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The Australian Bankers’ Association (ABA) has defended the past decisions by its banking members not to pass on cash rate cuts in full in a seemingly pre-emptive advisement ahead today’s forecast 25 basis point rate cut by the RBA.
Banks are expected to pass on around 20 basis points to borrowers with a now familiar consumer, media and political backlash likely to follow.
Ahead of today's announcement, Steven Münchenberg, chief executive of ABA, says the Reserve Bank has ttself acknowledged that funding costs have increased by 50 basis points over the past year, with banks absorbing some of this increase themselves.
“The Reserve Bank understands the cash rate is just one component of the true cost of banks’ funding and therefore does not expect banks and other lenders to exactly match every cash rate movement,” says Münchenberg.
“The Reserve Bank Board takes into account what borrowers are actually paying in the marketplace for loans and what they are receiving on deposits when making their decision.”
“Banks are facing higher funding costs mainly due to the competitive rates being paid on deposits.”
Münchenberg says customers should shop around for the best home loan deal, pointing out that banks routinely offering discounts of around 70 basis points off the advertised standard variable rate to approved customers.
However, he failed to explain how banks can offer these discounts in a higher funding-cost environment.
Münchenberg said that prior to the GFC, term deposits were priced on average 200 basis points below the cash rate. Now, they are 20 basis points above the cash rate.”
“While interest rates on deposits remain attractive and competitive for savers, when combined with the cost of wholesale funding, deposits continue to put pressure on the overall cost of funds for banks.”
He pointed to the most recent Statement on Monetary Policy, where the Reserve Bank noted that “bank funding costs – relative to the cash rate – have risen by about 50 basis points over the past year…[which] largely reflects the increased cost of deposits.”
“The Reserve Bank cash rate has reduced 150 basis points since November last year, but with banks, credit unions and building societies facing real funding cost pressures, not all of that has been passed on. The Reserve Bank calculates that the major banks have cut standard variable home loan rates by an average of 115 basis points.”
“For small business lending backed by residential security, banks have passed on more of the cash rate cuts, reducing the average loan by up to 120 basis points.”
“While the Reserve Bank has identified that average funding costs have increased by 50 basis points, banks have only passed on 30 – 35 basis points to most home and small business borrowers.”
“At the same time, banks have only passed on about half the cash rate cuts to savers with term deposits.”
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Australian Bankers' Association says banks justified in not passing on rate cuts in full

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Liquidity-strapped mining magnate Nathan Tinkler is reportedly looking to dispose of a commercial property asset in Brisbane.
Boardwalk Investments, of which Tinkler is a director, intends listing a three storey office building at 366 Queen Street for sale, according to an report in the Australian Financial Review.
The report does not say which commercial agency has the listing.
It was purchased in February last year for $7.7 million having previously traded for $2.2 million in 2000 when Elizabeth and Gregory Nunn bought it from Macarthur Capital.
The property sits on a 379 square metre block and has 1,200 square metres of office space at the quieter end of Queen Street.
Local commercial agents do not expect the property to sell for more than $5 million.
In October, Tinkler reportedly let a <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/commercial/nathan-tinkler-lets-another-property-purchase-lapse/2012100957061">$37?million low-rise Brisbane office acquisition lapse</a> with the the 5,500-square-metre building overlooking the Brisbane River put back on the market through Jones Lang LaSalle agents Seb Turnbull and Geoff McIntyre.
The billionaire's finances – especially the Tinker-aligned developer Buildev Group – have been under scrutiny since his attempted $5.25 billion bid for Whitehaven Coal collapsed due to a lack of funding.
Tinkler reached a settlement with Mirvac’s Domaine Steel after it successfully sued Ocean Street Holdings and Tinkler’s Buildev Group, after an earlier agreement to buy industrial land for a new coal terminal in Newcastle. 
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Nathan Tinkler puts Brisbane CBD office on the market: report

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The Reserve Bank has cut the cash rate to 3%, which is its lowest setting since the GFC.
NAB, among those lenders to tip a December rate cut, now also expects a further 25 basis point rate cut next year, probably around May.
Lenders are expected to once again hold off passing on the full rate cut to borrowers, with about 20 out of the 25 basis points expected to be shaved from variable rates.
NAB and Bank of Queensland have already announced they will pass on 20 basis points to borrowers on December 10 and December 21 respectively, while ING Direct will pass on <a target="_blank" href="/news">all 25 basis points </a>from December 24. 
Fixed rates are likely to continue to fall as lenders seek to lock in borrowers and circumvent the government’s ban on mortgage exit fees.
These are the lowest advertised mortgage rates based on listings by <a target="_blank" href="https://www.ratecity.com.au/">ratecity.com.au</a>, <a target="_blank" href="https://mozo.com.au/">Mozo.com.au</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.infochoice.com.au/">infochoice.com.au</a> as of December 5:
Lowest variable rate offerings:
<table width="470" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<td width="134" valign="top">
Provider
</td>
<td width="124" valign="top">
Loan name
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
Rate
</td>
<td width="116" valign="top">
Comparison rate*
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="134" valign="top">Mortgage View</td>
<td width="124" valign="top">Pro pack</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">5.42%</td>
<td width="116" valign="top">5.44%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="134" valign="top">
Loans.com.au
</td>
<td width="124" valign="top">
Blackboard special
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
5.42%
</td>
<td width="116" valign="top">
5.45%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="134" valign="top">
My mortgage freedom.com.au
</td>
<td width="124" valign="top">
Low rate (LVR up to 75%)
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
5.43%
</td>
<td width="116" valign="top">
5.74%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="134" valign="top">
UBank
</td>
<td width="124" valign="top">
UHome loan for refinancing
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
5.47%
</td>
<td width="116" valign="top">
5.47%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="134" valign="top">
Nationwide Mortgage
</td>
<td width="124" valign="top">
True Saver home loan
</td>
<td width="97" valign="top">
5.47%
</td>
<td width="116" valign="top">
5.47%
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
Lowest one-year fixed-rate offerings
<table width="470" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<td width="137" valign="top">
Provider
</td>
<td width="123" valign="top">
Loan name
</td>
<td width="95" valign="top">
Rate
</td>
<td width="114" valign="top">
Comparison rate*
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="137" valign="top">
My mortgage freedom.com.au
</td>
<td width="123" valign="top">
Fixed rate (LVR up to 75%)
</td>
<td width="95" valign="top">
4.99%
</td>
<td width="114" valign="top">
5.78%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="137" valign="top">
Community First Credit Union
</td>
<td width="123" valign="top">
Honeymoon
</td>
<td width="95" valign="top">
4.99%
</td>
<td width="114" valign="top">
6.46%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="137" valign="top">
UBank
</td>
<td width="123" valign="top">
UHome loan for refinancing – fixed rate
</td>
<td width="95" valign="top">
5.03%
</td>
<td width="114" valign="top">
5.54%
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
Lowest three-year fixed-rate offerings
<table width="470" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="1"><tbody>
<tr>
<td width="132" valign="top">
Provider
</td>
<td width="131" valign="top">
Loan name
</td>
<td width="96" valign="top">
Rate
</td>
<td width="111" valign="top">
Comparison rate*
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" valign="top">Resi</td>
<td width="131" valign="top">Flexi Fixed Plus 75</td>
<td width="96" valign="top">5.09%</td>
<td width="111" valign="top">5.99%</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" valign="top">
UBank
</td>
<td width="131" valign="top">
UHome loan for refinancing – fixed rate
</td>
<td width="96" valign="top">
5.13%
</td>
<td width="111" valign="top">
5.40%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="132" valign="top">
Pacific Mortgage Group
</td>
<td width="131" valign="top">
PMG Fixed
</td>
<td width="96" valign="top">
5.19%
</td>
<td width="111" valign="top">
5.43%
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
*A comparison rate includes both the interest rate and the fees and charges relating to a loan, combined into a single percentage figure.
For information on refinancing, watch our free webinar <a target="_blank" href="/news">Refinancing and the Interest Rates Riddle</a>
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A guide to the lowest rate home loan offerings fixed and variable as of December 5 as RBA cuts cash rate to 3%

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GPT has opened the first of three buildings in its 5 Murray Rose development at Sydney’s Olympic Park.
The A-grade campus-style building, which has 12,000 square metres of office space, will be tenanted by beer maker and food company Lion, which has committed to a 12-year lease and will relocate 800 people to the Olympic Park business precinct.
Among the beers Lion produces are Tooheys, XXXX, Hahn and James Boag.
The building, the first of three GPT is building as part of a $200 million development, has received a six-star green star rating from the Green Building Council (GBC) and is targeting a five-star NABERS energy and water rating.
A rooftop solar farm, which generates more solar energy per square metre than any other commercial building of it scale in NSW, produces 25% of the base building’s electricity requirements.
GPT Group chief executive and managing director Michael Cameron says building is exemplified GPT’s commitment to sustainability.
“The best practice sustainable design on show in this building is what people have come to expect from GPT,” he says.
It includes a bar serving Lion’s famous brews and beverages.
GPT is the largest private land owner of commercial space in Sydney Olympic Park, with an additional 200,000 square metres of commercial, retail and residential space secured for future development within the precinct.
The Sydney Olympic Park Master Plan for 2030 aims to grow the precinct daily population to 50,000, which includes up to 20,000 visitors.
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GPT commits to sustainability with six-star office building opening at Sydney’s Olympic Park

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A retail buyer has fended off competition from architects, fashion and advertising businesses and residential developers to acquire a former Chippendale post office built in 1931 for $1,477,000 at auction.
The single storey red-brick brick corner building at <a href="https://www.realcommercial.com.au/property-offices-nsw-chippendale-500482743" target="_blank">2-4 Shepherd Street</a> in inner Sydney offers 300 square metres of space and has two car spaces.
It was offered for sale the first time in 60 years as a creative/studio space, with interest also coming from the arts community.
The building is just 25 metres from Broadway in Sydney, a short walk from University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and the Frasers-Sekisui House $2 billion Central Park mixed-use development.
"The property benefits from flexibility of use, from a retail-commercial mix to work-live options, in a location convenient to shopping facilities, universities and the CBD. As such the price achieved was above expectations," says Cushman and Wakefield director Lindsay Sturrock, who marketed the building.
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Former 1930s Chippendale post office sells for $1.48 million

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Bank of Queensland (BoQ) has pre-committed to lease 56% of the office space in FKP’s ‘Gasometer 2’ office development within the Gasworks site on the banks of the Brisbane River.
BoQ has committed to lease 13,100 square metres of space in the A-grade office building over 12 years with renewal options for a further 10 years.
The office building forms past of the mixed-used urban renewal project at the 6.4-hectare site, which will also include a Mirvac master-planned community and a retail component.
The leasing deal is good news for FKP, which recorded a fall in profits of 22% in the 2012 financial year, with Peter Brown to step down as managing director by February.
Goldman Sachs analyst Peter Zuk labelled the leasing commitment from BoQ as “positive” and revised its earnings estimates upwards.
In terms of potential profits, Zuk says FKP has not yet confirmed if it will take full development risk during the construction phase and look to sell the asset on completion or sell it on a "fund-through" basis like it has done on other office developments in the past, “whereby its potential realised profit will be lower, but at the same time reducing its development risk”.
Construction of the office tower is due commence this month, with completion expected in "late 2014", with an anticipated end value of $180 million.
The Gasworks project is bounded by the Brisbane River, Longland and Wyandra streets, Breakfast Creek Road and Waterloo, Gordon and Evelyn streets.
It will feature apartments, upmarket retail and leisure outlets, A-grade office space and a plaza with the iconic gasometer frame as its focal point.
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Bank of Queensland to anchor-tenant FKP office building at Gasworks development

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The Reserve Bank has cut the cash rate to 3% today, as tipped by most economists.
The new setting is the lowest the cash rate has been since a period from April to September 2009, following the GFC.
Traditionally, the RBA is <a href="/news">reluctant to cut rates in December</a>, doing so at fewer than a third of December monetary policy meetings going back to 1990.
A 25-basis-point rate cut, if passed on in full by lenders, will save a borrower with a 25-year mortgage of $300,000 about $48 per month.
“The Reserve Bank has boosted consumer confidence in time for what is traditionally the most expensive season of the year. Even though rate cuts won’t be filtered through to most variable mortgage holders until January, borrowers are likely to feel more positive about spending money this Christmas," says Michelle Hutchison, spokesperson for financial comparison website RateCity.com.au. 
“Borrowers with a typical $300,000 mortgage can expect to save about $40 in monthly repayments from next month, as most lenders are likely to pass on 20 basis points. But there’s a significant difference between what lenders will pass on and the interest rates they offer.
“For instance, following the last rate cut in October, lenders passed on between 4 and 25 basis points according to RateCity. Variable interest rates range from 5.4% up to 7.2%, which is worth about $352 in extra monthly repayments for a $300,000 home loan (over 30 years).
“If you have time off over Christmas, borrowers should take advantage of their spare time by finding out how much your lender passed on, what your interest rate is and how it measures up to the rest of the home loan market.”
The RBA would have taken into account a benign inflation rate, house prices flat and manufacturing sector continuing to contract at a sharp pace and flat retail sales in October.
Earlier today, the ABS reported that <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/residential/dwelling-approvals-fall-by-greater-than-expected-76-in-october-abs/2012120458278?utm_source=po&amp;utm_medium=aida&amp;utm_campaign=news">building approvals fell 7.8%</a> in October, greater than expectations of a 1.6% fall. Mortgage holders must now wait to hear over the next few days how much of the rate cut will be passed on by lenders to borrowers.
ANZ mortgage holders have a long wait - until Friday, December 14, - to hear if the bank will reduce its variable rates as part of its independent interest rate decision on the second Friday of every month.
Speaking to David Koch on Sunrise last week, Aussie Home Loans boss John Symond said he did not expect the banks to pass on the full rate cut, but probably 20 out of 25 basis points.
The Reserve Bank’s monetary policy committee will next meet in February – there is no meeting in January.
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RBA delivers some Christmas cheer to home borrowers with December rate cut

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Jailed former mortgage broker Mark Booty has been permanently banned by ASIC from providing financial services and engaging in any credit activities following his conviction for defrauding seven clients involving more than $1.1 million.  Booty, 41, formerly of Rockingham, Western Australia, was licensed by the WA Department of Commerce as a finance broker when the offences occurred between 2007 and 2009.
He was the director of Prime Property Investment Perth Pty Ltd, a mortgage broking business based in Perth. Mr Booty provided mortgage broking and financial advice to clients of this busines
Following an investigation by WA Police, a District Court of Western Australia jury found him guilty on eight counts of gaining a benefit by fraud. In April 2012 he was sentenced to five and a half years in prison with a non-parole period of three and a half years. Booty set up an investment scheme into which seven clients invested money over an 18-month period that they had accessed by borrowing against their homes. One investor put $250,000 into the scheme reported the ABC at Booty's trial in April.
Rather than being invested and secured in the manner he had promised, Booty misappropriated the funds for his own purposes in his business and for personal expenses.
Booty became bankrupt in 2009 and the investors in his scheme lost their capital. ASIC commissioner, Peter Kell said the decision to permanently remove Booty from the financial services and credit industries was done to protect the public.  ‘While Mr Booty is currently in prison, it is important that he is prevented from working in the credit and finance industry in the future,’ Kell said. Booty has the right to appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal for a review of ASIC’s decision.  
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ASIC permanently bans former Perth mortgage broker Mark Booty following fraud convictions

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The prices of Brisbane apartments increased by 2.3% over November to a median of $360,000, in contrast to a flat capital city housing market, according to the latest monthly update by RP Data-Rismark.
The gain over November means that Brisbane unit prices are now down just 0.8% year-on-year, delivering investors a total year-on-year return of 4.9%.
Brisbane unit investors are getting the second best rental return (alongside investors in Canberra units) across the eight capital cities, with a yield of 5.5%, with only Darwin higher at 6.6%.
The Brisbane detached housing market did not match unit price growth over the quarter, managing just 0.3% to a median of $435,000 to be up 0.4% year-on-year.
The RP Data-Rismark November index shows the eight capital city dwelling prices unchanged at a median of $472,500 – following 1% decline in October – with Canberra (1.3%), Darwin (1.1%) and Darwin (1%) the only capital city markets to record dwelling prices rises of 1% or more.
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On a quarterly basis, most capital cities recorded a rise in dwelling values.
The largest capital gains were found in Darwin (3.1%), Perth (3.0%), Brisbane (0.8%) and Sydney (0.6%).
The only cities where values were down over the three months ending November were Canberra and Melbourne (both -0.7%) and Hobart (-4.5%). 
“Home values in Brisbane and Perth remain below where they were five years ago whereas the other mainland cities have all increased over this period," says RP Data senior research analyst Cameron Kusher.
“This has meant that relative to the other capital cities, Brisbane and Perth have experienced affordability improvements, and subsequently we may see them become more popular from both an owner-occupation and investment perspective."
Melbourne was the weakest capital city housing market over the month and the only to register a decline in its median prices, which fell 1% to a median of $486,000 while dwelling prices were unchanged in Sydney at $555,000.
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Year-on-year, dwelling prices are virtually unchanged, indicating a housing market that continues to tread water, but with notable diversion in performance at an individual city level.
Darwin has been the strongest performer with total returns (capital growth plus rental returns) of 20%, followed by Perth (8%), Sydney (5.9%), Brisbane (5.1%) and Canberra (4.9%).
The soft Melbourne is delivering total returns of just 1.2%, compared with a capital city average of 4.2%, while Hobart is the only capital city delivering negative total returns of -2% due to dwelling prices down 7% over the past 12 months.
Kusher says the November market conditions highlight that the road to a market recovery will not be without pauses, and those cities that performed very strongly in 2009 and 2010, like Melbourne, may show continued weakness.
“Capital city home values remain -5.6% lower than their historic highs of 15 November 2010, but, up 2% from their low of late May 2012," he says.
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Brisbane unit prices up 2.3% over November as capital city markets remain flat: RP Data-Rismark

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Towns and rural villages within an hour’s drive of Newcastle present first-home buyers and investors with many opportunities to acquire property priced under $300,000, though in some cases, employment, shopping and transport options may be limited.
Valuers Herron Todd White pick Cessnock, the fringe suburbs of Lake Macquarie and range of small rural towns to the north, south and west of Newcastle, where houses can be picked up below this benchmark.
“At Cessnock in the west, very basic and dated housing can be acquired for $150,000 to $200,000 as well as in fringe villages like Aberdare and Millfield.
“Further west in the town of Singleton, the coal mining boom is impacting on housing, seeing basic prices again rising to the $250,000 to $300,000 range.
“Singleton can further expect to benefit from the M15 expressway due to open in September 2013 making the region more accessible,” says HTW.
Outer-suburb buyers are being spurred on due to a tight rental market in Newcastle with the Real Estate Institute of NSW reported a 1.6% vacancy rate in October.
The median price of a Newcastle house is $655,000 and $430,000 for units, according to RP Data with BIS Shrapnel tipping <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/new-south-wales/hotspot-newcastle-tipped-for-strong-growh/2011062950648">strong capital growth of around 6% per annum </a>over the next two years.
Apart from being Australia’s sixth biggest city with a population of 550,000, Newcastle is also a beneficiary of coal mining investment activity and is well connected to Sydney plane, train and by car via the Newcastle Freeway and the Pacific Highway.
Herron Todd White notes that affordable houses are “typically in areas with limited employment opportunities, shopping, education, and public transport.
“The typical purchaser of affordable housing is quite varied and includes a wide range of owner-occupiers, first home buyers and investors.
“In the current economic climate we are finding the most remote of locations experiencing greater sales periods than their more centralised counterparts.
South of Newcastle, first-home buyer and investor opportunities can be found on the southern fringes of Lake Macquarie, with cheaper housing is priced from around $250,000 to $300,000 in areas such as Doyalson and Wyee.
“Similar pricing occurs in the small villages near the Pacific Highway like Morisset, Dora Creek and Awaba.
Buyers with a penchant for rural living might consider the more remote areas of the upper north and north-west, around towns such Dungog, Stroud, Gloucester and  Buladelah, suggests HTW, with houses priced from as low as $150,000 to $200,000, but where “services and facilities are more limited”.
“Finally in the coastal areas of the north-east, lower end property around Hawks Nest and Tea Gardens can be acquired for around $250,000 to $300,000.
“Just to the south around Nelson Bay, older houses can sell for as low as $300,000.
“Over the last few years these coastal areas have experienced a significantly weakened market with the typical purchaser – an investor or holiday house purchaser having departed the market and sales periods have noticeably increased,” says HTW.
For Terry Ryder's outlook on the state of the regions sign up for the free webinar on Thursday, December 6 at 12.30pm on <a target="_blank" href="/news">Regions versus capital cities - where to invest in 2013?</a>
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Newcastle fringe suburbs attracting first-home buyers and investors with many options under $300,000: HTW

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

Joel Robinson

The Eveleigh brings house-like apartments to Broadbeach

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

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

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

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

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

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Castle Hill, the longtime hub of the Hills District, has been one of the major beneficiaries of Sydney's Metro expansion, with improved connectivity helping drive continued population growth, development and buyer demand across the Hills District.

But despite that growth, the suburb has seen relatively few major new apartment projects brought to market over the past 18 months.

Hills District developer Reve Group is looking to fill that gap with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/nova-r-ve-castle-hill-2-garthowen-crescent-castle-hill-nsw-2154">Nova Rêve</a>, a major new mixed-use precinct on the corner of Garthowen Crescent and Old Castle Hill Road, a short walk from Castle Hill Metro Station and Castle Towers.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377679]

The project will comprise three residential towers alongside a hotel, restaurants, cafes and a skybar, more than 1,600 sqm of ground-floor retail and almost an acre of landscaped gardens.

It represents the largest project undertaken by Reve Group, the development arm of the Kassis family, which has been building across the Hills District for more than 30 years through Kassis Homes.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377675]

Nova Rêve also represents a significant step up from the family's first apartment development, Grand Rêve, which was delivered nearby on Garthowen Crescent.

Grand Rêve introduced larger, house-like apartment layouts and premium inclusions including Wolf and Sub-Zero appliances to the Castle Hill market.

Nova Rêve takes that approach to a precinct scale, combining the residential component with hospitality, retail and substantial public and resident landscaping.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377685]

Reve Group Managing Director Sam Kassis said the project reflected the family's three decades of building in the Hills, which has evolved from trophy homes on quarter-acre blocks to larger-scale apartment development.

"Grand Rêve was our first apartment project here and it showed us what this pocket of Castle Hill could be. Nova Rêve is the refinement of that idea: not just apartments, but a place the whole suburb can use," Kassis said.

A key part of that approach is the hotel, which has been designed to operate as an amenity for the wider Castle Hill community rather than solely hotel guests.

It will include restaurants, cafes, skybars and all-day dining, alongside conference and event facilities catering to business functions, community groups and private events.

At ground level, more than 1,600 sqm of shops and cafes will open onto the surrounding streets and landscaped areas.

Almost an acre of gardens designed by Land and Form Studios will run through the precinct, incorporating pathways, seating, barbecue areas and children's play spaces.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377680]

Reve Group's Romio Georges said creating an active ground plane had been central to the planning of Nova Rêve.

"There are gardens with pathways, barbecues, seating and play areas, shops and cafes opening onto the street, and a hotel with restaurants and a skybar that anyone in Castle Hill can walk into," Georges said.

The project's elevated position on one of Sydney's highest ridgelines will also provide apartments with outlooks toward the Sydney skyline, surrounding parkland and the Blue Mountains.

More than 80 per cent of the apartments will occupy corner positions, with Turner responsible for both the architecture and interiors.

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[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=152737]

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Larry Schlesinger

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