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The cash rate will fall today, and most likely by another 0.5 percentage points.  The yield curve strongly suggests such.
As at June 1, the 10-year government bond rate was 2.84%, while the official cash rate was 3.75%, and the somewhat wide difference suggests that the cash rate should fall.
This indicator is right about half of the time, whilst the average economist gets interest rate calls right just once every seven times.
So in the yield curve trust I!
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Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Michael is a 25-year veteran in the industry and his firm has helped over 550 new residential developments come to fruition. Michael has launched a new initiative, called<a href="https://www.matusik.com.au/" target="_blank"> Think Matusik</a>. Think Matusik brings together expert opinion and select property opportunities.
Michael will <a target="_blank" href="/news">present a free webinar on tips on buying your first property as an investment on Tuesday, June 5 at 12.30pm</a>.
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michaelmatusik-49YzLvdmNv

RBA cash rate set to drop

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The debate is over; the big Donald has had the final say – if you cannot sell your property, don’t fire your real estate agent, fire him or her up!
This comes from Donald Trump (he used to sack agents who couldn’t sell his “beautiful” buildings) in his address to the Australasian Real Estate Agents conference on the Gold Coast earlier this week.
Now he pays 7% to 8% commissions and he believes this works a treat.
I don’t disagree, and on several occasions, when it came to selling my own home, paid a financial incentive to get a higher price.  Not every agent took the money, instead donating the balance to charity.
According to IBISWorld, 5,000 people lost their jobs in the real estate industry in Australia over the last five years.  Revenue in the industry has dropped by close to 10% since 2007.
As we wrote a few weeks back it is defying gravity to expect real estate agents to work on a 2.5% commission structure.
Virtually no other business on the planet works off such low sales margins.
Good advice DT, but really, “beautiful”?
According to ABARES, there are 94 major mineral and energy advanced developments taking place across Australia.  These total $173.5 billion and importantly, they are advanced – meaning approved, with most underway.
<ul>
<li>A breakdown of these projects is as follows:</li>
<li>35 energy projects – $116 billion total</li>
<li>35 mineral projects – $33.6 billion total</li>
<li>20 infrastructure projects – $19 billion total</li>
<li>4 mineral/energy processing projects – $5 billion total</li>
</ul>
Most are in Western Australia, with 39 projects totalling $109 billion, followed by Queensland with 28 projects for a combined $49 billion and New South Wales with $8.2 billion.
<a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/developments/we-must-get-residential-development-back-on-the-front-page-michael-matusik/2012052954891">Again, as discussed last week,</a> this isn’t a flash in the pan or fly-by-night operation, but major long-term developments.  These projects amount to some serious economic grunt and provide strong pillars of support.
I read something recently in the Economist to the effect that men are selfish layabouts.  Really?  I can only imagine the resounding guffaws from the fairer sex: “Tell us something we don’t already know,” they are yelling.
But you see – and I just love this bit – there’s apparently a reason for it.
An American study has found that …. wait for it … the amount of housework a man does depends on how much he dislikes it.  The more a male likes a task, the more of it he will do and vice-versa.
Not exactly revolutionary stuff; but it does give me incentive to confess a dirty little secret.  I do the clothes washing at my house – each weekend, dutifully sorting the whites from the darks.  It’s therapeutic, and well, everyone in the family agrees I’m just better at it.
But back to the study, the flip side of this finding is that the amount of housework that women do has nothing to do with how much they might like or dislike a task.  Women just get on with the job and do what has to be done.
Good-on-ya, girls!  We really didn’t need a study to tell us.  Where would we be without you?
And for all those males suffering from SLS (selfish layabout syndrome), you may now take solace from the fact that your condition is officially verified.  You are not alone.
Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Michael is a 25-year veteran in the industry and his firm has helped over 550 new residential developments come to fruition. Michael has launched a new initiative, called<a target="_blank" href="https://www.matusik.com.au/"> Think Matusik</a>. Think Matusik brings together expert opinion and select property opportunities.
Michael will present a free webinar on tips on buying your first property as an investment on Tuesday, June 5 at 12.30pm.
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Why paying your estate agent a higher commission can get you better results

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Development is now a dirty word.
Some statistics to start:
The decade-long average shows new dwelling starts at around 14,000 per month.  At present across Australia it is just 11,000 per month – a 20% fall.  New house sales are down about 15% from long-term averages; a similar trend can be seen in the new apartment market, too.
This snapshot illustrates a more alarming trend – nationally there were 180,000 new dwellings built in 2003-04; this financial year it will be under 130,000.  New house sales peaked in 2002-03 with 113,500 transactions; this year just 78,000 new homes sold.  There were– according to the HIA-JELD-WEN Australia New Home Sales report – 38,500 new apartment sales in 2001-02, but today the HIA reports just 9,000 new unit sales.
In Queensland, 29,000 new dwellings were built in 2003-04, with just 17,500 built over the last 12 months.  Despite the recent building boost, just 950 new houses were sold across Queensland during April – the first time new sales dropped below 1,000 over the last decade or so.
Admittedly, the data on new home and apartment sales is from a survey, rather than a complete snapshot of activity, but it does provide a somewhat accurate picture of what is (well, isn’t really) going on in the new residential market across much of Australia.
So what gives?  Our recent Matusik Pulse poll asked our subscribers and twits (Twitter followers, for the digitally challenged) this question, “What is stopping new residential sales at present?”
Limited development finance and low valuations came in as the clear winner, with just over a third of your votes.  Yes, developers are finding it harder to get finance at present (they have since late 2008) and many lenders require an 80% pre-commitment or above before they are willing to assist with finance.  Wave bye-bye to most new medium- and especially high-rise apartment developments.
Higher taxes and charges on development came in second with about 20% of the vote.  On the Gold Coast, for example, taxes and charges make up 40% of the price of a new house-and-land package.  What this means to the average family is about $170,000 in extra interest over the life of a 25-year loan.  And somehow, there isn’t marching in the streets.  The cost of electricity rises and we see a cascade of letters to the editor, TV cameras taking still shots of utility bills and families crying about not being able to run the air-con.  But we hear nothing about how government is sticking it to the housing sector, and more importantly, to buyers.  This is about our sons and daughters, people, not some overseas buyer or interstate investor.
The world economy is also taking its toll on demand – really, at the heart of this is a lack of confidence, and this is seen in our survey via job insecurity (14%) and a genuine lack of demand (13%).  A large component behind this limited demand has to do with slower population growth and increasing household size.
Poorer potential for capital growth makes up about 10% of the reasoning for the slowdown in sales, with one in 12 saying that developers are not meeting the market.
The usual chestnut – interest rates being too high – barely got a rating in our survey, attracting less than 4% of the vote.
If we don’t somehow boost home building, then many sectors of the Australian economy are left without much momentum.  Home building – as Craig James from CommSec often, and so rightly points out – affects not only builders and tradespeople, but also financiers, retailers, landscapers, building material companies, solicitors, accountants, agents, building service professionals and even independent property consultants!
Not that long ago, we, as a nation, prided ourselves on what we developed.  Today, development is a dirty word.  Well, look around people – 99.9% of what we enjoy involves development.  And before some whack job replies, saying they enjoy going to Cradle Mountain (and who doesn’t!) or to Moreton Island to go camping (again, who doesn’t!), how do you get there?  Teleport?
We must get development on the front page again, and for all the right reasons.  Development creates jobs; it is where we spend nearly all our time; and everyone who reads this post lives in a dwelling.  That was built, too.
Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Michael is a 25-year veteran in the industry and his firm has helped over 550 new residential developments come to fruition. Michael has launched a new initiative, called<a href="https://www.matusik.com.au/" target="_blank"> Think Matusik</a>. Think Matusik brings together expert opinion and select property opportunities.
Michael will <a target="_blank" href="/news">present a free webinar on tips on buying your first property as an investment on Tuesday, June 5 at 12.30pm</a>.
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We must get residential development back on the front page

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There was beer all over the dance floor and the band was playin’ rhythm and blues You got down and did the gator, and half an hour later, you were barfin’ all over your girlfriend’s shoes.
But the Greeks don’t want no freaks. The Greeks don’t want no freaks Just put a little smile on them rosy cheeks, ‘Cause the Greeks don’t want no freaks.
The Greeks Don’t Want No Freaks, The Eagles, The Long Run 1979
This is one of those sing-along songs, featuring Jimmy Buffett and the Monstertones as back-up, and yes, it really is about a frat party – the likes of which Glenn Frey used to gate crash – watch the movie Almost Famous to get the drift.
But still, the title somehow fits the current European quagmire.
Or does it? It maybe isn’t “all Greek to me” after all.
For mine, way too much attention is being spent on the PIIGS (Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece and Spain) of Europe, while not enough discussion is taking place – well, at least publicly – about the real forces behind a long-term united Europe, being the German/French alliance and demographics.  Europe cannot escape its demography. And the election of Francios Hollande (who? most Aussies might ask) last week as France’s new president is a potential game changer.
You see, the EU is – at its core – really about a Franco-German relationship and of late, France’s struggle for a more dominant role in European affairs at a time of German ascendency. And while this Franco-German consensus is immediately critical for Europe, it is demographics that are crucial for the EU’s survival. And the outlook isn’t very promising!
One of Europe’s many underlying problems (another is the rise of nationalism and populism – <a href="https://matusikmissive.wordpress.com/page/3/?s=%22The+EU%22">click here for more</a>) – and one that is completely divorced from the current political mess, is that the continent’s population is ageing rapidly. And to make matters worse, Europe’s youth are migrating overseas due to rising unemployment at home.
Across Europe it is fairly common for 50-somethings (and in many cases even 60-somethings) to outnumber teenagers. Not only is there insufficient money to pay for pensions, but 20- and 30-somethings do most of the consuming, and therefore drive most economic growth. Modern economies are reliant on this domestic consumption – something that is lost on Australia’s current federal politicians, too!
Fixing Europe’s economic problems isn’t a matter of simple accounting or belt-tightening. It isn’t just about Greece or the others PIIGS. It is really about restoring a “normal demography”, which requires a mass increase in the birth rate for a decade or so.  Even in the most aggressive case, this is a generational process, but more likely two – i.e. 50 to 60 years.
Europe’s days of economic growth do not have a bright future, regardless of whether France or Germany can agree on a common economic strategy. However, if France and Germany cannot get on the same page (or the rising trend towards nationalism/populism accelerates) then the underlying fissures within the EU will cause its current structure to breakdown.
It is somewhat ironic – just like the Eagles song that started this piece – that one of the EU’s more defining traits was its deliberate lack of passion. The EU also promised peace and prosperity. These thee Ps are now crumbling and with it the EU.  (<a href="https://matusikmissive.wordpress.com/page/3/?s=%22The+EU%22">click here</a>)
In short, there are no quick fixes here; the world will need to adjust. And sadly, as I will outline in another Missive soon, China faces similar turmoil.
We are definitely living in uncertain and unstable times.
 
Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Michael is a 25-year veteran in the industry and his firm has helped over 550 new residential developments come to fruition. Michael has launched a new initiative, called<a href="https://www.matusik.com.au/" target="_blank"> Think Matusik</a>. Think Matusik brings together expert opinion and select property opportunities.
 
 
 
 
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Forget Greece, Europe needs to massively increase its birth rate

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Things in Europe look worse that many predicted; the Queensland market has just come off a building boost and is waiting for the $7,000 stamp duty relief; NSW’s housing incentives will end on June 30, so investor attraction is there; China’s short- to medium-term growth prospects now look a bit dicey, and we are waiting with bated breath for a federal election. For mine, we need a Republican in the White House.
In short, our frugal mindset is now turning to concern, maybe even fear. The share market falls, plus changes to superannuation, make property investment potentially more attractive. But activity will be slow and all buyers will need thorough third-party endorsement.
Heck, things must be pretty bad – beer consumption is at a 65-year low and total alcohol consumption has fallen for the fourth straight year.
We need to further tighten outgoings, increase our service level, with a return to focus on the old-fashioned things like ringing clients, meeting face-to-face, breaking quotes/processes up into bite-sized and digestible pieces.
We will look for positives in all this gloom, but don’t push the envelope too far.
Our new direction will work a treat and fulfil the market’s need.
According to the latest statistics from the Australian Bureau, the money spent by Australians on renovating their homes rose by 2% over the last 12 months. This compares to an 8% fall in the amount spent on buying a new dwelling across the country.
Renovation activity is strongest in Tasmania, Victoria, Canberra and South Australia, but is down in the Queensland, New South Wales and the Northern Territory.
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When asked “If you were renovating to sell, where would you spend your money in order to gain the best return?” our recent online opinion poll found that kitchens won hands down. Just over half (55%) of our respondents picked renovating a kitchen as the best way to secure the highest return from renovating a residential property.
Painting, with 26% of the vote, came in a clear second, followed by doing up the garden with 10% of the votes followed by renovating the bathrooms (9%).
When it comes to improving the garden, our research has found that a water-wise home will also attract a premium and may, in the future, be a major contributor to achieving a sale.
Another recent website poll by us looked at rain tanks in terms of whether they added value to a home. Two-thirds of our respondents thought they did.
We have started a weekly poll. It will be included as part of the framework in the new-look Matusik Missive, out in early June.
This week’s question about the best place for long-term capital growth can be <a href="https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CAPITALGROWTH">viewed here</a>. Our polls will only take 10seconds of your time. Go on, give it a go! They will be a good straw test. Results will be reported on the website every Friday and via the new missive and through social media, such as Twitter and Facebook.
Chins up, heads down and try to smile…. laugh if you still are in good health.
Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Michael is a 25-year veteran in the industry and his firm has helped over 550 new residential developments come to fruition. Michael has launched a new initiative, called<a target="_blank" href="https://www.matusik.com.au/"> Think Matusik</a>. Think Matusik brings together expert opinion and select property opportunities.
 
 
 
 
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Share market falls make property a more attractive investment

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Who said I don’t read my mail!  I might be a bit tardy in my replies.  OK, outright ignorant at times, but <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/queensland/despite-the-building-boost-10-fewer-houses-built-across-queensland-and-how-premier-newman-can-start-the-uptick-michael-matusik/2012050854616">our post last week</a> got a high proportion of direct email replies questioning the impact of Form 27c on commissions and the market in general.  A few poor souls think that Form 27c has no bearing on valuation.
For those who don’t know, sales commissions are fixed in Queensland at 5% on the first $18,000 and then 2.5% thereafter, plus GST.  It is “illegal” to charge the seller commission above this amount.
Form 27c – as I understand it – is simply a disclosure by the selling agent to the buyer of all fees or favours that are incurred as the result of a sale.  It discloses actual commissions paid, marketing fees/costs paid, management overriders, referrals paid and to whom; and even introductions to other parties (i.e. finance brokers, solicitors, etc) that could assist the buyer –  even if it was a verbal or written reference with no fees paid.   Any party to a real estate sale transaction must be identified, and the remuneration or otherwise identified.
I know it is agony reading such legal-speak but bear with me!
All agents charge the statutory maximum or less as the commission for the transaction.  A number of agents charge their marketing costs on a per transaction basis.  Most sellers of suburban residential real estate are either charged an advertising cost before sale, or some agents are happy to carry this cost on the basis they are paid from sale proceeds.  This can be a higher amount than a pre-sale advertising cost due to the risk to the agent of no sale. However, it’s a great benefit to the seller because they don’t pay unless they “get a result”.
In a buyer’s market, sellers should be budgeting on about 2% of the end sale price for presenting and promoting their property.
In fact, today the normal budget for a sales campaign (including commission, advertising and marketing costs) of a residential property, should be 5% to 6% of the likely sale price.  The commission element is 2.6% on a $500,000 i.e. $13,000.  It’s not hard to spend another $15,000 on marketing and all other costs of sale.
In short, valuers are NOT considering the normal costs of sale.  Too many think (or the banks/mortgage insurers think on their behalf) a property should sell without marketing.
For local property observers, yesterday Place released research showing 450 new apartments (totalling something like $230 million of sales) were reported sold during the March quarter.  Putting aside when these sales were actually made, what Place’s work doesn’t outline is the typical cost per sale.
Most high selling new apartment projects are incurring advertising and marketing costs of between $25,000 and $30,000 per apartment.   True, the smarter in the pack have lower costs per sale.  But most don’t.  In some instances promotional fees exceed $50,000 per apartment.
And it is only going to get more competitive if Place’s research rings true, as there are now 48 major apartment projects across inner Brisbane with a total of 2,100 new apartments for sale.  Importantly, 36 of these projects are either under construction or completed.  These apartments will need to be sold.
In short, Form 27c is a joke because it is now being wrongly used to determine valuations.  Its application does not reflect the current market conditions or how real estate business is really done.
If I want to spend $1 or $1million to market my property, how does this relate to the property value?
Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Michael is a 25-year veteran in the industry and his firm has helped over 550 new residential developments come to fruition.  Michael has launched a new initiative, called<a href="https://www.matusik.com.au/" target="_blank"> Think Matusik</a>.  Think Matusik brings together expert opinion and select property opportunities.
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Marketing costs don’t reflect a property’s value, and Queensland’s form 27c is a joke

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Wayne Maxwell Swan, will you just rack off! 
Just take a look at what he has buried deep in the 2012 Australian federal budget: 
“The government will remove the 50% capital gains tax (<stockticker>CGT</stockticker>) discount for non-residents on capital gains accrued after 7.30 pm (AEST) on 8 May 2012.  The <stockticker>CGT</stockticker> discount will remain available for capital gains accrued prior to this time where non-residents choose to obtain a market valuation of assets as at 8 May 2012.” 
This statement will have great impact on the amount of property bought (and held) by Australian expatriates and other tax non- residents. 
The 50% <stockticker>CGT</stockticker> discount has previously been available where individuals have held assets for longer than 12 months.  The government now intends to withdraw this discount for non-residents, and honour the discount in relation to any existing accrued capital gains ONLY if the non-resident obtained a market valuation for the asset as at May 8, 2012. 
We join those few yet to pick up on this change to inform any expatriates and offshore investors with investment properties here in Australia that they need to obtain a market valuation as soon as possible.  Failure to do so could be extremely expensive. 
And thanks for the heads up, Wayne – we got heaps of notice on this one.  The practicality is that many expatriates and offshore investors may (will more likely) not hear about this change until too late. 
You guys look like you will sacrifice almost anything to achieve a token $1.5 billion surplus in 2012-13. 
The latest research from Colliers found that foreign capital investment made up 60% of all investments in Australia's commercial property markets in the first quarter of this year.  There was about $2.2 billion worth of foreign investment in Australian non-residential property in the first quarter, well up from $341 million in the same quarter last year. 
When it comes to residential property across <state><place>Queensland</place></state>, overseas buyers purchased about $400 million last financial year.  Most buyers came from China (20%); then followed by South Africa (12%); United Kingdom (10%) and New Zealand (9%).  Close to half (47%) the property bought by foreign buyers in Queensland is on the Gold Coast, followed by Brisbane with a 22% market share. 
Hmmm, <city><place>Wayne</place></city>... just what the Gold Coast needs hey, another good kick in the teeth. 
Keep up the good work.
Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Michael is a 25-year veteran in the industry and his firm has helped over 550 new residential developments come to fruition.  Michael has launched a new initiative, called<a href="https://www.matusik.com.au/" target="_blank"> Think Matusik</a>.  Think Matusik brings together expert opinion and select property opportunities.
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Budget CGT change could be extremely expensive for expat and offshore investors: Michael Matusik

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The Queensland building boost began under the previous state government last August, with the usual fireworks and rockets, and a promise of help for the housing industry.  Oh…..that is way too tame; it was really a political wedge to shut up the development industry.  And it worked a treat.

The grant was promoted as a panacea that would lift demand and help get more new development underway.  Too many believed that would be the case, with some – even in the development industry – calling for the boost to be extended.  And it was.

To facilitate the anticipated building blitz, the then government set aside $140 million to fund the boost.  That’s help for up to 14,000 housing starts across the state per $10,000 grant.

But as we have constantly reiterated, building grants and the like are not always the answer.  Often, as with the first-home owners’ grant, they can be inflationary and/or fail to provide the promised outcome.

The boost finished at the end of April, and unfortunately, along the way, housing starts in Queensland had dropped.

In fact, the latest ABS building approval figures, out this Monday, show that Queensland dwelling starts totalled just 26,515 for the year ending March, compared with 29,210 new housing commencements for the 12 months to March 2011.  So we got 10% fewer houses built across Queensland, despite the boost.

While there was a flurry of applications in Queensland as the boost drew to a close, the number of dwelling starts was disappointing, to say the least.

As at April 19 – the latest figures we can get – only 8,929 building boost applications had been received by the Queensland government, and 6,367 approved.  That’s just $64 million worth of grants out of the $140 million allocated.

So what can be done?

Well, dropping interest rates isn’t the answer.  I wouldn’t be surprised if Christmas crackers featured a new lame joke this year.  Q: “How many interest rate drops does it take to stimulate the housing market?”  A: “More than you have available.”  OK, I won’t give up my day job!

It will also take much more than dropping the sustainability declaration form and reinstating the stamp duty rebate on second-hand Queensland property purchases to get things moving again.

In fact, we have argued that what Queensland should do to help nudge new housing starts is to <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/tax/queensland-needs-stamp-duty-reductions-to-level-the-playing-field/2012022853606" target="_blank">remove stamp duty off new sales</a> and keep the existing taxes on established property as they exist today.  However, this would involve breaking an election promise and Queensland maybe isn’t in a budget position to do this yet.  But it will need doing – the sooner the better –  and hopefully before the LNP’s second term.

So what else can be done in the meantime?

The first bit of property-related legislation that should be ripped up is the Property Agents and Motor Dealers Act.  The whole concept of PAMDA was flawed from the start.  Twelve years have now passed since it was introduced and it needs immediate repeal.  In today’s internet world, it is an archaic piece of legislation.

In particular, and if nothing else is done during the LNP’s first term, please burn Form 27c, which requires all real estate agents in Queensland to list how much they charge for commissions.  Valuers, on instructions from the mortgage insurers and banks, are deducting the amount the agent is paid in excess of the standard Queensland sale fee of 2.5%.  The 27c is a product of the Gold Coast fly-in, fly-out marketing of 25-plus years ago.  It only applies to Queensland and, <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/developments/a-tale-of-two-queensland-buildings-an-investment-property-s-worth-should-be-determined-by-income/2011111552374" target="_blank">as we argued late last year</a>, the distribution of costs should have no bearing on the end value of a product.

PAMDA, and especially Form 27c, are deterrents to investment in Queensland.  If the state government really wants to regulate real estate and development, then all parties involved in the property industry – architects, planners, builders, lawyers, quantity surveyors etc. –  should be subject to disclosing their costs.

The state has no right to dictate a maximum selling fee on property, just like they have no right to dictate what a lawyer or architect charges for service.

The second thing that needs be done is reinstating state government subsidies to local government for municipal infrastructure. Queensland’s mining industry started 40-odd years ago; it isn’t a recent occurrence.  The wealth created from such activity used to be redistributed via infrastructure subsidies.  This made residential development relatively cheap – well, cheaper than interstate.  This was a key competitive advantage for Queensland.

In short, cheaper new housing encouraged interstate migration to Queensland.  It created employment and wealth, too, and was all based on subsidised municipal infrastructure.

In order to close a budget gap, Queensland Labor stopped these subsidies.  This made the price of new development land very expensive as it bore the full cost of infrastructure associated with it (and often beyond!).  Council charges on land rose dramatically too.  This, more than anything, is killing new residential development in Queensland.  It will remain dead unless infrastructure charges are again subsidised.

The third thing that needs doing – and for mine is why Queensland lost its AAA rating and had so many “budget gaps” – is to cut the waste. The LNP needs to remove “zombie projects”.  A commissioned audit needs to occur, but in essence many of the things that were started in the lead up to the past state election, because “they were a really good idea at the time” (i.e. they bought votes), need to be canned.

The zombie list should include regional plans; state-based planning operatives and many of Queensland’s building/planning laws.  Why, for example, can a granny flat in New South Wales be rented out to anyone, but in Queensland it must be occupied by a direct dependant?  Oh, I could create a list as long as your arm when it comes to irrelevant Queensland property-related legislation.

So in short, Can-do needs to change to Undo. 

In order to get things going, Premier Newman needs to undo quite a lot of things.
Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Michael is a 25-year veteran in the industry and his firm has helped over 550 new residential developments come to fruition.  Michael has launched a new initiative, called<a target="_blank" href="https://www.matusik.com.au/"> Think Matusik</a>.  Think Matusik brings together expert opinion and select property opportunities.
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Despite the building boost, 10% fewer houses built across Queensland, and how Premier Newman can start the uptick

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Interest rates plummet!  Rates slashed!  Well, this assumes that most of the official cut is passed on.  A 0.5-percentage-point cut in the cash rate really indicates two things – the economy is indeed a lot more sluggish that the RBA predicted and that the banks will only pass on some of the drop, not all of it.

Falling <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/residential/government-taxes-and-grants-have-distorted-the-property-cycle-and-an-interest-rate-cut-might-not-help-michael-matusik/2012042954464" target="_blank">interest rates are unlikely to have much impact on the overall residential market</a>.

But where a 0.5 percentage point fall in the cash rate will have some impact is with those investors who have been content to leave their money in the bank (or in cash in their super funds).  They now face some choices.

Gross rental yields on well-positioned and well-credentialed new investment properties are often over 5%. These returns have now become much more attractive and are on top of potential rental growth plus possible increases in capital values in coming years.

The vacancy rate across urban Australia is 1.7% and as low as 1.5% in Brisbane.  The vacancy rate is just 0.8% in Canberra, 0.6% in Darwin and 0.5% in Perth.

The ABS house price figures – out earlier this week – show that while residential values across the country continue to slide (down 1.1% during the March quarter), they are starting to rise in Darwin (up 4.4%); in Canberra (1.2%); in Perth (up 1.1%) and in Brisbane (0.4%).

There is no accident regarding the correlation between the last two paragraphs.

This residential property cycle will be driven by investors and investment property.  The owner-resident market – and especially those trading older second-hand stock – will struggle to find a half-decent upturn this time around.

Astute investors are already trolling for bargains.  The 50-basis-point cut will bring more investors into the market.  But they will be savvy.  They won’t buy anything.  They will take their time.

But the right new stock – with the right price tag/returns – will sell.

Brisbane is Australia’s third largest city and is the Queensland state capital and key business and financial centre for the state. Queensland (2.4%) and Western Australia (2.8%) are Australia’s two fastest-growing Australian states, with GDP growth well above the national average of 1.9%.

In a recent Jones Lang LaSalle report – A New World of Cities – Brisbane and Perth were identified as two of the fastest-growing cities in the world in terms of GDP.  Brisbane tops the list of the world’s 20 fastest growing new cities in terms of GDP, with Perth ranked seventh.

The mining boom in coal and gas principally drives Queensland’s growth.  The Queensland Resources Council estimates there are $165 billion worth of resource projects in Queensland under consideration, committed or under construction.  This investment is a major stimulus to white-collar employment growth in Brisbane.

Jones Lang LaSalle estimates that resource-related demand, including service companies such as engineers, would warrant the building of five to 10 new office buildings of about 64,000 square metres in the next 10 years for the Brisbane CBD and fringe.  Savills have made similar predictions.  It estimates that direct mining-related employment would require between 52,000 and 80,000 square metres of CBD office space by 2020.

White-collar employment growth in Brisbane will drive new dwelling demand from professional and executive singles and couples.

Brisbane’s resident population has been increasing by around 15,000 per annum, according to the most recent growth statistics.  This growth is expected to continue.
<img src="/images/stories/matumay81.gif">
Brisbane is at the bottom of the residential cycle.  The capital has been through some shite in recent years, but now is its time to shine.  The recent state and local government landslide victories will further help this recovery.

Viva la Brisbane!
Click to enlarge
<a title="Click to enlarge" rel="shadowbox" href="/images/stories/matumay82.jpg"><img src="/images/stories/matumay82thumb.jpg"></a>
Given the recent hysterical media coverage about home loan delinquencies and property repossessions, one would think that most Aussies were being tossed out on the street.  Those nasty banks!  Filthy bastards.

But wait a minute, even if the figures most often used to measure delinquency and repossessions were correct (they aren’t, by the way), on average just 1.6% of securitised home loans are in arrears (delinquency), and just 0.6% are three or more months behind, and a paltry 0.15% of residential property across the country is being repossessed by the banks.  So what is all the fuss about?  WTF is an appropriate response.  This <a href="https://matusik.com.au/chartsDetail.php?WTF-20">chart</a> illustrates the extent of the problem very clearly.

And if only the damn figures were right to start with.

The Fitch report – which is the usual media source for all of this nonsense – states that Australian home loan delinquencies had risen over the last six months, while the RBA’s Financial Stability Review finds quite the opposite.

The difference between the two reports is explained by what they cover.  The RBA’s analysis includes all home loans on bank balance-sheets plus securitised loans: more than $1.2 trillion worth in total.  In contrast, Fitch’s research only covers securitised loans, which amount to less than $100 billion.  To be clear, these loans are included in the RBA’s sample, but represent less than 10% of the total.

The RBA concludes that total home loan arrears in Australia declined.  The arrears rate for housing loans (on banks’ domestic books plus securitised housing loans) declined to 0.6% in December, from 0.7% in mid-2011.

The same downward trend applies to property repossessions.  In fact, Australian borrowers are repaying their home loans more quickly than what is actually required by their lenders.  The RBA’s research reveals that these so-called “excess repayments” increased significantly over the course of 2011, which implies that household stress was on the decline.

The 0.5-percentage-point drop on Tuesday will further accelerate this trend!

Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Michael is a 25-year veteran in the industry and his firm has helped over 550 new residential developments come to fruition.  Michael has launched a new initiative, called<a target="_blank" href="https://www.matusik.com.au/"> Think Matusik</a>.  Think Matusik brings together expert opinion and select property opportunities.
 
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Interest rate cut will encourage property investors, not owner-occupiers

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The cash rate will fall tomorrow and most likely by 0.25%.  The yield curve strongly suggests such.  As at the middle of last week – I do write these in advance – the 10-year government bond rate was 3.76%, while the official cash rate was 4.25%, and the somewhat wide difference suggests that the cash rate should fall.  This indicator is right about half of the time, while the average economist gets interest rate calls right just once every seven times.  So, it’s the yield curve for me, Sunny Jim.
Now, what does this mean for Australian housing?  Well, in the past it meant quite a lot, especially after a succession of interest rate falls.  Historically, house sales improved, new housing starts picked up, and end prices stabilised – and more often than not, rose.  And I still have the charts to prove it.
But over the last decade or so the connection between cheaper money and house market improvement has been broken.  And unless action is taken, then this circuit might be broken for good.
In short, residential property, and especially new stock, is taxed way too much and there have been far too many government-induced grants and incentives, such as building boosts and first-home buyer grants.  These have distorted the more normal property cycle, inflated demand and prices and have made the housing market far more cyclical than it used to be.
Despite mortgage rates falling by close to 1.5% over the past two or so years, new housing starts have continued to decline.
Sure there is at present a flurry of activity in several quarters<a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/resources/government-property-grants-and-stamp-duty-concessions-the-expiry-dates-you-need-to-know/2012041054208"> as a variety of building incentives are about to close around the country</a>.  But all this has done is brought demand forward.  There will a “hole” in these markets for the next three to six months, maybe longer.  Sadly, many in the development industry will call for another quick fix, including further drops in interest rates, an increase in the first-home buyers’ grant or an extension of a building boost – you get the drift.
Only two things will lift new housing starts Down Under:
<ul>
<li>Increasing population growth.  While another drop in interest rates might temporarily boost new housing starts, the only real reason why housing starts would need to rise – under current conditions – would be to cater for higher levels of population growth. We need more migrants.</li>
<li>Changing the current conditions.  Increase the supply of raw land across urban Australia.  Reduce the time taken to get an approval.  Reduce the amount of unnecessary compliance needed to get a new residential development off the ground.  Allow the market to dictate demand, not urban boosters (or whatever they are being branded as at present). Have new property valuations based on rental return, and not on mostly second-hand and dubious comparisons.</li>
</ul>
And importantly, reduce taxation on new property – the residential building industry is being weighed down by excessive and ineffective taxes.
Work by the HIA shows that the total tax-take from new housing can be as much as 40% of the final price of a new home.  New housing is the second most heavily taxed business sector in Australia, and yet it still contributes almost $40 billion in tax revenue each year.  And regrettably, it’s the new home buyer who pays.
And here is the real sticking point – this $40 billion every year makes up one-eighth of the government’s revenue.  They are all hooked on the cash injection.
If you really want more new starts across the country, lift migration remove GST on new construction remove stamp duties on off-the-plan sales and reduce – dramatically please – the size of all levels of Australian government.
Now, let me turn my attention to the established resale market.
The biggest problem facing this market is choice.  There is just way too much.  There are close to 400,000 resales on the market across the country.  A more healthy supply would be about half this volume.  A 0.25% or even 0.5% drop isn’t going to magically make these properties enticing enough to buy.  Heck, I could argue that dropping the cash rate by 1% wouldn’t do too much.
Far too many of them are overpriced, have been for sale way too long, and too many of the vendors trying to sell them just haven’t got a clue.  Given how tight the vacancy rate is at present (1.7%), what many of these vendors should do is renegotiate their finance, take their property off the market, lock into a low fixed-interest rate for a couple of years and rent the property out.
Now if people really want or need to sell, then they should do the following things:
Understand what their dwelling is worth and accept its value.  In other words, meet the market.  Rip the bandage off once and move on.
Assign one good agent.  One, not two or three, just one.  Multi-listing is sales death in a buyer’s market.
Assign your agent a short time frame to sell the property.  I am talking about 30 days.  And get them to bring you signed contracts – not verbal offers.  You want to see paperwork.
You must present the property well.  If you were selling your car, you would have it detailed.  The same applies to your home or investment property.  Minimum budget is 1% of the sales price.  If you cannot afford this, don’t bother trying to sell it.
Ditto goes for promoting it.  Again, a 1% minimum spend and make sure you get your money’s worth.  Do not accept crappy photos via an agent’s iPhone (not that Apple does anything crappy!) or being stuck on page 12 on a realestate.com.au’s property search for your area or price range.  And you must put an asking price on the property!
For the month your place is for sale, your job is to make it look the best that it can and to promote it wisely to the appropriate audience. 
Just because the average home loan might be about $50 cheaper per month from tomorrow – and remember, interest rates cycle like nearly everything else in life – it does not mean that the Aussie housing market will be automatically better off.  That used to be the case, but not really anymore.  We have interfered way too much for such simple things to have much influence any longer.
Of course, nearly every talking head will disagree with what I have just written.  Real action is needed – not shifting deck chairs on the Titanic.
If you are in the property industry or trying to sell a property, don’t expect too much from a small drop in interest rates.  You are likely to be disappointed.
Fight for bigger and more permanent change.
Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Michael is a 25-year veteran in the industry and his firm has helped over 550 new residential developments come to fruition.  Michael has launched a new initiative, called<a href="https://www.matusik.com.au/" target="_blank"> Think Matusik</a>.  Think Matusik brings together expert opinion and select property opportunities.
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Government taxes and grants have distorted the property cycle, and an interest rate cut might not help: Michael Matusik

<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.

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[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.

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[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 a more residential scale to Broadbeach apartment living

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

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

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

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

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

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Castle Hill, the longtime hub of the Hills District, has been one of the major beneficiaries of Sydney's Metro expansion, with improved connectivity helping drive continued population growth, development and buyer demand across the Hills District.

But despite that growth, the suburb has seen relatively few major new apartment projects brought to market over the past 18 months.

Hills District developer Reve Group is looking to fill that gap with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/nova-r-ve-castle-hill-2-garthowen-crescent-castle-hill-nsw-2154">Nova Rêve</a>, a major new mixed-use precinct on the corner of Garthowen Crescent and Old Castle Hill Road, a short walk from Castle Hill Metro Station and Castle Towers.

[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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Michael Matusik

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