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<img src="/images/stories/emdur.jpg">
<img src="/images/stories/flagtitletat.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 5px;">Channel 7 Morning Show co-host Larry Emdur and his wife, Sylvie, have listed their redundant Dover Heights residence (pictured above). It follows their <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/residential/larry-edmur-says-good-morning-to-breathtaking-cliff-top-property/2011090251402">recent $6.8 million upgrading to a nearby mansion</a> with dramatic oceanfront cliff-top views over the Pacific (pictured below).
{yoogallery src=[images/stories/september2dover]}
The Emdurs have owned at Dover Heights since 1994, when they spent $770,000. They then rebuilt what its McGrath listing agent Bethwyn Richards describes as a contemporary house remaining true to its classic P&amp;O style heritage. It is set on 417 square metres, whereas the Emdurs’ new home is on 1,062 square metres of cliff-top land.
"Defined by its unique park-side position and all-encompassing coastal and ocean views from each level, this architecturally renovated home is exquisitely finished, presenting a rare opportunity in a one-of-kind location," Bethwyn Richards' marketing spiel says of the current listing. It has been listed for October 29 auction, but Richards won't be drawn on price. However, based on their purchase, Title Tattle would suggest more than $5 million could be reasonably expected. The residence they've just bought was bought from the Moss family who had paid $7.1 million in February 2007.
<img src="/images/stories/constance.jpg">
<img src="/images/stories/flagtitletat.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 5px;">New Fortescue Metals boss Neville Power has sold in Hawthorn East (pictured above). Power and wife Irma have moved from Melbourne to Perth, where the company is based. The sale price hasn't been disclosed, but it was listed in the hope of achieving more than $2.9 million. The Powers spent more than a year designing the four-bedroom, four-bathroom house, which has sweeping city views. There's a home theatre, a wine cellar, a pool and a gym and a four-car garage. All top-grade building material was used, since Nev was chief executive of Smorgon Steel Reinforcing at the time. Fraser Cahill of Thomson Real Estate secured the sale of the Grant Maggs Architects-designed house after it was passed in at $2.77 million.
<img src="/images/stories/lockyeroutside.jpg">
<img src="/images/stories/flagtitletat.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 5px;">Darren Lockyer, the 36-time Queensland State of Origin team hero, has found the Brisbane property market as enduringly tough as his recent on-field experience. His Paddington residence (pictured above) listed for early August auction remains for sale in the city’s challenging market.
The contemporary Paddington property cost Lockyer $1.49 million in 2004. It now comes with $2,275,000 hopes. The five-bedroom, three-bathroom place had been expected to fetch $2 million plus based on the standard growth (and then decline) experienced in Brisbane over the past seven years. A nearby $2.15 million sale will have given Lockyer some comfort. No official public price estimate has been given by its listing agents Tim Douglas and Gail Miller at Place Estate Agents.
In March the Broncos captain announced he will retire from all forms of rugby league at the end of the NRL season, his 17th season in first grade. Brisbane’s auction clearance rates have hovered around 25% in the first nine months of this year, according to Australian Property Monitors, although for the past three weeks there has been a notable improvement from 25% to 30% and a 42% clearance rate last weekend.
<img src="/images/stories/macleay.jpg">
<img src="/images/stories/flagtitletat.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 5px;">The Potts Point apartment (pictured above) of the slain Sydney racing identity Les Samba has been listed for sale with $2.75 million hopes through Richardson &amp; Wrench Elizabeth Bay. The Macleay Street unit cost $1.7 million when bought off the plan by Samba Group Pty Ltd in 2003 from the Winten development group. The Pomeroy apartment with extensive terracing but still no potted plantings settled in August 2004. Samba was shot dead as he tried to flee from a gunman police believe lured him to an ambush on a busy street in Melbourne's bayside suburb of Middle Park in February this year. Sydney-based Samba, a former horse trainer, was considered an expert judge of yearlings and was a big spender at sales around the country for many years. He and his family owned several top racehorses and had success with the 2006 Victoria Derby runner-up Gorky Park.
<img src="/images/stories/tamarama3.jpg">
<img src="/images/stories/flagtitletat.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 5px;">At Tamarama, the architect-designed house (pictured above) owned by Dan White, a great-grandson of the founder of the Ray White real estate empire, and his wife, Sam, fell short of its desired $7 million selling hopes when passed in at auction through Ray White Double Bay's Elliott Placks. The couple are selling because they're upgrading to a 2,460-square-metre Victoria Road Bellevue Hill property sold by the Sallick family. It’s a two-storey, period-style residence with tennis court. Placks hopes to secure a buyer in coming days for the house, which was completed three years ago. The interiors of the four-bedroom, four-bathroom residence were by Briony Fitzgerald, the interior designer daughter of the acclaimed designer Ann Gyngell.
{yoogallery src=[images/stories/september21lewis]}
<img src="/images/stories/flagtitletat.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 5px;">The much-anticipated listing of the Sydney Harbour home of the late arts patron Ann Lewis has made its way onto the market (pictured above). But it comes at a time when there are two other premium Rose Bay harbourfront offerings. The Lewis family residence, Amaroo, comes with direct access to a sandy beach and private deepwater jetty, was her home for about 55 years. It has now been listed for October 27 auction by her four children, Amanda Zsebik, Tony Lewis, Annalise Scanlan and Daniel Lewis, following her death in May. Mossgreen is set to sell the contents at a forthcoming auction. Title Tattle heralded the listing in mid-July.
The Australian Financial Review speculates its pricing will exceed Rose Bay's $18.2 million top sale at its auction through Ken Jacobs at Christies International in conjunction with Andrew Livingston at McGrath Estate Agents.
{yoogallery src=[images/stories/september16rosebay]}
The Bayview Hill Road house faces competition from two listings on Dumaresq Road, as Title Tattle has reported. There's the <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/new-south-wales/leisure-entrepreneur-bill-bursill-s-rose-bay-house-up-for-auction/2011091651576">double-block offering of the late Bill Bursill</a>, whose 1950s house (pictured above) has been listed for November 3 auction, with more than $16 million being sought by Wayne Yates from Laing &amp; Simmons Double Bay. The family purchased the waterfront land in 1950 when it was being used as tennis courts.
And of course the neighbouring<a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/residential/title-tattle-chance-to-buy-one-of-the-100-best-homes-in-the-world/2011090251403"> organic Modernist residence of former Justice of the High Court of Australia Michael Kirby</a> and his partner, Johan van Vloten, has been listed for sale. Designed by one of Sydney's most influential Modernist architects, Neville Gruzman, the house was revolutionary when it was built in 1949 for Gruzman's aunt. The house with direct access to a sandy beach was  bought for $190,000 in August 1976. It has been listed for sale with Belle Property's David Vereker who expects to sell for about $12 million.
<img src="/images/stories/lyon1.jpg">
<img src="/images/stories/flagtitletat.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 5px;">Former Melbourne AFL champion and now Footy Show host Garry Lyon has sold his Hawthorn abode (pictured above) to Washington DC-based buyers. The four-bedroom, three-bathroom period house in one of the suburb’s premier heritage streets had been passed in on a vendor's bid of $3.6 million. Lyon, who bought it in 2005 for $2.74 million, has been expecting $3.5 million plus through Jellis Craig Glen Iris listing agent Paul Keane. No price has yet emerged in The preliminary sale paperwork, which was lodged earlier this month.
<img src="/images/stories/balmoral1.jpg">
<img src="/images/stories/flagtitletat.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 5px;">Software entrepreneur Simon Clausen, who debuted on the 2009 BRW Rich List with a $180 million fortune after selling his software company, listed his Balmoral Slopes. abandoned construction site (pictured above) a few weeks back with no desire to proceed on his envisaged expansive three-level Mosman mansion. It was listed as 2,560-square-metre vacant block through McGrath agent Nigel Mukhi.  The block cost $19 million to amalgamate. Title Tattle notes its marketing now suggests it could be divided into four separate holdings.  The block sizes are 620 square metres, 638 square metres, 664 square metres and 638 square metres. Mostly Europe based these days, Clausen, who featured in eight spot on the latest BRW Young Rich list, reportedly dedicates part of his estimated $207 million fortune to creating the next generation of tech companies through incubator Startive.
<img src="/images/stories/flagtitletat.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 5px;">Title Tattle aims to tell you first – and sometime before it has happened – so it was imperative that the mid-week second auction of the Bellevue Hill residence of Tim Clarke be attended.  It’s been the home that everyone had an opinion about. With lavishly appointed Marco Meneguzzi interiors, the five-bedroom, four-bathroom house was again being offered through Richardson &amp; Wrench Double Bay agents James McCowan and Michael Dunn. There was a $5.8 million opening bid, then a $6 million vendor bid at which proceedings concluded. In between a casually attired registered bidder standing next to the auctioneer asked twice if it was on the market, without himself lodging any offer. Word is that a deal at around $6.41 million was soon secured with the obvious would-be buyer.
In June Title Tattle recalls there was a $6.3 million opening bid of $6.3 million and a vendor bid of $6.4 million with the auctioneer Peter Baldwin accepting incremental increases of $5,000 until the property was passed in at $6.52 million. The Clarkes had paid $2.55 million in 2005 and possibly spent quite a bit more than $3 million on the project. The buyer was none other than Darren Harvey – widely regarded as Australia’s best fixed-income trader and his wife, Jaz, who sat in the front row of the auction. They'd been perennials in recent months getting close to buying on Kambala Road and Victoria Road, elsewhere in Bellevue Hill.
Maybe it’s just the industry in which he worked, but the eastern suburbs property market was alight with speculation that he'd been offered $200,000 by the underbidder to sell soon afterwards— but said no. Harvey was at Deutsche Bank in Sydney and London, where he was head of derivatives, and now runs a very successful fixed-income fund called Bower Capital, which has generated spectacular returns over the last five years.
<img src="/images/stories/gates.jpg">
<img src="/images/stories/flagtitletat.jpg" style="float: left; margin: 5px;">And don't tell anyone that Title Tattle told you but barring last-minute contractual gremlins, Bill Gates will be staying on the Point Piper harbourfront (pictured above) during his upcoming Sydney sojourn. Apparently he's set to stay at car-dealing yachtsman Neville Crichton's property. This week Bill Gates topped Forbes' list of the 400 richest Americans for the 18th year in a row.
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jchancellor-FAypfDUnLy

Bill Gates rents on Sydney Harbour: Title Tattle

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The latest data for August puts Sydney's median house price at $675,000, which is up 2.5% for the year, or 1.1% for the quarter and 0.07% for the month of August.
Sydney has the strongest August result of the capital cities, according to John Edwards at Residex.
The Australian median house price was at $430,500, which was down 1.1% for the month.
Sydney's annual growth also led the nation, with Brisbane's 6.7% annual fall the worst capital city result.
And Sydney's strength is quite reflective of the cycle's, as its 10-year price gain reflects a 6.06% annual growth, the weakest of all the capitals and below the 8.6% average annual national growth over the decade.
Edwards has Tasmania has his standout capital city of the decade with 10.9% annual growth.
John Edwards maintains Sydney’s housing shortage has saved its bacon.
He suggests the downturn in migration to Australia had not assisted price stability or growth in many capital cities.
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Sydney house prices up 2.5% for the year: Residex

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Sydney has 14 suburbs with median prices of $2 million or more, according to Australian Property Monitors.
Point Piper tops the list with its $9.9 million median price.
Dr Andrew Wilson, the senior economist at APM , describes prestige housing market as generally having been quiet in the past four years since rising interest rates and the global financial crisis flattened demand from aspirational buyers.
He notes Sydney had 121 suburbs with median house prices of more than $1 million in the six months to July.
"This was one more than the number recorded in the previous six months.
"The number of property sales in suburbs with a $1 million median house price was also up, from 3,950 in the six months ending in January to 3953 recorded in the six months to July," Wilson says.
Some 15% of all sales recorded in Sydney in the six months to July were for properties in $1 million-plus median suburbs, compared with 7% in Melbourne.
The latest Australian Property Monitors data has the July quarter Sydney median house price at $639,484 – 16% and approaching $100,000 more expensive than Melbourne's $551,006.
"Sydney prices have also streaked ahead of Perth's. At the start of 2007, Perth's median was $530,000 – almost the same as Sydney's,” Wilson says.
"Perth's median remains $530,000, while Sydney's has risen 20% since then.”
The disparity between Sydney and the other capitals is even more pronounced, according to the APM data.
Brisbane's and Adelaide's median house price sits at $440,667 and $437,002 respectively, which is nearly $200,000 or 45% less expensive than Sydney's.
Wilson suggests another important point of difference is that despite being the most expensive, Sydney's market was also the most resilient.
"The 0.6% drop over the year to July is the best result of all the major capitals, with only volatile Darwin showing any growth (3.8 %)," he notes.
<table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="276"><tbody>
<tr>
<td width="132" valign="bottom">
Suburb
</td>
<td width="64" valign="bottom">
Postcode
</td>
<td width="80" valign="bottom">
Median Price
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Point Piper
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2027
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$9,925,000
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Bellevue Hill
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2023
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$3,340,000
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Darling Point
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2027
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$3,325,000
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Vaucluse
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2030
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$3,225,000
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Double Bay
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2028
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$3,025,000
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Dover Heights
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2030
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$2,465,500
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Henley
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2111
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$2,375,000
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Longueville
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2066
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$2,350,500
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Mosman
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2088
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$2,250,000
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Palm Beach
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2108
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$2,200,000
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Kangaroo Point
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2224
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$2,170,000
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Clontarf
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2093
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$2,145,000
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Tamarama
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2026
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$2,075,000
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" nowrap valign="bottom">
Woollahra
</td>
<td width="64" nowrap valign="bottom">
2025
</td>
<td width="80" nowrap valign="bottom">
$2,000,001
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
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Sydney now has 14 super-prestige suburbs and 121 above the $1 million median

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Lachlan Murdoch, the former Bronte-loving media tycoon, and his model wife, Sarah, have relisted their Bronte house for sale.
Christies International has the Murdochs' redundant Bronte house on its books, presumably at less than the $13.5 million initial asking price sought in late 2009.
There is no price indication of the website listing.
The house was recently rented to actor Toni Collette while she undertook renovations to her hillside house.
It was an unsolicited bid in April 2005 that secured the $7.75 million house above Bronte Beach as the Murdochs’ base for their return to Australia from New York.
Photos of the house had been emailed to their New York office by News Ltd property officer Steve Payne, and the couple inspected it on brief trips to Australia.
It was bought from Graham Ford, the Bronte Surf Club president, who built it in 2001.
The Murdochs had been keen for the cosmopolitan beach strip, which represented a change from the Opera House vista from Point Piper where the couple had sold their four-level harbourfront for $20.8 million in March 2005, having paid $12 million in 1999 to the mining magnate Robert Friedland.
With too many stairs and too little grass, family patriarch Rupert Murdoch noted on his first inspection of the Wolseley Road Point Piper house that it was unsuitable for small children in 1999.
It’s likely Le Manoir, Lachlan and Sarah Murdoch's $23 million Georgian estate in Bellevue Hill, will become the couple's permanent base. But no development application has been publicly lodged since its late 2009 purchase nor since they spent $2.63 million on a property next door in February this year, which added 1,049 square metres to their initial 4,097-square-metre hillside purchase.
Le Manoir had previously traded at $26,000 in 1956 when bought by the French government from May McDonald, the New Caledonian-born widow of solicitor Roy McDonald, who was the founding president of the Hydroponic Society of Australia.
Woollahra Library records indicate its design for the McDonalds was by Copeman and Lemont after the land was hived off the 1919 Rocky Park subdivision undertaken by jeweller Melen Myers.
In the meantime the Murdoch couple continue their two-year lease on Coolong, the Vaucluse beachfront residence of expats Ivan and Marina Ritossa, in early 2010.
It's the house the Murdochs wanted before buying Le Manoir, which was unencumbered and unrenovated, for $23 million when they outbid nine other parties in November 2009.
In  2008 Coolong set the then Sydney residential record, with Allco founder David Coe securing $45 million from Ritossa, the global head of foreign exchange at Barclays Capital, through estate agent Bill Bridges and McGrath agent Hamish Robertson. 
The record Sydney house sale hit $53 million last year in Point Piper.
The Murdoch rental house with private beach dates back to Sir Alexis Albert, from the Boomerang music songbook family, who built on the 4,100-square-metre block in 1936.
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Lachlan and Sarah Murdoch re-list their Bronte house

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The rich are watching their pennies more than households with relatively low levels of financial assets, according to the Reserve Bank of Australia.
Noting the fall in financial asset prices over recent years had led many households to increase their savings, the RBA assistant governor Philip Lowe suggests the biggest savers were those concerned about losing their jobs.
Conversely, the smallest increases in saving were for those who have become less concerned about losing their jobs.
Households that own their dwellings outright are also not participating in Australia's savings phenomenon as much as mortgage-encumbered households, Lowe notes.
"The saving ratio has increased for those that rent, for those with a mortgage and for those that own their dwelling outright, although, the increase in saving has been smallest for those households that own their dwelling outright," he told the Australian Economic Forum.
It was also apparent that the increase in savings had been largest for younger households and smallest for older households.
"This result holds for both households that are renting and those that are owner-occupiers," he notes.
"Taken together, this evidence is consistent with the idea that higher housing prices and debt levels have contributed to a reassessment of saving decisions, although, obviously, the reasons for the increase in saving go well beyond what has happened in the housing market.
"Higher housing prices have required higher deposits and this requires more savings.
"This trend has probably been reinforced by developments on the lending side, with most lenders lowering their maximum loan-to-valuation ratio over recent years,” Lowe says.
"Saving decisions today are also likely being influenced by the earlier rise in debt levels relative to incomes and by debt servicing burdens that are staying higher for longer.
"The adjustments seem to have been particularly pronounced among younger households who are hoping to enter the housing market or who have recently entered the market."
Lowe notes there was a significant rise over time in the share of total expenditure on housing.
"When the Household Expenditure Survey was conducted in the early 1980s, housing accounted for a little less than 13% of total expenditure.
"By way of contrast, in the recent survey this share had increased to 18%, the largest change in any single expenditure category.
"The bulk of this change took place over the past decade and largely reflects the rise in interest payments on mortgage debt due to higher levels of debt relative to income."
The speech noted the relationship between the change in saving and a household's holdings of financial assets (excluding deposits) among those with above-average holdings of financial assets and those with below-average holdings.
The RBA has calculated the median change in the saving ratio for each group between 2008 and 2009, the year of the financial crisis.
"It is clear that for all five income quintiles, households that had relatively high levels of financial assets before the financial turmoil increased their saving by more than households with relatively low levels of financial assets."
He concluded his speech by suggesting it was "reasonable to expect that, at some point, the impact of these factors will begin to wane."
"Although exactly when remains an open question," he notes.
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Rich watching their pennies after almost losing their assets and income

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The Lend Lease Group syndicate is up against a Brookfield Multiplex-led consortium as the final two tenders to develop the Waterbank prime riverside site in Perth.
"East Perth Redevelopment Authority is in the final stages of evaluating two submissions from Lend Lease and Brookfield Multiplex Constructions with Frasers Property Australia, to develop Waterbank and deliver a new precinct for local residents and visitors to the city," says  Western Australian Planning Minister John Day.
The government's urban development agency is in the final stages of evaluating bids for the right to develop a four-hectare site known as Waterbank near the city centre.
Waterbank is the first stage of a planned $2.6 billion development of Perth's riverside area, which would involve building 3,400 homes and more than 80,000 square metres of retail and commercial space.
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Lend Lease and Multiplex vie for Perth Waterbank tender

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{yoogallery src=[images/stories/september22paddington]}
For those who maintain <a target="_blank" title="Paddington" href="/news">Paddington </a>is Sydney's real estate pacesetter, the latest listing will suggest if there's much competition at the pricey end of the market.
The Leal family, who made their money as owners of Super Smash, the Bondi smash repairer, have listed their grand Paddington Street home with $11 million hopes.
It’s not their first foray into record-setting Paddington listings, as they sold their previous double-fronted offering for a record $4.52 million in late 2004 to investment industry bigwig Andre Morony and his wife, Beverley, through McGrath agents James Dack and Ben Collier. It was a four-level, six-metre-wide terrace standing on a 202-square-metre block.
The latest offering is described by Collier, who is marketing the property, as "arguably one of Paddington’s finest homes".
The north-facing terrace is set on a 390-square-metre block of land, located at the Woollahra end of Paddington Street.
It has four levels with lift access. The double-fronted terrace spans 12 metres in width.
The two now amalgamated terraces were consolidated in 2000.
The Paddington record residential price is $7.75 million when a Goodhope Street Dunkley Developments residence sold through Bickmore-Hutt agent Damien Bickmore-Hutt in April 2010. There had been an earlier $7.75 million sale in 2006 when stockbroker Neville Miles sold in Union Street.
Fashion designer Collette Dinnigan secured $7.3 million for her resort-style Paddington residence earlier this year. The Underwood Street property last traded at $4.1 million in 2002 when bought from the then Altona, Point Piper-bound couple, Deke and Eve Miskin. It sold through Ben Collier and James Dack at McGrath Estate Agents, in conjunction with Bill Malouf. Dinnigan had initially listed in 2009 with $10 million hopes.
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Listing of $11 million could smash Paddington record

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The Formula 1 racing group McLaren store at the luxury London residential development One Hyde Park has been put up for sale through Savills for £11.5 million, following the sale of the neighbouring Rolex-occupied store last month.
The 296-square-metre store is on offer at a net initial yield of 3.29% and let back to McLaren on a 15-year lease at an initial rent of £400,000 a year.
Last month the Russian investor <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/retail/russian-buys-%C2%A313-million-rolex-store/2011090251404" title="Rolex store" target="_blank">Grigory Guselnikov bought the Rolex store for £13 million</a>, reflecting a net initial yield of 2.91%.
A third retail store -- to be let to Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank -- is expected to open this year.
The Knightsbridge retail-residential Candy Bros-built complex, which sits close to the big department stores Harrods and Harvey Nichols, is one of London's most expensive developments.
Investors seeking the best shops on the UK capital's prime shopping streets have included the sale of the Cartier store on Old Bond Street, which sold at £18.65 million in July, reflecting a reported record-low yield of 2.8%.
“Investors are investing in London because rents have been growing and growing consistently for the last few years,” CB Richard Ellis executive director Phil Cann told Reuters.
“London, Paris, New York are considered as safe havens at the moment for cash, and it's about return of capital, not returns on capital,” he says.
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Formula 1 McLaren store races onto London market

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Gant, the menswear store, is about to take up occupancy on Queen Street, Woollahra.
It is taking the premises vacated by Robert Burton who has crossed the street to single-fronted rental space.
The tenancy had been available for rent at about $160,000 a year.
The intended Gant space last sold in 2009 at $6.25 million to the Richardson family. The double-fronted Queen Street shop, which dates back to 1872, sold through Bob Guth at Bradfield &amp; Prichard Double Bay.
Its previous sale was for $6,025,000 in 2004.
The Sydney suburb of Woollahra’s prestige shopping precinct’s most recent sale was in mid-June 2011, when the Howell and Howell antique premises fetched $4.25 million post-auction through Richardson and Wrench in conjunction with Laing and Simmons agent John Knott. 
The former Howell premises are available through Knott at about $165,000 annual rental for the 160-square-metre ground-floor retail space.
The Gant space boasts an 11-metre retail frontage to Queen Street and totals 140 square metres.
Burton is renowned for selling a range of clothing from European fashion houses, but the Sydney style guru has barely had a mention in the Sydney Morning Herald since its retailing columnist Melissa Penfold took extended leave.
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Gant makes fashionable entrance to Woollahra

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Residential vacancies declined modestly across Australia during August 2011, falling by 0.1% to a national vacancy rate of 1.8%.
SQM Research says it arises from a total of 46,923 vacancies across the capital cities.
Melbourne continues to have the highest vacancy rate of 2.8% for a second consecutive month.
Canberra has once again recorded the tightest vacancy rate of the capital cities –  falling by 0.1% to 0.6%.
Canberra had just 289 vacancies. Melbourne had 10,197 vacancies.
No capital cities recorded month-on-month growth in vacancies; however Melbourne, Adelaide and Hobart did not experience any declines.
Adelaide plateaued at 1.6% (2,311 vacancies) and Hobart at 1.9% (448).
Sydney experienced a monthly decline of 0.2% in vacancies falling to 1.4% (7,769), and 0.2% monthly declines were also recorded Perth at 1% (1,559) and Darwin 0.9% (215) respectively.
Perth was the capital city to experience the largest yearly decline.
The capital cities to experience the largest yearly increase in vacancies were Melbourne and Adelaide – both rising by 0.7% since August 2010.
"With 3% being considered the equilibrium – as the national figure stands, 1.8% still presents a continuing tight vacancy," SQM managing director Louis Christopher says.
“Vacancy rates throughout the course of this year have remained very steady.
“To date there is no significant trend of vendors, having failed in selling their properties, offering up for rent instead,” Christopher says.
"While no doubt some vendors are doing this, so far, it’s not a mass event.
"And so, the rental market remains largely a landlords market, for now,” he  says.
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Canberra leads national rental vacancy decline: SQM

ASX-listed developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/stockland">Stockland</a>&nbsp;is continuing its push back into the new apartment market, filing plans for a prominent gateway site between Collingwood and East Melbourne.

The development giant, which moved back into the new apartment space when it announced Stanton Place in Sydney's Rosebery and have since filed plans for a 50-storey tower, are jumping into the off the plan Melbourne market.

They are hoping to create a mixed-use neighbourhood precinct for <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/79-81-victoria-parade-collingwood-vic-3066">79-81 Victoria Parade</a>, replacing an existing commercial building with a scheme by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/john-wardle-architects">Wardle</a>&nbsp;for 478 apartments,&nbsp;ground-floor retail, new public open spaces and a publicly accessible pedestrian laneway.

<img alt="First look: Stockland plans new mixed-use neighbourhood precinct for Collingwood gateway site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="72dbbca9-3918-4073-afad-a0c0c35be8e7" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/stockland%20pers.png?VersionId=bzMVUKKxvwuNK1m0v_td126Rgct32uk_" />

The design report identifies the public realm as a central driver of the proposal.

"Collingwood has limited access to high-quality parks and public open space, and the proposal delivers valuable new areas for respite, social interaction and fine-grain retail activity."

The development would deliver a diverse mix of housing, including studio, one, two and three-bedroom apartments alongside townhouse-style residences. Two basement levels are proposed beneath the development, providing resident and retail parking as well as extensive bicycle facilities.

Wardle's design draws heavily on Collingwood's industrial character, using articulated building forms, brickwork and robust materials inspired by the suburb's warehouse and manufacturing heritage. The built form has been broken into a series of smaller volumes to better respond to the surrounding streetscape while extensive communal gardens, rooftop amenities and shared resident spaces are integrated throughout the project.

<img alt="First look: Stockland plans new mixed-use neighbourhood precinct for Collingwood gateway site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="7b2135ed-65df-4253-ad53-f216f06bd467" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/stockland%20podium.png?VersionId=l1B6Hqn8zs772VxH6L1fDPg0KHshan9v" />

The planning documents describe the existing office building as offering little engagement with the public realm, with the redevelopment intended to create a more permeable and active neighbourhood destination.

"The proposed scheme presents a significant opportunity to deliver a vibrant retail plaza and a local neighbourhood hub serving both existing and future Collingwood residents."

The 79–81 Victoria Parade site occupies a strategic location about 1.5 kilometres east of Melbourne's CBD, at the threshold between Collingwood and East Melbourne. It is well served by tram services along Victoria Parade and sits within walking distance of St Vincent's Hospital, Fitzroy Gardens, the Fitzroy activity centre and a broad range of employment, retail and hospitality destinations.

Joel Robinson

Stockland plans new mixed-use neighbourhood precinct for Collingwood gateway site

An 1880s timber cottage that has survived Kangaroo Point's transformation from riverside suburb to high-density apartment precinct is set to become the centrepiece of <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/zephyr">Zephyr Group</a>'s proposed Banksia development.

Rather than see the locally heritage-listed Alpha Cottage as an obstacle to navigate, plans integrate the landmark home into a new 18-storey residential tower, giving one of the suburb's oldest surviving residences a new role as the project's communal hub.

The development application covers a 1,177 sqm amalgamated site at 127-133 Lambert Street and 30 Shafston Avenue, where Zephyr Group plans to deliver 64 apartments above three basement levels. Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/joe-adsett-architects">Joe Adsett Architects</a>, the proposal carefully weaves the retained heritage cottage into a contemporary residential scheme, with the tower elevated above the historic building to preserve its presence within the Lambert Street streetscape.

<img alt="First look: Zephyr Group's Banksia to wrap new Kangaroo Point tower around 1880s Alpha Cottage" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="f9dc5bdb-d691-4c60-bf2b-c3ed405a3e75" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Banksia.png?VersionId=Jh4bjlewU.o8HXWt0V4KaFA_lPcF7KWM" />

Named after the native Australian Banksia flower, the project draws inspiration from its distinctive form through curved balconies, sculpted planter boxes and cascading subtropical landscaping that soften the building's profile.

As the design report explains: "The tower's identity is defined by its feature facade, drawing direct inspiration from the Banksia wildflower. The building departs from traditional rigidity through the use of elegant, GRC-moulded planter boxes that appear as if shaped by the breeze."

Plans propose 64 apartments, comprising 32 two-bedroom and 32 three-bedroom residences, across an 18-storey tower. Residents would have access to rooftop amenities including a swimming pool, spa, gym, sauna, private cinema, dining spaces and landscaped recreation areas, while more than half the site is dedicated to planting and open space.

<img alt="First look: Zephyr Group's Banksia to wrap new Kangaroo Point tower around 1880s Alpha Cottage" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="16041b5f-033e-47fa-8fbe-9886e072c1f2" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/pool.png?VersionId=kpx5w4EbLx0_TdWfDoD1vrSs0_cZ5Ao1" />

The heritage component is the defining feature of the proposal. Constructed in the early 1880s and occupied from at least 1883, Alpha Cottage is recognised by Brisbane City Council as an important surviving example of Kangaroo Point's nineteenth-century residential development and as a representative transverse-gable timber cottage. Despite extensive redevelopment across the peninsula, the building has retained a high degree of its original form and internal fabric.

As part of the redevelopment, the cottage will be carefully relocated a short distance within its original allotment to facilitate construction before being returned to a prominent position along Lambert Street. Original verandah elements will be dismantled, catalogued and reinstated, while significant internal features, including timber flooring, wall linings, joinery, doors, windows and hardware, will be retained. Later additions, including the enclosed rear verandah, will be removed to better reveal the building's original form.

Once restored, Alpha Cottage will accommodate the building manager's office, mail room and parcel facilities, providing an active everyday use that supports its long-term conservation rather than preserving it as a static display. The heritage strategy also maintains landscaped space around the building, allowing it to remain visually distinct beneath the new tower.

<img alt="First look: Zephyr Group's Banksia to wrap new Kangaroo Point tower around 1880s Alpha Cottage" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="43b027e1-576e-4624-a66c-7cc54ea8b7be" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/banksia%20tower.png?VersionId=2W6E2yfkj2AQlWlLeV986grA5zB9f817" />

The Heritage Impact Assessment concludes that "the proposal secures the ongoing occupation, maintenance and conservation of Alpha Cottage," finding the development would result in "no more than a minor impact on the cultural heritage significance" of the building while ensuring its long-term future.

Joe Adsett Architects have designed the tower to sit above the heritage building rather than overwhelm it, creating a clear visual separation between old and new. The development's flowing balconies, integrated planting and organic façade respond to Brisbane's subtropical climate while complementing the restored cottage below.

Banksia occupies a prominent corner in Kangaroo Point within walking distance of the Kangaroo Point Bridge, Brisbane River, ferry services, QUT, the CBD and the Woolloongabba precinct. The site also benefits from direct access to active transport infrastructure and sits within an area earmarked for continued higher-density residential growth.

Zephyr Group's Banksia to wrap new Kangaroo Point tower around 1880s Alpha Cottage

Buying into a masterplanned community often means committing to a vision still years from taking shape. At <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kew-tallawong-23-27-schofields-road-tallawong-nsw-2762">Kew Tallawong</a>, that vision is already visible.

Residents have moved into the completed first stage, landscaped spaces are established, and the next chapter is now underway. Stage 1 has been completed and settled, with Stage 2 now selling off-the-plan.

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/pbd-architects">PBD Architects</a>, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kew-tallawong-23-27-schofields-road-tallawong-nsw-2762">Kew Tallawong</a> combines attainable apartment living with sustainability initiatives rarely seen at this price point, including rooftop solar, battery storage and a resident EV-sharing program.

<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/6RNt3AvtBpI?si=JUhuCV2ZRXsYaoJZ" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>

Located on Schofi​elds Road, just moments from Tal​lawong Metro Station and Schof​ields Train Station, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kew-tallawong-23-27-schofields-road-tallawong-nsw-2762">Kew Tallawong</a> has been designed to appeal to a broad mix of buyers, from first-home purchasers looking for a foothold in Sy​dney's property market to downsizers seeking a connected, low-maintenance lifestyle.

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kew-tallawong-23-27-schofields-road-tallawong-nsw-2762">Kew Tallawong</a> has been conceived as a thoughtfully planned masterplanned community that will evolve over multiple stages, with buyers now able to secure one, two and three-bedroom apartments within a neighbourhood that is already beginning to establish its identity.

One of the project's defining features is its focus on sustainability. Solar energy systems, battery storage and future EV charging infrastructure have been incorporated throughout the development, reflecting a long-term approach to both environmental performance and everyday convenience.

Sustainability sits at the centre of the development's vision, with solar energy systems, battery storage and future EV charging infrastructure integrated throughout the community.

That emphasis on future-ready living extends beyond the technology. Landscaped communal gardens, outdoor gathering spaces and plans for a future retail precinct aim to create a neighbourhood where residents can access daily conveniences without travelling far from home.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=149637 project_image_fid=351027]

The apartments themselves have been designed with liveability front of mind. Rather than chasing maximum density, the focus has been placed on creating practical homes with generous natural light, usable layouts and strong connections to outdoor space.

Importantly, these design principles have been applied consistently across the one, two and three-bedroom apartment offerings.

The appeal of <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kew-tallawong-23-27-schofields-road-tallawong-nsw-2762">Kew Tallawong</a> is also closely linked to its location within Syd​ney's rapidly evolving north-west growth corridor. Over the past decade, major infrastructure investment has transformed the area, with new transport links, business precincts and community facilities reshaping suburbs like Talla​wong and Schofiel​ds.

The agent says buyers are increasingly recognising the area's long-term potential.

"Typical buyers that we're finding across <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kew-tallawong-23-27-schofields-road-tallawong-nsw-2762">Kew Tallawong</a> especially are your first-home buyers, your investors, your upsizers as well as your downsizers," Hawes says.

Connectivity remains one of the project's strongest drawcards. Residents have access to both Tallaw​ong Metro Station and Schofi​elds Train Station, providing links to the Sydn​ey CBD, Norw​est Business Park, Macquari​e Park and other major employment hubs. Retail centres including Rous​e Hill Town Centre and Sch​ofields Village are also nearby, alongside schools, parks and future healthcare infrastructure.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=149637 project_image_fid=351031]

For Stage 1 resident Roji, it is the balance between convenience and comfort that has defined the experience of living at Kew.

"For me, it's a balance of quality and convenience," she says. "Everything I need is right here."

"If I wanted to catch the train, Scho​fields Station is just around the corner. Tallaw​ong Metro connects me to the city."

More importantly, she says, the development has delivered something that cannot be measured in floorplans or specifications.

"<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kew-tallawong-23-27-schofields-road-tallawong-nsw-2762">Kew Tallawong</a> feels like home."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=149637 project_image_fid=351024]

As Stage 2 enters the market, that lived experience may be one of the project's strongest selling points. Buyers are not purchasing into an untested concept or a future promise. They are joining a community that is already taking shape.

Ongoing investment in transport, retail, healthcare and public open space continues to strengthen the appeal of Syd​ney's north-west growth corridor, while <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kew-tallawong-23-27-schofields-road-tallawong-nsw-2762">Kew Tallawong</a>'s established first stage provides buyers with a tangible sense of the community's future direction.

For a limited time, buyer can secure a new home at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kew-tallawong-23-27-schofields-road-tallawong-nsw-2762">Kew Tallawong</a> with just a $10,000.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=149637]

Kew Tallawong: A growing community taking shape in Sydney's north-west

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/freecity">Freecity</a> has received development approval for its 51-storey mixed-use tower at 153-157 Walker Street, North Sydney, set to be one of the tallest mixed-use residential-led buildings in one of Sydney’s most sought-after commercial and residential addresses.

Lodged as a State Significant Development Application (SSDA) through the Housing Delivery Authority (HDA) pathway and approved by the NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure following a comprehensive public exhibition and submissions process, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/153-walker-street-north-sydney-nsw-2060">the project</a> will deliver 296 apartments, alongside a 170-room, luxury hotel, activated retail and significant public domain improvements.

Situated just 200 metres from Victoria Cross Metro Station, on one of the largest developable sites in North Sydney, the development will rise to 234 metres, making it one of the tallest buildings in the suburb. With an end value of approximately $1.5 billion, the project responds directly to the NSW Government’s mandate to accelerate housing delivery in well-located, transit-connected areas.

<img alt="Freecity gets green light for mixed-use residential and hotel tower in North Sydney" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="192ec455-94bf-4e01-83ef-922b1b269d67" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Freecity%20-%20Walker%20Street%20North%20Sydney%201%20RESIZED%20.jpg?VersionId=Bzqp0SBHCDvLAHjA4QXkjuGoOEIh73Jl" />

The apartment mix will cater to a broad range of buyers, with 65 studio and one-bedroom apartments, 139 two-bedroom residences, 35 three-bedroom apartments, 48 four-bedroom homes, and nine penthouses. Residents will have access to a dedicated amenity level on Level 33, featuring a swimming pool with views towards the Harbour Bridge, Sydney Opera House and North Sydney CBD, as well as a gym, library, shared kitchen, lounge and outdoor entertaining areas.

The hotel will occupy the lower six levels of the building and include meeting and function spaces, a wellness centre with gym, yoga studio, swimming pool and sauna, further strengthening North Sydney's growing hospitality offering.

At ground level, the development has been designed to improve pedestrian connections through the precinct. More than 700 sqm of retail space will activate the street frontage, while a landscaped through-site link connecting Walker Street, Little Walker Street and Doris Fitton Park will provide new public open space with seating, paving and extensive native landscaping.

Freecity Group Co-Founder and Joint CEO Tony Sun said the project represents one of the most significant development opportunities currently available in North Sydney.

"This is one of the most significant development sites in North Sydney and it comes at a pivotal moment for the precinct," Sun said.

"North Sydney is undergoing a genuine transformation, and this project will contribute housing the city urgently needs while creating a landmark destination."

Executive Director of Development Michael Romano said demand for both residential and hotel accommodation would continue to strengthen as the Metro precinct matures.

"The structural demand for high-quality housing and hotel accommodation in North Sydney is compelling, and will only grow as the precinct continues to evolve around the new Metro station," Romano said.

Architectus has designed the tower, orientating the apartments to maximise views towards Sydney Harbour while introducing a sculpted façade intended to respond to light, wind and the surrounding skyline.

Architectus Principal Marko Damic said the design sought to create a tower that contributes to the public realm as much as the skyline.

"We wanted to design a tower that doesn't just sit in the skyline but actively participates and contributes to city life," Damic said.

First look: Freecity gets green light for mixed-use apartment and hotel tower in North Sydney

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/abadeen">Abadeen</a> and <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/perifa">PERIFA</a> have celebrated the topping out of <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/putney-wharf-harbourfront-precinct-20-waterview-street-putney-nsw-2112">Putney Wharf,</a> marking a significant milestone in the delivery of one of Syd​ney's most anticipated waterfront communities.

Located on Sydney's harbourfront at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/putney-nsw-2112">Putney</a>, the project has now reached its highest structural point, with construction progressing strongly towards completion in 2027. 
&nbsp; 
The milestone was celebrated on-site with project partners Phoenix Property Investors, Mitsubishi Estate Asia, Versatile Construction, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/sjb-architects">SJB</a>, consultants and stakeholders, to recognise the collective effort behind the transformation of the historic waterfront site into a vibrant new residential, marina and lifestyle destination.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=13962 project_image_fid=362240] 
&nbsp; 
<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/putney-wharf-harbourfront-precinct-20-waterview-street-putney-nsw-2112">Putney Wharf</a> will deliver a mix of waterfront residences and terraces, complemented by a private 36-berth marina, waterfront dining opportunities and a revitalised foreshore designed to reconnect the community with the river's edge. 
&nbsp; 
Abadeen Executive Chairman and Founder Justin Brown said the project represented a rare opportunity to create the next chapter in Sydn​ey's long history of successful waterfront precincts. 
&nbsp; 
"Throughout Sydney, some of the city's most sought-after addresses have emerged from carefully considered waterfront precincts such as Woolloom​ooloo Wharf, Walsh Bay and Breakfast Point," Brown said.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=13962 project_image_fid=362566] 
&nbsp; 
"What makes these places so successful is that they become much more than residential developments," Brown said.

"They bring together homes, hospitality, marina facilities, public spaces and a strong sense of community in locations where future supply is incredibly limited."

Brown has long described absolute waterfront land in Sy​dney as "finite."

"Once these opportunities are developed, they are rarely replicated. That's why Syd​ney's waterfront precincts have consistently demonstrated strong demand and long-term value growth over many decades. 
&nbsp; 
"<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/putney-wharf-harbourfront-precinct-20-waterview-street-putney-nsw-2112">Putney Wharf</a> is one of the few remaining opportunities to secure a residence within a masterplanned waterfront community that combines direct water access, marina ownership opportunities and a genuine village lifestyle just moments from the Sy​dney CBD."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=13962 project_image_fid=362564] 
&nbsp; 
PERIFA Founder and Managing Director Fabrizio Perilli said the project reflected a shared commitment to delivering exceptional places that create long-term value for residents and the broader community. 
&nbsp; 
"The topping out milestone is a significant achievement for the Versatile Group and a testament to the collaboration between all project partners, consultants and contractors involved," Perilli said. 
&nbsp; 
"Beyond the residences themselves, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/putney-wharf-harbourfront-precinct-20-waterview-street-putney-nsw-2112">Putney Wharf</a> will establish a new waterfront destination that celebrates the history, character and lifestyle of this unique location while creating a lasting legacy for future generations."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=13962 project_image_fid=291195] 
&nbsp; 
Construction is being delivered by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/builders/versatile">Versatile Construction</a>, with structural works now substantially complete across the precinct. Attention will progressively shift to the construction of the waterview terraces, apartment façades, services and interior fit-out works over the coming months. 
&nbsp; 
With limited residences and marina berths remaining, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/putney-wharf-harbourfront-precinct-20-waterview-street-putney-nsw-2112">Putney Wharf</a> continues to attract strong interest from owner occupiers and downsizers seeking a premium waterfront lifestyle within close proximity to Putne​y Village, Rh​odes, Top Ry​de and the Syd​ney CBD. 
&nbsp; 
As one of the last opportunities to secure a residence within a new masterplanned waterfront community on Sy​dney Harbour, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/putney-wharf-harbourfront-precinct-20-waterview-street-putney-nsw-2112">Putney Wharf</a> is expected to remain a highly sought-after address for years to come.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=13962]

Jonathan Chancellor

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