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I was recently asked to outline my thoughts on how the Australian urban landscape might look 40 to 50 years from now.  Go on, you can laugh.  I did too.  It’s hard enough to forecast the next 12 months, let alone two generations away, but I’ve given it a go, of sorts, so here it is.
Firstly, though, it might be best to outline my methodology.  In short, this forecast will be based on underlying trends, some understanding of human nature, and importantly, the Australian mindset.  My outlook is supported by evidence – what people actually do rather than say – and importantly, not by urban myths or fallacies, despite the frequency and noise with which they have been aired of late.  Unfortunately, we don’t have the space or the time here to support every claim or go into massive detail, so this discussion is confined to broad shapes – not nitty-gritty.
Australia's urban landscape can best be summed up in two words –diverse and dispersed.
Let’s deal with the second D – dispersion – first.  Our regional centres are likely to become a whole lot bigger and at the expense of the already crowded capital cities.  The move away from the world’s bigger cities is already underway, as evidenced in the recent census in the United States, but also throughout much of Europe.  Several Asian and Middle Eastern countries are now also following suit.  The annual ABS small-area population data suggests it is already happening here and the 2011 census, due later this year, I believe, will provide further evidence.
Within our capital cities themselves, the move downtown will slow – again, it already is doing so – as the cost to live within close proximity to the CBD is just too high compared with the real benefits.  The urban myths that perpetuate inner-city density over other housing forms – suburban growth worsens carbon emissions and traffic congestion; people are being forced to live far from jobs concentrated in our CBDs; and denser development will make it cheaper – are all incorrect, but more significantly, they are not being embraced by the wider market.
Instead of having a single high-density city core with lower development density radiating outwards, the most likely urban shape in the future will be one of more even distribution of housing density throughout the city – concentrated more, no doubt, around middle-ring transport hubs and new master-planned town centres.  Our middle-ring and outer suburbs will have much more compact urban settings.
Diversity relates to the housing stock itself.  The current push towards smaller dwellings has little to do with demographics and the market’s wants and is more about housing affordability.  Moreover, it really has to do with being able to flog cheaper stock quickly, often to an unsuspecting audience.  There is a demand for tightly sized product, but it is nowhere as near as high, nor is the long-term trend towards such as strong, as the urban boosters advocate.
Taking a wider view, Australia (and America too) is still in its frontier or “barbaric” stage of its cultural evolution.  We walk with wide gaits, worship most things large, and don’t really like crowded spaces or queues.  Go visit any major city in Europe or Asia for that matter and you can spot the Aussie (or Yank) a mile away.  We like our space, aren’t really ready to give it up, and are not likely to do so for many decades to come.
Rather than cling to the idea that density and concentration are best, all those planners, architects and developers out there might do better to focus on what appeals to the vast majority of the population, particularly the middle and working classes.  Nurturing smaller, more efficient cities, as well as expansive suburbs and revived small towns, may prove far more practical and beneficial than imposing a manic agenda for relentless centralisation.
For mine, rather than force a density agenda on a largely unwilling population, it makes sense to consider how to make a more dispersed (and diverse) urban future more workable and sustainable.
Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Matusik has helped more than 500 new residential developments come to fruition and writes the weekly  <a target="_blank" title="Matusik's Missive" href="https://matusikmissive.wordpress.com/" style="outline-style: none; outline-width: initial; outline-color: initial; text-decoration: underline; color: #6888b1;">Matusik's Missive</a>.
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michaelmatusik-49YzLvdmNv

Diversity far and wide is our housing future

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Stamp duty backflip
The Queensland government wins the Australian record for tax backflipping by reneging on a promise to do something serious about residential stamp duties. Instead, stamp duties on the primary place of residence will increase across all price groups from August 1. For many this will mean paying twice as much duty next time they buy a Queensland property. Agents expect fewer resales as a result.
Grants barely touch the sides
The Queensland Government has also announced a $10,000 grant to anyone who buys a new home under $600,000 for six months from August 1 this year. But unless these people are first-home buyers or investors they will be paying the additional stamp duty. Upgraders – who make up close to half of the market – are at best likely to break even if they buy a new home between now and January 31, 2012.
Buyers deferring contracts
In a related story, Queensland builders are reporting that buyers are cancelling and deferring contracts. But industry sources say that these buyers could be in for a rude shock, with cancelled contracts not eligible for the $10,000 grant if re-signed after August. In fact, all Queensland home owners – and especially those trying to sell – could be in for a rude shock come the 1st of August. A bigger shock awaits us all come February 1, 2012.
Meagre discount on developments
Meanwhile, every developer is trying to attract attention by offering, effectively, a 2% discount on the price of their new dwellings. Although the initial response has been encouraging, one wonders if it can last. As one property analyst, who wished to remain anonymous, quipped: “If Myer was having a 2% discount sale in about a month’s time, you won’t really plan your diary around that event. Even less so if it was going to now cost you twice as much to get to the sale. But if you had already made plans to buy something from a department store, you would most likely change your schedule and take the discount, little as it may be.”
Gold Coast in trouble
Just one in seven dwellings approved on the Gold Coast is actually being built. This is against a typical 75% completion rate. Yet Gold Coast mayor Ron Clarke denies that there is anything wrong, citing that net employment has increased on the Gold Coast over the last 12 months and claiming that winning the 2018 Commonwealth Games bid will fix any issues. That assumes that there is anyone left with a job on the Gold Coast in seven years’ time.
Incentives to sell well
But there is some good news. Real-estate agents will now be able to set their own fees when it comes to buying and selling Queensland property. Gone are the days of agents getting you the fastest price – a seller will soon be able to incentivise a real-estate agent to get the most for the property. Deregulation will essentially allow the market to determine price rather than the government, which is always a good thing.
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House building grinds to a halt on the Gold Coast

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It has been kind of fun sitting on the sidelines, watching the various residential property data houses bicker over who is correct, who got the biggest headline or the most media coverage. Heck, some even now boast about how much press they are getting. I thought having celebrity cooks was scraping the bottom of the barrel, but now we have big-shot economists and property commentators to boot. Is there no end to this celebrity cult?
Now let’s clear the air before I go much further.  Residential asking prices are falling. We stated they would and that they could fall by as much as 5% to 8% this calendar year, maybe more in Queensland. They might fall even further, but that is dependent on what happens with interest rates, employment, supply and confidence.  How baby boomers and recent first-home buyers act (and react) in the near future in also important. Assuming, and maybe it is a big assumption, that the worst doesn’t eventuate, the housing cycle will right itself and, over time, the declines in asking prices will be regained.
Note the emphasis on asking prices. Extremely few sellers are making an actual loss on their resale.  hey are getting more than they paid for it – in terms of purchase price and all hard costs. What is attracting all the media hype is the difference between what a vendor wants for a property (nearly always inflated, if you ask me) and what the market is prepared to pay. This happens in a buyer’s market, when the amount of property listed for sale is greater than the demand. It happens in every industry. Heck, I have never paid full price – outside of basic staples – for anything.
Property is an interesting investment class. Yes, I subscribe to the notion that housing should be a home first and a means of accumulating wealth second, but under Australia’s current taxation laws, it makes financial sense to try to maximise the capital growth of your home. Most do these days by renovating a home, living in it for a period time, and moving on – all of which is tax-free. But home owners only really like doing this when it’s a seller’s market. Statistically, this makes little sense at all.
When prices are rising, sellers will happily sell their home for more than they expect, only to buy in the same market and pay more (than the vendor expects) for someone else’s house.  Now most will sell and move because they want something better (or different) than what they have already. The data show that in a seller’s market most sellers will pay more for their next home than they actually made from the one they just sold. But I suppose they did have a “win” after all – i.e. they got more for their house than they expected.
Now, reverse the situation – a seller in a buyer’s market is reluctant to discount their home to the extent needed to make a relatively quick sale. (Remember, my friends, a successful real-estate agent gets the vendor a quick sale, not necessarily the highest price.) Doing such is perceived as a “loss” to the seller, though in most cases it actually isn’t a real loss at all. Yet in a buyer’s market it is in their best interest to sell quickly. Why? Because they will be buying in the same market, and the statistics show that if they discount appropriately and sell quickly, they can often gain more than they lost when buying again.
Most trade property way too late in the cycle. Now, despite what we hear, is a great time to upgrade. You might be surprised at how much you can actually save by doing so now.
Now back to our property celebs. If you are going to run these silly lists outlining the most discounted properties on the market, do some real homework first. And in particular, stop using these examples as the means to judge the overall health of a city or region’s housing market. The happenings on South Stradbroke Island or the listed price drops of a grossly overpriced bit of dirt wedged between a quarry, the M1 and a major arterial road have little relevance to what is happening across Brisbane or the Gold Coast.
If I wanted to get some media coverage on a “fringe” property, I, too, would milk the system in a similar way. You should be quarantining these listings as “out-of-line”. A serious analyst would.
Mainstream asking prices, by the way, are not being discounted by 30% to 50%. What is taking place are the usual price negotiations that occur during every buyer’s market phase of the property cycle.
How about you guys start using some real practical examples – pick some mainstream properties, with vendors who are realistic yet not distressed (as only a small percentage really are), and share with us your findings. In Brisbane you will find discounting of up to 10%, with many sellers having made up slightly more than they lost on their next purchase and, in real terms, very few being left out-of-pocket.
But that won’t get you much media coverage will it? Nor a gig on Channel 7’s Sunrise or the ABC’s Lateline Business. Let alone over a week as the top-billing article on Fairfax’s Domain.com.au.
Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Matusik has helped over 500 new residential developments come to fruition and writes the weekly  <a target="_blank" title="Matusik's Missive" href="https://matusikmissive.wordpress.com/">Matusik's Missive</a>.
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Wisdom in selling in a buyer's market

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<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">Interest rates didn’t rise yesterday, and no surprise there. Yet we keep hearing about how they will, inevitably, do so and in fact many, many times.  Will these desk-bound, Canberra-centric economists ever shut up? Maybe they should go outside for a while, leave the ACT for a bit and visit a few shops, speak to a small business owner or two or visit a Queensland construction site (if they could find one). They might discover the real world.
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">Although mining-related stuff is going great guns, the rest (and it is a very big rest) of us are not.  Technical recession or not (well, not yet, anyway – but the June quarter figures will leave no shadow of a doubt), we are facing some very tough economic times and an increase in interest rates any time soon will stuff things up big time.
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">I was going to quote a baker’s dozen or so of statistics, highlighting our current economic woes, but to be honest I don’t have the strength nor do you want to keep hearing about them. “More sugar,” someone emailed me the other day, and “less lemon”. I am listening, but it is bloody hard at present. I do prefer a blue sky over cloud.
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">This mining boom – let’s call it Mark II – is shaping up to be quite different from the first one. During the first leg of the mining boom (circa 2001 to 2008), our exports over imports (<em style="outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: italic; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; margin: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">terms of trade for all you smarties out there) rose to the highest level since the early 1950s. Although a two-speed economy was evident then, the gap was perceived as less than today, due to limited government regulations, tax cuts and generous public handouts.
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">After a GFC-induced pause during 2008-09, the mining boom is back and according to some, big time.  The terms of trade are up; unemployment (well as feebly measured by the ABS) is below 5%; apparently there are skilled labour shortages and almost all of the mainstream financial press are running headlines screaming BOOM!  But this time around it feels (heck….it is) different.  Why is this so?
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">Firstly, house prices have hit an affordability wall.  With some good luck, it won’t turn into a collapse, but it has hit a serious barrier.  Time will fix the problem – as wage growth catches up with housing prices – but this will take years to resolve.  A dose of commonsense would do wonders.  A change in planning policy would see housing affordability fixed almost over night.   But there is a lot of inertia here, including in some of our biggest institutions (i.e. the banks).  So I suspect a slow deflate (in real terms) is on the cards for Aussie homes for some time to come.  Of course, there will be winners and losers as always is the case when an overall market type loses its pep.
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">Secondly, the Australian dollar is high and is likely to remain so.  Profits, for many private businesses, are already changing to losses.  High commodity prices and our high interest rates; against the world stage; are likely to ensure a strong Aussie dollar for some time to come.
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">Thirdly, policy makers (I really mean the RBA) so far have managed the second phase of this mining boom quite well; although the November interest rate rise was a step too soon, but everyone is allowed to make a mistake now and then.  A fool, however, makes that same mistake twice; an idiot three times.  I hope Glenn Stevens isn’t going to be foolish nor act like an idiot.  Yesterday’s decision to leave rates on hold, at least, proved that Glenn is no fool, yet.
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">Given the tight Federal Budget – which as I have <a style="outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: #990000; text-decoration: none; padding: 0px; margin: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;" href="https://matusikmissive.wordpress.com/2011/05/04/may-budget/">argued </a>recently isn’t really what is needed now, as we need to stimulate the non-mining (the vast majority of the economy) sectors now for years to come – and the post-flood/cyclone slowdown, interest rates, for the time being at least, should remain on hold.  My way of thinking is this needs to occur for at least another twelve months or so, maybe more.
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">However, if the general economy continues along its current trajectory in coming months, then last November’s pre-emptive strike will need to be reversed.  Inflation (for now at least) is well under control; jobs advertisements are on the slide; house prices are also falling; fewer firms are posting gross profits; there has been no economic growth so far this year and manufacturing is contracting once more.  Sorry, for the lemon infusion, but I couldn’t help myself!
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">Hmmm, sound like we might see interest rates actually fall next rather than rise.  I might have been <a style="outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: #990000; text-decoration: none; padding: 0px; margin: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;" href="https://matusikmissive.wordpress.com/2011/02/16/rates-must-fall/">right </a>after all.   The RBA confesses in yesterday’s media release that the current cash rate setting is mildly restrictive.  I think that come August this mild settling will feel severe indeed.  Fingers crossed (the sugar) that it doesn’t come to this.
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">Regardless of the future direction of interest rates, what would help the situation – and stop all the jawboning and resultant negativity – would be some very clear advice from the RBA outlining (in plain English please) their prognosis for the next financial year and when (and by how much) interest rates might change.  This monthly interest rate guessing game is counterproductive.  Run through a budgetary process, factor in the variables and let us know.  If nothing else, it will help shut up all those damn economists waxing lyrical about every minute detail that is muttered by GS and his band of merry men (and two ladies).
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">And the final reason, and the main one, why this boom, for most of us, feels more like a recession, is the lack of confidence.  Yes, consumer attitudes have changed fundamentally.  And I don’t buy into the surprise lift in April’s retail turnover, as a sign that we are going back to our old spending ways.  Consumption is out and saving is in.  Most, too, are less interested in taking on debt.  But things right now have become outright gloomy – we are squirreling money away like our lives depend on it – yet our balance sheet indicates considerable strength.
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">One of the key reasons for this gloom is the almost daily threat of looming interest rate rises.
<p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 1.1em; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">Glenn please, from this day onwards, tell us a year in advance, when to expect a change in interest rates and by how much.  Proact, stop reacting – this constant game of cat and mouse needs to stop.
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Be proactive, not reactive

<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.

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[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.

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[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.

<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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[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=152737]

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Michael Matusik

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