, excluding properties more than 1 Ha.
Karratha has seen a 25 percent property price decline from 12 months ago, and a 10.8 percent decline in the last three months.
A four bedroom home at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-wa-karratha-122763422" target="_blank">2 Thistle Loop</a> in Karratha (above) was initially listed with $485,000 hopes but the asking price has been slashed to $445,000 in just two months.
The suburb of Port Headland is also decreasing quickly, down 23.1 percent from 12 months ago.
Broome has seen the biggest property value decline in the last three months with an 11.2 percent decline.
Surprisingly Northam is performing well. The suburb has seen a 19.6 percent increase in property values from 12 months ago and 17 percent in the last three months.
 
 
<table class="data-table members-data-table table-striped">
<thead><tr>
<th>PROPERTY VALUES (MEDIAN SALE PRICES)</th>
<th>MARCH 2016 QUARTER</th>
<th>CHANGE FROM 3 MONTHS AGO</th>
<th>CHANGE FROM 12 MONTHS AGO</th>
</tr></thead>
<tbody>
<tr>
<td colspan="4">Houses, Established</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Perth Metropolitan</td>
<td class="number-right">$530,000</td>
<td class="number-right">-1.9%</td>
<td class="number-right">-4.5%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Mandurah - Murray</td>
<td class="number-right">$400,000</td>
<td class="number-right">3.4%</td>
<td class="number-right">-4.8%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Bunbury Urban Area</td>
<td class="number-right">$392,000</td>
<td class="number-right">4.5%</td>
<td class="number-right">0.5%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Geraldton - Greenough</td>
<td class="number-right">$325,000</td>
<td class="number-right">-11.0%</td>
<td class="number-right">-16.3%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Kalgoorlie - Boulder</td>
<td class="number-right">$327,000</td>
<td class="number-right">-4.5%</td>
<td class="number-right">-3.1%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Albany Urban Area</td>
<td class="number-right">$390,000</td>
<td class="number-right">4.0%</td>
<td class="number-right">0.0%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Broome Urban Area</td>
<td class="number-right">$475,000</td>
<td class="number-right">-11.2%</td>
<td class="number-right">-19.0%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Busselton Urban Area</td>
<td class="number-right">$449,000</td>
<td class="number-right">-4.5%</td>
<td class="number-right">-1.3%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Esperance Urban Area</td>
<td class="number-right">$355,000</td>
<td class="number-right">1.4%</td>
<td class="number-right">-12.9%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Karratha Urban Area</td>
<td class="number-right">$330,000</td>
<td class="number-right">-10.8%</td>
<td class="number-right">-25.0%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Northam</td>
<td class="number-right">$280,000</td>
<td class="number-right">17.0%</td>
<td class="number-right">19.6%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Port Hedland Urban Area</td>
<td class="number-right">$500,000</td>
<td class="number-right">-2.0%</td>
<td class="number-right">-23.1%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Regional WA</td>
<td class="number-right">$380,000</td>
<td class="number-right">1.3%</td>
<td class="number-right">-3.8%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="4">Multi-Residential</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Perth Metropolitan</td>
<td class="number-right">$436,000</td>
<td class="number-right">0.2%</td>
<td class="number-right">-1.6%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td colspan="4">Land</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Perth Metropolitan</td>
<td class="number-right">$265,000</td>
<td class="number-right">-0.4%</td>
<td class="number-right">-1.3%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td>Regional WA</td>
<td class="number-right">$185,000</td>
<td class="number-right">4.5%</td>
<td class="number-right">
3.9%
 
 
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</body></html>

Karratha price median down 25 percent

<html><body>
The latest data from the REIV suggests Geelong has shown above average price growth during the June quarter 2016.
The median sits at $440,000.
CoreLogic recently noted Geelong had a clearance rate of more than 60 per cent during the June 2016 quarter.
It was the third quarter in a row that Geelong was the strongest performing regional auction market, across the country.
Property Observer found three examples of sales and listings around that price.
A charming three bedroom period home just sold for $440,000, the median price in Geelong. The property at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-vic-geelong-122980454" target="_blank">118 Garden Street</a> (above) was listed for sale between $420,000 and $460,000. It last traded for $435,000 in 2010.
<img src="/images/2016/07/25/Screen%20Shot%202016-07-25%20at%201.52.16%20PM.png" alt="">
If you prefer an apartment, there's a two bed inner city unit at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-apartment-vic-geelong-122593090">10/96 Mercer Street</a> (above) which is listed for less than the suburbs median price. It has a price guide of between $395,000 and $429,000. It last traded for $380,000 in 2008.
<img src="/images/2016/07/25/Screen%20Shot%202016-07-25%20at%201.53.52%20PM.png" alt="">
A two bedroom <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-apartment-vic-geelong-121842834" target="_blank">Yarra Street apartment </a>(above) comes in with a slightly higher price guide of between $435,000 and $449,000. Last traded for $430,000 in 2014, the home also has a study.
 
 
</body></html>

Geelong's strengthening home sales market

<html><body>
<div class="tg-tlc-storybody_intro">
Sydney’s Millers Point and Naremburn, plus East Melbourne all recorded a perfect auction clearance rate in the past quarter, according to CoreLogic.
Naremburn’s clearance rate increased from 82 percent in the December quarter, while East Melbourne jumped from 80 per cent.
The combined capital city clearance rate fell to 68 percent during the June quarter down from 69 percent over the first quarter of 2016.
Brisbane’s best performer was the outer suburb of Runcorn, where the clearance rate was 77 percent - well above the Brisbane average of 45.3 percent. 
Runcorn also had the best auction clearance rate in the December quarter.
According to CoreLogic, Runcorn's median price is $530,000.
Property Observer found a few examples of sales and listings around that price.
A huge four bedroom, three bathroom townhouse at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-townhouse-qld-runcorn-123095334" target="_blank">39 Diamond Place</a> (above) has a buyers guide of $500,000. Sitting on 312 sqm, the home previously traded for $226,000 in 2000.
</div>
<img src="/images/2016/07/25/Screen%20Shot%202016-07-25%20at%201.43.27%20PM.png" alt="">
A slightly smaller three bedroom home at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-qld-runcorn-122789022" target="_blank">10 Balonne Street</a> (above) just sold for $508,000. Previously traded for $122,000 in 1994, the home sits on a large 649 sqm block.
<img src="/images/2016/07/25/Screen%20Shot%202016-07-25%20at%201.45.09%20PM.png" alt="">
If you want to pay higher than Runcorn's median price, a renovated resort style home at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-qld-runcorn-122893770" target="_blank">314 Daw Road</a> (above) is available for $565,000. The three bedroom with swimming pool last traded for $430,000 in 2011.
 
 
 
</body></html>

Brisbane's Runcorn ranks as strong auction selling market

<html><body>
Jessica Origliasso, one half of Australian pop duo The Veronica's, has sold her Brisbane bolthole for $599,000.
She made a profit on the New York loft style apartment having paid $465,000 in 2009.
It was a chance to own a piece of Brisbane music history, according to selling agent Go Gecko selling agent Brendan Terry, who suggested it was the apartment where the Brisbane raised singers penned some of their most famous hits.
Located in the 1930's heritage listed McWhirters Building, the Art Deco apartment had three bedrooms, a modern kitchen and a sunroom
Jessica and her sister Lisa burst onto the pop scene in 2005.
The Los Angeles based singer recently said she missed the smell of the Brisbane air.
This article was first published in The Weekend Australian.
</body></html>

Jessica Origliasso sells in Brisbane

Just a few months after acquiring a prime Broadbeach site on the corner of First Avenue and Surf Parade, family-run developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/raptis">Raptis</a> has filed fresh plans for a new apartment development.

Raptis is seeking to deliver a <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/17-19-first-avenue-broadbeach-qld-4217">29-storey tower with 73 apartments</a> on the 818 sqm site. It will be the developer's seventh project in the suburb, as they are approaching completion of The Sterling on George Avenue.

There will be a pool, barbecue and outdoor dining area, residents lounge and dining, sauna and steam room, gym, and a Yoga and Pilates studio.

<img alt="Raptis" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b554da3f-7344-49aa-b1c9-44cf459af0d7" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-06-05%20at%2010.41.45%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=zzjWu1iO1wnuYv4EV4fyOyf5nSXjGYut" />

Raptis Joint Managing Director, Evan Raptis, says they remain&nbsp;committed to developing quality infill sites across the Gold Coast in the lead-up to the 2032 Brisbane Olympics.

"This project continues our long track record of delivery in Broadbeach, and we look forward to bringing another premium development to this thriving precinct."

The announcement follows strong delivery momentum for Raptis, with The Sterling Broadbeach nearing completion and construction well underway on the final stage of the Waterpoint community adjacent to Harbour Town. The developer's continued investment in the Gold Coast reflects confidence in the region's apartment market fundamentals, underpinned by sustained Southeast Queensland population growth.&nbsp;

The outlook for the region is further bolstered by infrastructure investment tied to the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games, which is expected to drive continued economic and population growth across the SEQ corridor.&nbsp;

Subject to a favourable response from Gold Coast City Council, construction on the new First Avenue tower is targeted to commence before the end of 2026.&nbsp;

Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/qld/it-s-all-in-the-family-four-decades-later-raptis-continues-to-shape-the-gold-coast-skyline">It’s all in the family: Four decades later, Raptis continues to shape the Gold Coast skyline</a>

Read more: <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/qld/raptis-secures-prime-surf-parade-site-for-next-broadbeach-apartment-development">Raptis secures prime Surf Parade site for next Broadbeach apartment development</a> 
&nbsp;

Gold Coast developer brings seventh Broadbeach project to market, targeting construction commencement before year end

Joel Robinson

First look: Raptis lodges plans for new 29-storey Broadbeach tower 

Brisbane development veteran Kevin Seymour's Seymour Group is set to deepen its presence on one of Brisbane's most tightly held riverfront addresses, lodging revised plans for a luxury apartment development on Oxlade, just a few doors down from The Oxlade, which it completed in 2024.

The <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/70-72-oxlade-drive-new-farm-qld-4005">new project at 70-72 Oxlade Drive</a>, directly north of The Oxlade, will have 27 apartments across a seven-storey building&nbsp;overlooking the Brisbane River and Merthyr Park. It's a revision from a 2021-approved design.

Designed by bureau^proberts, the project has evolved from the previously approved 26-apartment scheme, introducing an additional penthouse level while maintaining a low-density, boutique character. The development will comprise 26 three-bedroom apartments and a single four-bedroom penthouse, supported by two basement levels with 86 car spaces and 34 bicycle spaces.

The architectural response is centred around two distinct building forms separated by a landscaped open-air atrium.&nbsp;"This dual composition captures and embraces Brisbane’s subtropical environment whilst breaking down built form and scale," the submission to the Brisbane City Council noted.

<img alt="First look: Seymour Group returns to Oxlade Drive with revised riverfront apartment plans in New Farm" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="c12d84d0-bc11-4067-b46f-5bd2d786a34d" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/new%20farm%20landscape.png?VersionId=YEPc2k5CAdh6aAPlu4uVpgZadh4MEfRd" />

A defining feature of the design is a deep landscaped void running through the centre of the building, creating what bureau^proberts describes as a "natural ravine" that enhances airflow, daylight penetration and resident amenity. The design report notes that the separation of the two building volumes is intended to maximise natural light, cross-ventilation and outlook while strengthening connections to the surrounding riverfront setting.

Curved balcony edges, integrated planting and extensive landscaping throughout the façade reinforce the subtropical design approach. The building's façade is softened by elevated gardens and planter beds, creating a green edge that complements the established landscape character of Oxlade Drive and neighbouring Merthyr Park.

New Farm has become one of Brisbane's most sought-after suburbs for developers delivering premium downsizer-focused apartments.

GRAYA has been particularly active in the precinct, completing both Chalk and York in recent years, while construction of Moray House, being delivered for Spyre, is now nearing completion. Architect-turned-developer Joe Adsett recently launched <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/arcilla-new-farm-by-joe-adsett-28-maxwell-street-new-farm-qld-4005">Arcilla on Maxwell Street</a>, an exclusive collection of just nine apartments.

First look: Seymour Group returns to New Farm's Oxlade Drive with riverfront apartment plans

A new residential tower will be the first piece of a broader mixed-use precinct set to reshape a prominent Newcastle West site, with local developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/gwh">GWH</a> bringing its <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/cambridge-quarter-newcastle-west-12-denison-street-newcastle-west-nsw-2302">Cambridge Quarter</a> vision to market.

The first release, Tempo, will introduce 87 apartments across a 24-storey tower, marking Stage 1 of the residential component of a larger urban regeneration project planned for the western end of Newcastle's city centre, encompassing the former Cambridge Hotel site.

Positioned on Denison Street, Tempo has been designed as the inaugural building within Cambridge Quarter, a precinct that will ultimately combine apartments, retail activation and revitalised public spaces including the revamping of the Cambridge Hotel.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135876 project_image_fid=368856]

The tower will comprise a mix of one, two and three-bedroom apartments, including layouts with multipurpose rooms, catering to a broad cross-section of owner-occupiers. Apartment sizes range from around 60 sqm to 192 sqm, with a number of residences oriented to capture views across Newcastle Harbour, the city skyline and coastline.

GWH has emphasised liveability in the design, with open-plan layouts extending to generous balconies and terraces. Residents will have a choice of two interior palettes, while specifications include engineered stone benchtops, SMEG appliances, full-height bathroom tiling and secure building access. Premium upgrade packages will also be available

Multiple rooftop resident retreats will provide communal outdoor space overlooking the harbour and city, offering an elevated amenity layer above the activity of the precinct below.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135876 project_image_fid=368851]

The broader Cambridge Quarter vision extends beyond the residential tower itself. Ground-level retail activation and landscaped public areas are planned throughout the precinct, creating a walkable neighbourhood environment connected to the surrounding renewal of Newcastle West. The Cambridge Hotel is also earmarked for future redevelopment into a family-friendly hospitality venue integrated with the new precinct.

The project is strategically positioned within walking distance of Newcastle Interchange, providing access to light rail, regional rail services and direct connections to Sydney. Residents will also be close to Honeysuckle, Newcastle Harbour and the city's beaches and coastal walkways.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135876 project_image_fid=368852]

For GWH, Cambridge Quarter represents one of its most significant Newcastle developments to date. The locally based developer, which has operated in the Hunter region since 1995, describes the project as a new chapter in the ongoing transformation of Newcastle West.

GWH Executive Director Jonathan Craig said the project had been shaped by a focus on creating lasting community connections.

"We take pride in creating places that last. Spaces where people feel connected, comfortable and a genuine sense of belonging," Craig said.

"Cambridge Quarter is something we are truly proud of, a place shaped by local knowledge, built with care and designed to be part of Newcastle's next chapter."

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=135876]

GWH unveils first release at landmark Cambridge Quarter precinct in Newcastle West

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/ss-projects">S&amp;S Projects</a>,&nbsp;Rainbow Bay's busiest developer,&nbsp;has officially lodged plans for the largest development in its booming local portfolio, seeking approval for a further 88 apartments on Boundary Street.

The proposal&nbsp;at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/209-213-boundary-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">209–213 Boundary Street, Coolangatta</a>,&nbsp;marks the next chapter in the developer's transformation of the southern Gold Coast beachside precinct. It will be its fifth in the area, having already delivered Flow, Awaken and Esprit, while construction continues on the 38-apartment Radia. The new project would rise 57 metres above a consolidated 1,518 sqm site, on the same street as Radia and Esprit.

&nbsp;

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cottee-parker-architects">Cottee Parker</a>, the proposed development comprises 88 two and three-bedroom apartments across a contemporary podium-and-tower form that integrates extensive landscaping from street level through to the rooftop.

The tower would be delivered above a basement and multi-level podium accommodating resident and visitor parking, with the residential component commencing from level three. The design incorporates cascading planting throughout the façade, landscaped podium edges, and deep planting zones along the Boundary Street frontage.

<img alt="First look: S&amp;S Projects lodges plans for 88-apartment wellness tower at Coolangatta's Boundary Street" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="677e6615-b5c0-4b6c-b4f9-efb14fcde1a6" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/ss%20da%20pers.png?VersionId=YOnPKQm7IFXv0M5H326djEpxk80500Hi" />

A key feature of the development is its expansive rooftop wellness and recreation precinct. Plans reveal a resort-style pool deck, gymnasium, sauna, steam room, hot and cold plunge pools, rooftop terraces, barbecue areas and landscaped relaxation spaces positioned to capture views across the southern Gold Coast coastline.

The rooftop wellness focus builds on the vision S&amp;S Projects first outlined when it acquired the site for $20.25 million last year.

"We are taking every advantage to create a truly unique rooftop wellness experience with a natural feel for residents, offering stone features throughout and an underlying theme that emulates a botanical garden," S&amp;S Projects founder and director Paul Gedoun said at the time.

The proposal seeks a 57-metre building height, representing a 50 per cent uplift on the site's mapped 38-metre height limit. Planning documents argue the additional height is consistent with recently approved and emerging towers in the immediate Boundary Street and Rainbow Bay precinct.

Urbis, acting as planning consultant, said the development would provide "88 dwellings, comprising a mix of two and three-bedroom apartments, contributing to housing choice and supply within an established medium to high-rise coastal urban neighbourhood."

The scheme has undergone extensive pre-lodgement consultation with the City of Gold Coast, with the design refined following feedback relating to architectural expression, landscaping, traffic access and podium treatment.

<img alt="S&amp;S" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="0a2d70fd-62ac-4b83-97c6-b798fc1243dd" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-06-05%20at%209.16.31%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=yHmghUwKM3IVGpBktQU1mE.0Lpf3WimG" />

The architectural team is led by Brisbane-based Cottee Parker, one of Australia's most active residential design studios, with landscape architecture by Dunn + Moran. The consultant team also includes ADG Engineers, Windtech and Acoustic Works.

S&amp;S Projects has become one of the most influential private developers operating on the southern Gold Coast. Since entering Rainbow Bay in 2022, the company has assembled a portfolio exceeding $1 billion in end value, establishing itself as a key player in the area's evolution into a premium apartment destination. Pezet Matheson will again handle the sales for S&amp;S.

Coolangatta is entering another wave of apartment development, following the delivery of several prominent residential projects in recent years.

John Kearney's Immerse Projects will launch&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kaiya-kirra-beach-5-haig-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">Kaiya on Haig Street</a>&nbsp;soon, meanwhile, Palm Beach-based Sherpa Property Group is preparing to bring its debut Coolangatta development, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/flourish-viver-87-griffith-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">Flourish Viveré</a>, to market later this year, subject to approvals.

First look: S&S Projects proposes 88-apartment wellness tower at Coolangatta's Boundary Street

A landmark former orphanage site in Surrey Hills could be transformed into a new residential community under plans lodged by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/antipodean-land-developments">Antipodean Land Developments</a> that would deliver 76 apartments and townhouses while restoring some of the suburb's most significant heritage buildings.

The burgeoninng Melbourne-based developer has submitted plans for the 9,158 sqm site at 1 Kent Road and 24 Durham Road, home to the former St Joseph's Home for Destitute Children, a historic institutional complex dating back to the late 19th century. The proposal seeks to adaptively reuse several heritage buildings while introducing two new four-storey residential buildings set within extensive landscaped grounds.

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/woods-bagot">Woods Bagot</a> and Kerstin Thompson Architects, the project has been conceived as a contemporary residential village embedded within a restored heritage precinct. The development team describes the design approach as "The Village in the Garden," with new buildings positioned among mature landscaping by OCULUS and significant heritage structures.

<img alt="First look: Antipodean Land Developments plans heritage-led apartment community in Surrey Hills" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="44ec8c1b-c0b6-44ae-859e-5811b3e6a023" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Untitled%20design%20%281%29.png?VersionId=p.p1_KFh4iQoV4nisdnPfQBAsWNi7m79" />

The proposal would deliver 76 dwellings comprising a mix of apartments and duplex-style residences, significantly increasing housing supply on one of the largest privately held residential landholdings in Surrey Hills. The development includes 127 car spaces, 24 bicycle spaces and more than 1,000 sqm of communal amenity, with the existing chapel building earmarked for conversion into resident facilities.

According to the planning submission, the project centres on the restoration and adaptive reuse of the site's most significant heritage assets, including the original c.1889 St Joseph's building, the chapel designed by architect Augustus Andrew Fritsch, and the historic brick perimeter walls and entry gates. The proposal also incorporates the retention of other contributory buildings including the former infirmary and school building.

Tract Consultants, in the planning report accompanying the application, said the scheme had been shaped through extensive heritage analysis and design development.

"The shared vision for the Site by the project team has culminated in a scheme which successfully breathes life back into a historic site while delivering upon the objectives of Victoria's Housing Statement in a carefully curated and contextually responsive manner."

<img alt="First look: Antipodean Land Developments plans heritage-led apartment community in Surrey Hills" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="7263b7d8-95ea-400f-9531-6ca7d22c3c33" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Untitled%20design%20%282%29.png?VersionId=4cR1tiWOsDpgxEOwZi5vVFcyvvOsYkIE" />

The proposal is being assessed under Victoria's Significant Residential Development with Affordable Housing pathway. As part of the application, three per cent of the project's residential development cost would be contributed to the Social Housing Growth Fund. The development would also provide a diverse mix of one, two and three-bedroom residences targeting a broader range of buyers than typically found in Surrey Hills' detached housing market.

Sustainability initiatives include an anticipated 66 per cent BESS score, natural cross-ventilation to 80 per cent of apartments, 28 per cent deep soil landscaping and a canopy cover outcome exceeding local planning requirements. The proposal also sets aside more than 1,083 sqm for communal indoor and outdoor resident amenity spaces.

<img alt="First look: Antipodean Land Developments plans heritage-led apartment community in Surrey Hills" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="33fad46f-fe26-4d0a-acfd-6b776e1c6a3d" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Untitled%20design.png?VersionId=D9F6WVSyYCtGvSUmith35LRp6R7PQkw_" />

Planning documents describe the property as one of the largest underutilised residential sites in Surrey Hills, arguing it presents a rare opportunity to introduce "missing middle" housing in an established inner-eastern suburb while preserving and revitalising a significant heritage precinct.

Antipodean Land Developments has built a reputation for design-focused residential projects across Melbourne, particularly in the medium-density sector. Previous developments include Neighbourhood in Brunswick East, delivered with Breathe Architecture, and Balfe Park Lane, designed by Kerstin Thompson Architects.

They've been very active in site acquisition as they build out their future development pipeline. They recently launched Thornubury House, 45 apartments above a mix of commercial, retail, and food and beverage tenancies, and have plans for a boutique project in Fitzroy and another <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/vic/antipodean-plan-apartments-for-deepdenes-missing-middle-on-whitehorse-road">"missing middle" project</a> on Deepdene's Whitehorse Road.

Jonathan Chancellor

Editor's Picks

Have something to contribute?

Developments

New apartments

New townhouses

News