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A survey of investment sentiment shows Australians are still concerned about their debt levels, with paying off such debts being the most common destination for left-over funds.
The MLC Quarterly Australian Wealth Sentiment Survey, however, did record an increased willingness to invest in property, shares and other risky asset classes, perhaps signalling a small improvement in consumer sentiment.
“[The] survey shows consumers balance sheets remain very conservative – with a heavy emphasis on deposits and paying off debt,” the report stated.
“That said there has been a marginal increase in risk appetite – with a growing desire to put more into property and slightly less aversion to direct shares.”
The survey, based on the responses of 2062 participants polled between August 9 and August 27, did find differences across different income levels.
Higher income earners favoured superannuation and property investment, while those on lower incomes were more likely to nominate keeping their money as cash.
Regardless of the wealth category, paying down debt was the most popular ‘investment’ choice over the next three months.
People in Western Australia were the most diversified across different asset classes. Men tended to hold more diversified assets than women.
Women were more likely to be concerned about the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/big-money/057730-big-money-the-reason-our-superannuation-system-doesn-t-work">adequacy of their superannuation savings</a>, with those over 50 being the most concerned.
“With people living longer, having extended retirements and being much more active in their retirement, the harsh reality is most people won’t have enough savings to fund their retirement,” MLC CEO Andrew Hagger said.
“For women this especially rings true, as women retire with 40 per cent less super than men because they take time out for children, are more likely to work part time and typically earn less than men.
“While it’s not surprising to us that women are worried about funding their retirement the survey is a timely reminder to women about how they can start to bridge the gap by adopting some key measures.
Men tended to be most concerned about missing investment opportunities.
 
<hr>
 This article first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au">SmartCompany</a>.
 
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mrobin-TVRYiru7si

Paying off debt the most popular investment for all income levels: MLC

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Last week, the US Treasury released <a target="_blank" href="https://www.treasury.gov/initiatives/Documents/POTENTIAL%20MACROECONOMIC%20IMPACT%20OF%20DEBT%20CEILING%20BRINKMANSHIP.pdf" rel="nofollow">a report</a> on the global consequences of a default. It makes for stark reading.
Its conclusion reads:
“In the event that a debt limit impasse were to lead to a default, it could have a catastrophic effect on not just financial markets but also on job creation, consumer spending and economic growth with many private sector analysts believing that it would lead to events of the magnitude of late 2008 or worse, and the result then was a recession more severe than any seen since the Great Depression.
“Considering the experience of countries around that world that have defaulted on their debt, not only might the economic consequences of default be profound, those consequences, including high interest rates, reduced investment, higher debt payments, and slow economic growth, could last for more than a generation.”
America has never defaulted on its debt. It has never had need to. It still has no need to.
But a political impasse means its $16.7 trillion debt ceiling is being used as a bargaining chip by Republicans to ensure the scrapping or delay of legislation passed by Democrats in the previous political cycle.
The American government is <a target="_blank" href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/economy/057795-what-does-the-united-states-government-shutdown-mean-for-me-and-my-business-a-smartcompany-q-a">already shut down and has been for nine days</a>, as Congress Republicans refuse to put a budget to a vote unless it cuts funding to President Obama’s healthcare reforms.
But a bigger day is coming. On October 17, America is scheduled to breach its debt ceiling.
And while few think it’ll come to that, here’s what would happen if it did:
October 17
America will breach its debt ceiling on October 17, given current spending and taxation flows.
That means the Treasury Department would not be allowed to borrow more money to pay its expenses.
In its report, the Department says it will have $30 billion on hand, which it will use to pay what it can.  
Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/susan-jones/treasury-secretary-30-billion-not-responsible-amount-cash-run-government" rel="nofollow">has said</a> there will be $30 billion on hand to use on this date to pay the bills, an amount he said was “not responsible”.
All government spending goes through Treasury, so that $30 billion will be quickly eroded by scheduled payments to government programs like Social Security.
October 30
This is when Treasury says it will run out of money. This is just for domestic spending. A lot of government departments are already shut down, but this means essential services currently exempted – schools and defence contractors, for example – would begin to be affected.
October 31
This is the point of no return. America owes a $6 billion interest payment on this day, and the money to pay it would not be available.
“This is when the proverbial would hit the fan,” AMP Capital’s chief economist Shane Oliver said. “America’s never defaulted in that sense before. Greece came close a few months back, but that didn’t matter. Greece isn’t core to the global financial system.”
If America were to fail to make that repayment, credit rating agencies would have to class it as being in ‘Selective Default’.
And this would ensure the knock-on effects continue.
Global pension funds, central banks, you name it, all invest in American government debt. Many have mandates saying they can only invest in BBB-rated investments and above.
“If America downgrades, many will be forced to sell their US Bonds, and that’ll put upwards pressure on bond yields,” Oliver says. “Interest rates would quickly rise.”
There would be other effects too, some caused by the higher interest rates, and some just by the whole situation. Confidence in America would decline, sending the dollar plunging. Borrowing costs for businesses would escalate rapidly, as many global interest rates are tied to the price of US government debt.
We saw this happen in Europe, Oliver says. “When those countries had debt downgrades, their bond yields went up even before the downgrades occurred. The effect of this was that companies in those countries faced higher borrowing costs.”
Westpac economists Sean Callow and Richard Franulovich <a target="_blank" href="https://wibiq.westpac.com.au/Publications.aspx?PublicationId=5987&amp;customerid=181" rel="nofollow">wrote yesterday</a> that this’ll keep the American dollar low, which could have positive effects for the Australian dollar. However, they’re not expecting a dramatic change from where it is now.
November 15
Two weeks later, another, far larger interest repayment is due. If a deal still hasn’t been reached, America would default on $30 billion in scheduled repayments, throwing markets further into chaos.
After…
After that, it’s not really clear what would happen. While America could miss a few more payments, it’s unlikely to keep doing so indefinitely, Oliver says.
That’s because America still has trillions of dollars in tax coming in. It will breach its debt ceiling because its budget is not currently balanced. But if it were to pass a balanced budget – one that contains enough money to pay its liabilities while meeting its interest repayments by doing a mix of raising taxes or cutting government services, it could continue to make repayments.
However, this would likely choke off the global recovery, and the upheaval alone would likely be catastrophic for global economic growth.
There’ll be long-term consequences for America as well. The country currently enjoys enormous economic advantages by virtue of being the globe’s economic powerhouse, as well as its reputation for having never defaulted on its debt.
America can borrow more cheaply, it has the world’s most important currency, it’s where successful companies the world-over flock to list.
These and other advantages enjoyed by the American economy would be put at risk if the nation defaulted on some of its repayments.
“We’ve seen what happened to Argentina and Russia when they defaulted,” Oliver says. “It took them a long time to return to where they were. That stigma sticks for a while.
“America lost a lot of face through the global financial crisis. It was seen as having a strong, robust, innovative economy, and then the GFC tore holes through that concept.
“The world is increasingly starting to look towards China, and that comes as a difficult time for America. Another failure here could further accentuate perceptions of its economic decline.”
Back to reality
Ultimately, however, few expect these catastrophic events to come to pass.
“I think this is extremely unlikely,” Oliver says.
“If this does happen, it’ll be because of a miscalculation. At the moment, the main risk is that both sides assume the other will blink. Republicans think even if Obama says he won’t negotiate, he will, and Obama assumes the Republicans will cave in. If those assumptions are both wrong, we’ll have a lot to worry about.”
Overnight in America, Republicans proposed a deal where they would raise the debt ceiling for six weeks in order to negotiate a solution. However, President Obama rejected the deal as it would not re-open the government in the meantime.
Australian businesses with operations in America say the chatter is that a deal will be reached by Monday. We hope they’re right.

<hr>
This article first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au">SmartCompany</a>.
 
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What would happen if the US defaults on its debt?

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Australians have the highest median wealth in the world, with average household wealth having grown a staggering 13% a year since 2000, Credit Suisse’s <a rel="nofollow" href="https://publications.credit-suisse.com/tasks/render/file/index.cfm?fileid=BCDB1364-A105-0560-1332EC9100FF5C83">annual global wealth report</a>, released yesterday, shows.

The world’s done well since 2000. Total global wealth has doubled since 2000, global financial crisis notwithstanding.
This has been driven by emerging markets.
But Australia is unique among the developed nations surveyed by Credit Suisse in also having experienced staggering growth in wealth over the period.
Australia’s average wealth per adult is US$402,600 (AU$426,100), which is the second-highest in the world after Switzerland. Australia’s <a rel="nofollow" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Median">median wealth</a>, however, is the highest in the world, at US$219,500 (AU$233,504).
Median wealth is the wealth of the middle wealthiest person in Australia, and so would be higher in a relatively equal society. When it comes to wealth distribution, most (62.6%) Australians had wealth between US$100,000 and US$1 million. Only 6.9% of Australians had a net worth of under $10,000 – a very low proportion by global standards.
Australia’s wealth is heavily skewed towards ‘real assets’ as opposed to financial ones. Australians have the second-highest real asset allocation in the world, behind only Norway, with most of our wealth being bundled up in our houses.
Australia accounts for 3.8% of the world’s richest 1%, despite accounting for only 0.4% of the world’s population.
What’s driving Australia’s extraordinary wealth growth?
Half of it, Credit Suisse writes, has been driven by the appreciation of the Australian dollar. The dollar’s extended parity with the American dollar has made Australian assets relatively more valuable compared to those of other countries when converted into a common currency.
Australia’s Higher Education Contribution Scheme (HECS) system also plays its part: Australia has relatively low student loan debt, which means people start their working lives without being thousands of dollars in the red, as happens in many other parts of the world.
Australia also has relatively low credit-card debt.

<hr>
This article first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au">SmartCompany</a>.
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Australians' median wealth is the highest in the world, new research finds

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After the most public Fed chair nomination battle in recent history, President Obama has finally appointed Janet Yellen to replace Ben Bernanke when he retires from his position atop America’s central bank next year.
Yellen was the frontrunner <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="https://www.crikey.com.au/2013/09/18/fed-chief-form-guide-who-will-replace-ben-bernanke/">ever since Larry Summers pulled his name out of the ring</a> last month, and American markets rose on her appointment. She’s seen as a steady, safe pair of hands who will likely maintain many of the policies enacted under Bernanke.
She’s also the first woman to hold the role, and only the 17th woman to lead a central bank worldwide. Plenty of people say the American Fed is the most important economic decision-maker in the world, so that puts her in a pretty powerful position.
Here are five things you probably didn’t know about Yellen.
1. What’s she been doing lately?
Yellen’s been leading the Federal Reserve in some capacity or other since 2004. In a world with few high-ranking female economists, she’s been chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, an advisory body to the US President, and has been a professor of economics and management at Harvard University.
2. She’s one half of an economic power-couple
Yellen is married to Nobel-prize-winning economist George Akerlof, who got the award in 2001 for his work on a <a rel="nofollow" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Market_for_Lemons">pretty seminal study</a> showing how markets malfunction when buyers and sellers have different, asymmetric information.
3. Her first contribution to economic theory: It doesn’t pay to pay workers peanuts
Yellen’s doctorate, earned at Yale, developed what she called the “efficiency wage” model of unemployment.
She showed that if people feel underpaid, they work less efficiently and are more likely to quit. This suggests, counter-intuitively, that paying people too little could actually undermine productivity. The employers with the highest productivity, she wrote, seek to improve morale by paying more than the minimum wage they can get away with. This can also mean their staff are less likely to be poached.
This finding came from Yellen’s own experience: when she hired a babysitter for her son, she and her husband decided to purposefully pay more than the going wage, figuring a happier babysitter would provide better care. They got plenty of great applicants, which led to Yellen’s paper.
Yellen’s done a lot more research, a lot of it with her husband.
4. She’s rich
According to her annual financial disclosures, the last of which was in August, she held investments worth at least $4.8 million in 2012.
That includes her stamp collection, which is worth at least $15,000.
Most of Yellen’s investments are in broad-based equity and bond funds.
5. Is she a dove? She hates unemployment and inflation
Many describe Yellen as a monetary ‘dove’ – someone who’s more concerned with boosting employment than combating inflation.
But her defenders say she’s been willing to raise rates to beat unemployment too.
The fact that she has grave concerns about unemployment is indisputable.
“These are not just statistics to me. We know that long-term unemployment is devastating to workers and their families,” she said <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="https://federalreserve.gov/newsevents/speech/yellen20130211a.htm">in a speech</a> to an American unionist gathering in February.
But in other speeches, she’s stressed that the Fed should never repeat the experiences of the late 1960s and 1970s, when it didn’t respond quickly enough to rising inflation. She’s also long argued that the Fed should adopt a 2% inflation target.
Australia’s RBA targets inflation between 2-3% a year, but the American central bank has no explicit target. Instead, it has a ‘desirable’ target range of between 1.7%-2% inflation. Adopting a specific target would give policy makers less leeway to let inflation rise above this band.

<hr>
This article first appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au">SmartCompany</a>.
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Five things to know about the world’s most powerful woman, new Fed chair Janet Yellen

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Bank of America Merrill Lynch economist Saul Eslake says the Australian economy is likely to face reduced growth over the next 18 months, as local and international economic risks make it unlikely things will get better soon.
In a wide-ranging interview conducted over an Australian Institute of Company Directors lunch in Melbourne, the high-profile economist had few positive things to say about the coming economic conditions.
In his estimation, these are the four biggest risks to the Australian economy
Gas prices
Nominating this as his number one risk, Eslake said a rapid increase in gas prices could have far more disruptive effect than the carbon tax, and would be delivered with no compensation.
Global demand is why Eslake reckons prices are set to rise.
“In a couple of years, we could face a substantial increase in gas prices as Australia’s gas companies have signed contracts to export all of their gas,” he said.
Gas is expensive to transport and import, so prices could rapidly rise as a result.
This could have a large impact, particularly in New South Wales, where government policy prevents further gas exploration.
Gas is used in electricity generation, food processing and the making of construction materials, Eslake said.
Crazy politicians at home
Eslake took a shot at politics, particularly the Nationals, saying they could hamper the Abbott Government’s ability to undertake productivity-enhancing reforms.
“John Howard was lucky in that when he was prime minister, the National Party was led by Tim Fisher, John Anderson and Mark Vaile, all of whom were by Nationals standards very rational people,” he said.
“They were trade ministers who saw it as part of their job to sell free-market policies to an often sceptical, sometimes hostile constituency.
“That wing of the National Party is all but extinct.
“Now, we’ve got a situation where our country may be run by Barnaby Joyce while Abbott is out of the country. That’s frankly a quite frightening prospect.” Joyce has said he will run for deputy prime minister when current leader Warren Truss retires.
And politicians abroad…
But perhaps this is not as frightening as <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/economy/057795-what-does-the-united-states-government-shutdown-mean-for-me-and-my-business-a-smartcompany-q-a" target="_blank">what is going on in America</a>. The American Government is currently closed after the failure of its legislature to pass a budget bill. On October 17, however, the American government will hit its debt limit, and unless its politicians manage to compromise this time, the American government will default on its debts.
An American government default of even “half a day” would have “catastrophic” consequences, potentially leading to a “cold-war-life” situation in the global economy, Eslake said.
“Until about ten days ago, the conventional wisdom of financial markets was that the Republicans wouldn’t go down this road.
“But to hear the way they’re talking now, well, you have to wonder what planet they’re living on. One can only hope enough Republicans come to their senses.”
The persistently high Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is still too high, and this hinders Australia’s adjustment to the period after the mining investment boom, Eslake said.
“The dollar is just too high to encourage investment outside of mining, and we need that investment in places like New South Wales.”
 

<hr>
This article originally appeared on <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au" target="_blank">SmartCompany</a>.
 
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Gas prices and crazy politicians: Saul Eslake's four biggest risks to the Australian economy

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It now appears almost certain that United States government departments will be on shutdown from tomorrow, with Congress Republicans holding firm in their attempts to use a budget bill to defund President Obama’s universal healthcare law.
The American Senate and the House of Representatives must reach agreement by midnight tonight in order to pass the funding necessary for government departments to keep operational.
Already, international markets are viewing a shutdown as a near certainty. The Dow Futures markets opened 101 points lower: traders are pricing in a shutdown.
While an 11th-hour deal is a possibility, it’s made less likely by the fact that any compromise by Republicans from their hard-line position is likely to result in Republican Speaker John Boehner being ousted by Tea Party conservatives in his own party. They are even less likely to compromise than he is.
Any shutdown – even if it only lasts a day or two – will push the Australian dollar higher, says Evan Lucas, a market strategist at IG Markets. .
“There’s a very real possibility of reaching parity by Christmas,” he said. “It’s out of our control.
“Overnight, a government shutdown would mean 800,000 federal government employees don’t get paid. That’s going to drive up unemployment, and it’ll impact confidence in the American economy. That’ll push their currency lower, and the Australian dollar higher.”
This might encourage some shoppers to doing their Christmas shopping on American websites.
Economists expect a government shutdown to shave 1.4% off fourth-quarter economic growth in America. Lucas thinks, because of the lower dollar, that’ll likely have some impact here, too.
“Imagine two or three days of a relatively high Australian dollar,” Lucas says. “That’ll distort fourth-quarter trading heading into Christmas, which is the worst time for it. Retailers need a strong quarter. But if you have confidence falling and a high Australian dollar, it’ll get back to the SME community.”
However Shane Oliver, the chief economist at AMP, said the effect will really depend on how long the shutdown lasts for. "If it's a prolonged shutdown, then that obviously would have global implications for growth, including in Australia.
"At this stage though, it's still early days.
Consumer confidence in Australia is highly tied to events in America, Lucas says. Confidence has been on the mend of late, but concerns over debt ceilings and government shutdowns aren’t going to help.
"We've seen this movie before," Oliver adds. "There have been four threatened shutdowns in the past few years. We've often gone to the brink, only to fall back in at the last minute.
"I expect if there is a shutdown, it'll be a brief one. Politicians don't want to get blamed for the crisis. But then again, US politics is more dysfunctional than it used to be."
If American politicians avert a shutdown, they'll likely to have the discussion again in October. The United States is scheduled to breach its debt ceiling on October 17. This will require further cuts to government spending, and if the two sides don't agree, this could trigger an American default on its deb.
"We're in for a fairly uncertain few weeks," Oliver says. "Even if there's good news late tonight, the markets will worry about the next thing. It'll be a fairly volatile couple of weeks."
"But I think it'll probably be resolved in a way that doesn't cause major harm."
It’s been 17 years since the American government shutdown after failed budget negotiations. In 1995, House Republicans, led by Newt Gingrich, refused to pass a budget over concerns about spending on education, public health and the environment.
For 28 days the federal government shutdown, which turned public opinion against the Republicans and is credited with having helped president Clinton’s re-election campaign a year later.
The American federal government has shut down 17 times since 1976.

<hr>
This article originally appeared on <a target="_parent" href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au">SmartCompany</a>.
 
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Why we should be worried about the US government shutdown: Analyst warns of dollar parity “by Christmas”

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Australia’s superannuation system, the fourth largest in the world, is huge and growing.
The total assets held in superannuation accounts in Australia are currently worth 100% of annual GDP. By 2033, Deloitte reports that will grow to 180% of GDP – an extraordinary savings pool for a country with historically low savings rates.
Accountancy Deloitte has, for the past six years, been conducting an annual overview of the sector, and how it is meeting Australia’s retirement needs.
The latest report, <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.deloitte.com/assets/Dcom-Australia/Local%20Assets/Documents/Industries/Financial%20services/Deloitte_Dynamics_of_Superannuation_2013_report.pdf">released yesterday</a>, is a fascinating glimpse into how the money that leaves our weekly pay cheque will end up serving us. Here are four gems from Deloitte’s report.
How much you need to retire comfortably
Going on current life expectancy rates, Deloitte has calculated how much super you need to retire with a ‘modest’ or ‘comfortable’ lifestyle.
For men aged 65 today, they need $330,000 in superannuation to fund themselves to the tune of a ‘modest’  $22,654 every year. For women, who generally live slightly longer, they need $360,000 in superannuation assets to pay out the same amount every year.
For those who want a ‘comfortable’ lifestyle in retirement, the figures are nearly double. A man requires $590,000 to pay themselves $41,197 a year, while women need to have $660,000 in superannuation assets for the same.
But most people don’t have anywhere near that
For most Australians nearing retirement, these figures are far, far more than they currently have in their superannuation balances.
According to the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia, the average male 60-64 year old has $85,000 in superannuation assets. For women, who on average live longer, the disparity is even more stark – most have just $59,000 in superannuation assets.
For those slightly older – the 65-69 year olds, some of whom are already in retirement – the figures are worse. Men in that age group have, on average, $77,000 in superannuation assets while women have $55,000.
For those who have lived only a few decades under the current superannuation regime, there is no way they will have enough in their balances to fund their retirement, Deloitte notes. They will have to rely on the aged pension instead.
As the report’s author, Deloitte partner Wayne Walker, puts it, “despite the $7.6 trillion asset pool we project for 2033, [the potential of superannuation] to generate wealth and prosperity may well bat risk for the average Australian”.
“Many Australians now approaching retirement have only received super for a limited portion of their working lives as our system is still maturing.”
“The concern is that current policy settings, including changes to caps and drawdowns, and the SG 12% increase, will not deliver the lifestyle that the majority of those retiring in the next 20 years are seeking. The reality is that many Australians will need to work longer and where possible contribute more.
“To that end our report projects the possibility of Australians deferring retirement by two and five years respectively. The results are significant.”
 For Gen X, the situation is better
For those who’ve worked most of their life paying money into superannuation, the system is working, but not perfectly.
For a statistically average 30 year old working currently on $60,000 a year (the average income for people of that age), Deloitte estimates they’ll retire with $1.1 million in superannuation.
Given rising inflation, Deloitte thinks this’ll be enough to support themselves until they’re 94, but only on a ‘modest’ retirement. If this worker choses a ‘comfortable’ retirement, the $1.1 million will last them only until they’re 77. To have a comfortable retirement that doesn’t run out, Deloitte thinks that worker will need $1.6 million in superannuation assets if male, or $1.8 million if female.
Superannuation hasn’t recovered from the GFC
The financial crisis, which began in 2009, had a huge impact on Australia’s superannuation assets, eclipsing that of recent economic crises such as the dot-com crash.
Deloitte sees the superannuation asset pool remaining below GFC levels until 2016 (see graph), highlighting how much of a setback it was to the balances of millions of Australians, particularly those about to retire.
<img style="max-width: 540px; max-height: 480px;" width="470" height="355" src="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/images/stories/news/super-picture-540-408.jpg" alt="super-picture-540-408">
Industry funds as popular as SMSF
For much of the past few years, self-managed superannuation funds have <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/finance/057570-asic-warns-smsf-trustees-when-it-comes-to-fraud-you-re-on-your-own">grown strongly in numbers</a>. But in the years to 2033, Deloitte expects industry funds to grow just as fast. Ultimately, most people move from industry funds to SMSFs as they retire.
Over the past year, growth in SMSFs has slowed, Deloitte notes. This reflects the reduction in concessional contribution limits and product innovation in industry and retail funds, which have blunted the advantages of SMSFs.
 
<hr>
 This artcile originally appeared on <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au" target="_blank">SmartCompany</a>.
 
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How much superannuation do you need to retire comfortably?

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The Australian Securities and Investments Commission wants to beef up the mandatory disclosures advisers give to people setting up a self-managed super fund, saying in many cases the advice given doesn’t reflect the risks.
In a <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.asic.gov.au/asic/asic.nsf/byHeadline/13-243MR%20ASIC%20consults%20on%20the%20quality%20of%20SMSF%20advice?opendocument" target="_blank">report released yesterday</a>, the regulator flagged it wants to make SMSF advisers warn clients that if they set up a SMSF, they do not have access to compensation in the event of fraud or theft.
It also wants advisers to give more information about the roles and responsibilities of trustees, the costs of setting up a SMSF, as well as more information about other types of superannuation products that might be more suited to someone’s particular situation.
“When it comes to planning your retirement, establishing an SMSF is a very significant decision,” said ASIC deputy chairman Peter Kell.
“We want to help ensure that the SMSF sector is healthy, and that investors make informed decisions about SMSFs.
“Our recent surveillance of the sector found that advice was not up to a standard we would like.”
The warning comes after the Trio Capital affair, which saw the company collapse in 2009 after directors and executives stole $176 million from SMSF investors in<a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/economy/056372-trio-capital-directors-accept-enforceable-undertakings-from-apra-construction-sector-contracts-for-34th-consecutive-month-midday-roundup" target="_blank">what was called “the biggest superannuation fraud in Australian history”</a> by a joint parliamentary committee. More than 6000 investors lost money after placing it into two offshore hedge funds through Trio Capital.
However, Graeme Colley, the director of technical and professional standards at the SMSF Professionals’ Association of Australia, says ASIC’s concerns about poor quality advice may be overblown.
“Last year, ASIC decided to have a look at advice on a very select part of the superannuation industry, which was self-managed super funds with less than $150,000 in them that had received advice on property investments where the property was mortgaged. Looking at those, they concluded that the advice being given wasn’t adequate.
“But it was a very selective sample.
“Unfortunately, ASIC hasn’t provided examples of the poor or inadequate advice it saw.”
ASIC also released a report yesterday by actuaries Rice Warner, which looked at the minimum balances needed before SMSFs become cost-effective relative to other superannuation arrangements.
“Through our consultation we are looking to encourage further discussion and explore the issues relating to SMSF costs with industry and consumer stakeholders,” Kell said. “We think that understanding the costs associated with having an SMSF will help advisers and their clients consider whether a SMSF is a cost-effective option when compared with an APRA-regulated fund.
“ASIC does not want to see an influx of trustees who are ill-equipped to cope with the responsibilities and obligations of running a SMSF.”
The report found that when the maximum level of compliance administration is assumed, SMSFs do not become cost-effective when they have balances of less than $500,000.
However, many trustees do their own administration and compliance, which means the costs of maintaining a SMSF would be lower, Peter Burgess, the head of policy and technical at AMP SMSF said.
“This is in line with what we already knew – you need a reasonable amount in your SMSF for it to be cost-effective.
“But cost isn’t the only consideration here. There are other reasons to manage your own super – you might have specific estate-planning needs, or want to take advantage of specific investment opportunities and so on.
“And while it’s not cost-effective for very low balances, when you have more than $100,000 in your fund, it does depend on how much work you’re doing yourself. It’s hard to get data on this, but a significant amount of trustees do their administration work and so forth themselves. This can make it cost-effective below the $500,000 threshold.”
Colley was also reluctant to accept the higher threshold, saying that in his experience most trustees contribute to the operation of their fund.
“Much of the work with these funds is done by the trustees, so the expense is exaggerated. The Rice Warner report does say that where trustees do contribute, the running cost is around 1.5% of assets. In my view, that’s at the upper end, but probably more realistic.
“We think the $200,000 threshold mentioned by both ASIC and the ATO many years ago is still valid when it comes to cost-effectiveness.”
Recently, ASIC has flagged its <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/superannuation/054815-asic-sounds-warning-bell-on-smsfs-2">concerns about the growth of the self-managed superannuation industry</a>, saying the increasing amount of money being held in SMSFs could prompt newcomers who are far less financially sophisticated to set up their own funds.
The self-managed superannuation industry now holds just under a third of all the money held by Australians in superannuation, having grown around 20% per annum in recent years. There is now $439 billion in assets held by SMSFs. There are over a million SMSF trustees who together manage half a million SMSFs.
Colley does not believe SMSFs are necessarily more risky than investing through a major fund.
“There are two persistent criticisms around SMSFs. One is that trustees don’t know what they’re doing, and the other is that SMSFs are being used by property spruikers to invest in property.
“I was at a major super fund conference earlier this year when one of the speakers got up and said: ‘If you think SMSFs are jokes, who don’t do as well, you need to think again’. They do, roughly, 1% better, on average, than bigger super funds.
“And there’s a huge amount of noise around property, but if you look at the statistics, less than half of 1% of SMSFs invest in property loans.”
Burgess believes there’s still further growth to be had for the industry. “There’s still significant room to grow. There’s a lot of research and statistics out there that shows there are plenty of people with tendencies that could benefit from a self-managed super fund, but who don’t currently have one.”
 
<hr>
 This article was originally publsihed on <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au" target="_blank">SmartCompany</a>.
 
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ASIC warns that when it comes to fraud, SMSF trustees are on their own

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James Packer has become the second-largest shareholder of Zillow, plunging $330 million into the Seattle-based real estate website.
A 9.3% stake was bought yesterday by Packer-controlled Cavalane Holdings, which bought 3 million shares for Packer’s Consolidated Press International Holdings yesterday.
It’s <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/information-technology/056658-the-best-australian-dot-com-investments-ever-made">not the first time</a> Packer has ploughed money into online marketplaces.
Packer, along with close friend Lachlan Murdoch, has been arguably the greatest single beneficiary of the Australian dot.com boom.
He was one of the earliest investors of SEEK, having bought a 25% stake in 2003 for $33 million in 2003. When the business listed, Packer’s stake was worth $150 million. By the time he sold out, he had made $440 million from his investment.
He was also an early investor in Carsales.com.au, putting $100 million for a stake in the company that sold for $500 million a few years later.
In buying a stake in Zillow, Packer could be hoping to replicate the success of Murdoch, who invested nearly $10 million into RealEastate.com.au for a 66% stake in the company. That stake went on to be worth $2 billion.
Zillow already has a market capitalisation of $US3.5 billion, and its stock price has increased three-fold since the start of 2013. This suggests Packer isn’t getting in on the ground floor this time.
Last month, Zillow’s founders and executives sold off $205 million worth of stock, leading some to suggest <a href="https://news.morningstar.com/all/ViewNews.aspx?article=/MW/TDJNMW2013082166_univ.xml" rel="nofollow">the stock’s golden run could be ending</a>.
According <a href="https://www.afr.com/p/opinion/caledonia_gives_packer_helping_hand_SRPpjcDD1m1XAnvBW14JvK" rel="nofollow">the Australian Financial Review’s ‘Street Talk’ column</a>, Packer was convinced on the investment by Caledonia’s chief investment officer Will Vicars, who said Zillow had potential to dominate the market in America in the same way that RealEstate.com.au (owned by REA group) has done in Australia.
Compared to Australia, Vicars reportedly argued, American real estate was far less likely to be sold online, suggesting future growth in the sector.
 
<hr>
 This article originally appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au">SmartCompany</a>.
 
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Packer plunges $330 million into American real estate portal Zillow: Has he found the next REA?

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It might have been the most expensive pub ever bought in Brisbane, but it doesn’t look like millionaires John Singleton, Mark Carnegie and Geoff Dixon plan on slowing down the growth of their burgeoning pub empire anytime soon.
Earlier this week, the three bought Brisbane’s Exchange Hotel. The price wasn’t disclosed, but <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.afr.com/p/business/property/singo_splurge_on_queensland_pub_oD2H90AS74fFKBcZ2PmzGM" target="_blank">newspaper reports</a> peg it at having sold for between $35 million and $40 million. If this is on the mark, it would be the most expensive pub ever purchased in Brisbane.
It’s been <a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/finance/047062-20111128-john-singleton-and-geoff-dixon-to-establish-200-million-pub-fund-2" target="_blank">less than two years</a> since Rich Lister and ad man Singleton, investment banker Carnegie and Tourism Australia chief Dixon established the Australian Pub Fund, but it’s already bought 11 pubs.
These include the landmark Marlborough Hotel in Sydney (<a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/property/051647-john-singleton-s-pub-group-buys-iconic-sydney-hotel-2" target="_blank">bought for $12 million at auction</a>), the Elephant Arms Hotel in Brisbane and Sydney’s Bristol Arms Hotel.
It might seem like a passion business for the three millionaires, but no doubt they would describe it more as a savvy business investment.
In the years leading up to 2008, pub values soared. Owners took on heavy debt to finance new renovations and pub purchases, but then the market crashed, and prices kept falling. By late 2011,<a href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au/finance/047062-20111128-john-singleton-and-geoff-dixon-to-establish-200-million-pub-fund-2" target="_blank">values were at rock bottom</a>. And so, Singleton and his mates went on a pub crawl.
There was, quite literally, a pub crawl, but given the <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/singos-15-hour-pub-crawl-that-clinched/story-e6freuy9-1225886895424" target="_blank">15 hours of business meetings the trio took</a>, I’m sure they weren’t too sloshed.
Singleton booked in 15 hours of meetings with pub owners all across Sydney. And he liked what he saw.
The strategy, going by Singleton’s public statements, was simple but ambitious.
He, Carnegie and Dixon would tip in $100 million of their own money, along with some bank debt and other funding, and use it to buy distressed pubs, whose owners were keen to get out.
They would then turn these pubs into balanced cash cows, with food, drinks and poker machines contributing roughly one third of revenue each.
Once the pubs are fully up and running the way they should, the plan is to eventually list the pub fund on the stock market, hopefully netting the three founders of the Australian Pub Fund a handy profit for their trouble.
When news of the pub fund first broke, Singleton said it could buy “three or 33” pubs, depending on whether or not the opportunities were there.
Two years later, it seems there’s been plenty of undervalued real estate on the market. The fund has flagged its intentions to buy more pubs in Brisbane, and it’d be unwise to dismiss further purchases in the founders’ home city of Sydney.
Neither Singleton, Carnegie nor Dixon made their fortunes in hotels or property. But, when you’ve got the money, I guess the opportunity is there for the taking. Cheers to that.
<hr>
This article originally appeared on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.smartcompany.com.au">SmartCompany</a>.
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No last calls for John Singleton and co's burgeoning pub empire

South East Queensland developer&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/gardner-vaughan-group">Gardner Vaughan Group</a>’s entry into the Gold Coast apartment market has progressed from pipeline to market, with its Chevron Island project Bronze on Chevron now formally available to purchase ahead of a planned 2029 completion.

The 119-apartment development on Mawarra Street marks the Brisbane-headquartered builder-developer’s first residential play in the Gold Coast, following its expansion south from Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast.

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/bronze-on-chevron-8-mawarra-street-surfers-paradise-qld-4217">Bronze on Chevron</a> comprises a mix of two-, three- and four-bedroom residences, with pricing starting from just over $1.5 million. The project is being delivered under Gardner Vaughan’s fully integrated model, with the group acting as both developer and builder, a structure it has consistently applied across its South East Queensland portfolio.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=107520 project_image_fid=367182]

Architecture has been designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cottee-parker-architects">Cottee Parker</a>, with landscape architecture by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/landscape-architect/jeremy-ferrier-landscape-design">Jeremy Ferrier</a>. The building presents as a single-tower scheme, with a focus on maximising outlook across both the Surfers Paradise skyline and the Nerang River.

Apartments have been planned with open-plan living zones extending to generous balconies, a response to the site’s dual-aspect positioning between river and ocean. Interiors follow a restrained coastal palette, with two colour schemes offered, and an emphasis on natural light and cross-ventilation.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=107520 project_image_fid=367181]

Resident amenity is concentrated across more than 1,250 sqm and includes a resort-style pool, gym, yoga lawn and rooftop entertaining areas. A function space with catering facilities forms part of the upper-level offering, alongside north- and south-facing outdoor areas.

Ground level will incorporate two retail tenancies, intended to extend the existing village character of the surrounding streets.

&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=107520 project_image_fid=367200]

The project sits within walking distance of Thomas Drive’s established dining strip, while maintaining proximity to <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/surfers-paradise-qld-4217">Surfers Paradise</a> beach and broader Gold Coast amenity. The location, positioned on Chevron Island between the river and coastline, has increasingly attracted mid- to high-density development in recent years as the precinct evolves beyond its low-rise origins.

Gardner Vaughan’s move into the Gold Coast was first signalled in 2025, with the group identifying the region as a natural extension of its operations. Chief Executive Officer Simon Betteridge described the expansion as both “strategic and natural”, citing demand for well-designed apartments in lifestyle-driven markets.

Construction is expected to complete in early 2029.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=107520]

Joel Robinson

Gardner Vaughan brings Bronze on Chevron to market as Gold Coast debut

One of the penthouses at Lily Lane, the latest stage of Carrington Place by Ellipse Property, has set a new local apartment price record.

The four-bedroom residence, purchased by a local downsizer, sold for $5.75 million—around 75 per cent higher than the previous record of $3.3 million.

Over 40 per cent of the first release of apartments at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/lily-lane-at-carrington-place-castle-hill-32-carrington-road-castle-hill-nsw-2154">Lily Lane</a> have already been snapped up just six weeks since it launched to the market.

&nbsp;

Located at 32 Carrington Road, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/castle-hill-nsw-2154">Castle Hill</a> and designed by award-winning architects <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/ptw">PTW</a>, Lily Lane is directly opposite the Hills Showground Metro station. It offers a total 213 units over two 12-storey towers - a mix of 67 one-bedroom, 100 two-bedroom and 46 three-bedroom apartments - with a ground-floor retail offering.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=151821 project_image_fid=368352]

Blake Schulze, National Director – Residential at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/project-marketer/colliers">Colliers</a>, says around 44 per cent of buyers are&nbsp;owner occupiers, with 35 per cent being investors and 21 per cent first homebuyers.

“Developments of this calibre are very rare in the Hills District, and Lily Lane’s sales success demonstrates the depth of demand for over-sized apartments that genuinely compete with freestanding homes," Schulze says.

"We are seeing particular demand from downsizers who want to remain in the area but transition into spacious, high-quality apartment living."

On the penthouse sale, it says it shows buyers&nbsp;are prepared to pay a premium for scale, quality, and direct access to the Metro.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=151821 project_image_fid=368351]

One-bedroom apartments are sized from 50-72 sqm with prices starting at $745,000, while two-bedrooms are priced from $990,000 with sizes from 75 to 132 square metres. Three-bedroom floorplans are sized between 97 and 182 sqm,, with prices starting at $1,395,000.&nbsp;

The three remaining penthouses, spanning up to 262 sqm, are priced from $2.9 million.

Over 75 per cent of apartments include dedicated studies, multipurpose rooms or family rooms, with select layouts offering walk-in pantries and laundries. Apartments are appointed with premium Miele appliances including ovens, washing machines, dryers, gas cooktops and dishwashers, while larger residences also incorporate integrated Miele microwaves, Fisher &amp; Paykel integrated refrigerators and five-burner Miele cooktops.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=151821 project_image_fid=360285]

Lily Lane will be constructed by award-winning iCIRT-rated builder <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/builders/decode">Decode Group</a>, with construction to commence in mid-2026 and expected to complete early 2029.

Carrington Place comprises more than 800 apartments and is being delivered across multiple stages, with completion expected in 2032. Integrated with neighbouring bushland, the project will feature over 20,000 sq, of outdoor recreational area, including a one-kilometre boardwalk to Fred Caterson Reserve.&nbsp;

The Hills Showground Metro Station is just a two-minute walk away, offering fast connectivity to Sydney’s CBD, North Sydney, Chatswood, Macquarie Park and Norwest Business Park.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=151821]

Ellipse sets Castle Hill apartment record with $5.75 million Lily Lane penthouse sale

Fresh off completing its Delano Crows Nest development, Lindsay Bennelong has lodged plans for its next project, this time turning its attention back to the beach.

The developer, started 20 years ago by Clarendon Homes founder Peter Campbell, is proposing a 37-apartment scheme at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/17-25-ashburner-street-manly-nsw-2095">17-25 Ashburner Street</a>, Manly, positioned between the southern end of <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/manly-nsw-2095">Manly</a> Beach and East Manly Cove.

Lindsay Bennelong called on local architecture firm Platform Architects to design the new building, given their success at Finn, Lindsay Bennelong's current luxury apartment project on North Steyne.&nbsp;

According to the Design Verification Statement by Bridie Gough of Platform Architects, the proposal “relates to the current context but also the desired future character of taller buildings suitable to the new planning controls.”

The site has been identified as a Low to Mid-Rise Housing (LMR) location, given its position within 400 metres of the Manly Town Centre E1 Business Zone. The LMR controls are intended to unlock additional housing supply in well-located areas close to public transport, allowing developers to seek increased height limits to support greater density.

“The proposal seeks to provide this increased level of housing whilst being respectful of some of the smaller scale buildings also nearby,” the statement reads.

Lindsay Bennelong Development Director Leigh Manser said the project has been carefully aligned with the intent of the LMR controls. The proposal will significantly increase housing yield on the site, replacing four houses and 10 apartments, comprising 25 bedrooms, with 37 new apartments delivering a total of 94 bedrooms, whilst remaining compliant with the LMR controls.

“Sydney is in a severe undersupply, and delivering more dwellings and more bedrooms than what currently exists is exactly what the LMR policy is designed to activate,” Manser said, noting that nine of the apartments will be allocated as affordable housing for frontline workers.

“We have already commenced discussions with our community housing provider to determine the rental levels that frontline workers can realistically afford in this location,” he said. “These will need to sit well below the standard affordable housing benchmark of 20 per cent below market rent, and that has been factored into our feasibility and pricing.”

<img alt="Manly" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="ad03000f-19f9-48b4-b27d-e85ca800a1da" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-04-30%20at%208.41.59%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=a.txHwCZgbCInlQ6QXbIrI.umvW1T.r8" />

The design of the building incorporates a wave-like indentation running through the façade, referencing the nearby coastline and anchoring the building within its local context.

The&nbsp;Design Verification Statement says careful consideration has been given to the articulation of the building, ensuring the bulk is broken down to a more human scale through a defined four-storey podium."

The scheme includes a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments, as well as a full-time building manager's office and wellness facilities including a sauna and a gym.

“The design ensures a high level of amenity, with apartments offering generous private open space, many with expansive views, and all with comfortable proportions."

<img alt="Bennelong" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="6a7f2812-72a1-4959-84b0-997e8cd88aed" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-04-30%20at%2010.15.50%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=6iMxU3MkXmHVHAoNhYBjnqgka8CUZNbk" />

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/lindsay-bennelong-developments">Lindsay Bennelong</a>&nbsp;is currently developing Finn Manly, just four full-floor luxury apartments on North Steyne. They recently welcomed residents to its 81-unit Delano Crows Nest development, a&nbsp;carefully scaled infill project designed to bridge&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/crows-nest-nsw-2065">Crows Nest</a>’s lively village centre with its surrounding heritage streets.

Designed by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/ajc-architects">AJC Architects</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/delano-crows-nest-27-57-falcon-street-crows-nest-nsw-2065">Delano</a>&nbsp;is arranged across three low-rise buildings, incorporating a mix of one, two, and three-bedroom apartments alongside a limited number of townhomes addressing Hayberry Lane. The architectural approach drew on the area’s Art Deco lineage, reinterpreted through contemporary detailing and framed by landscaped communal gardens.

The developer also has a development site in Maroubra.

First look: Lindsay Bennelong's new Manly apartment development revealed

Fifty-nine residences across 37 levels. No more than two per floor. With 80 per cent now sold, what remains at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/madeline-by-mosaic-broadbeach-22-mary-avenue-broadbeach-qld-4218">Madeline by Mosaic</a> is a short list.

Madeline was always conceived at a scale that sits outside the normal register of Gold Coast apartment living. The residences are half- and full-floor configurations, with the largest spanning more than 400 sqm, dimensions that place them closer to the penthouse end of the market regardless of where they sit in the building.

That scale is the organising principle of everything else: how the floorplans are laid out, how the materials read, how the connection between inside and outside works.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150135 project_image_fid=355941]

The interiors were developed in collaboration with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/fraser-partners-0">Fraser &amp; Partners</a>, the architecture practice&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/mosaic-property-group">Mosaic</a> brought in as design partner for the first time on this project. The palette runs to natural stone, textured timbers, and soft metallics, materials chosen as much for their tactile quality as their appearance.

Light cleverly shifts across surfaces through the day, and the design is explicit about wanting that to be noticed. Full-height glazing runs across the primary living areas, and where the building faces east toward the ocean, those walls of glass are doing real work: framing a view corridor that the site's position directly opposite Broadbeach State School's playing fields keeps permanently open.

That outlook is the site's most consequential asset. In a suburb where new towers continue to rise, a protected view line is genuinely rare, and the Mary Avenue address secures it. Residents at Madeline will look out over open parkland rather than the rear of another building, a distinction that becomes more meaningful with each new development approved nearby.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150135 project_image_fid=355939]

The private outdoor spaces are sized to match the residences themselves. Terraces on the upper levels frame uninterrupted ocean panoramas, and the planning ensures that living areas extend into those outdoor zones rather than treating them as separate attachments. The flow between the two is part of the design intent, not an afterthought.

Inside, the finish specification reflects the same approach. Rich stone benchtops, warm timber joinery, bespoke hardware, each element specified to hold up over time rather than read as a moment in a particular trend cycle.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=150135 project_image_fid=3409]

Beyond the residences, the amenity offering extends that register. A lap pool and sun deck anchor the outdoor space, alongside a magnesium pool, cold plunge, steam room, and sauna.

A commercial-grade gymnasium, residents' lounge, library, and boardroom round out a programme that functions more like a private members club than a standard building amenity floor.

Construction has commenced under Mosaic's in-house building arm, with completion scheduled for late 2028.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=150135]

Madeline by Mosaic delivers penthouse-level living across every apartment

Developer Fortezza Group is the latest to take its new apartment development, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-belvedere-5-7-church-street-nelson-bay-nsw-2315">The Belvedere in Nelson Bay</a>, to the NSW Government.

Fortezza, predominantly a South East Queensland developer, is the latest to apply for State Significant Development&nbsp; status through the NSW Government's Housing Delivery Authority, a pathway becoming favoured by developers to speed up the approval process.

They are planning 57 two- and three-bedroom apartments across 5-7 Church Street and 42 Donald Street, near d'Albora Nelson Bay Marina. The diverse apartment mix has sizes from just over 80 sqm to the largest three-bedroom penthouses that reach nearly 200 sqm.

<img alt="Fortezza" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="090360e1-66d7-43ad-b686-aba81f173bf2" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-04-29%20at%2010.22.40%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=DMqF96eBZolqSAAAcugX0l66ueWng66m" />

Fortezza calls the project a "piece of Istria in Nelson Bay,"&nbsp;referring to the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea, shared by Croatia (90%), Slovenia, and Italy, which is known for its Roman history, Venetian-style coastal towns and inland hilltop villages.

They say the The Belvedere is strategically positioned at the apex of Nelson Bay, offering unrivalled views of the ocean, the bay and captivating topography of the area.

"Our commitment to maintaining the integrity of every view and sight line has been relentless," Fortezza Group says.

"Through extensive modelling and analysis, we ensure that each apartment enjoys the natural beauty of Nelson Bay, regardless of future developments. Each design element is carefully curated to harmonise with our European heritage, drawing profound inspiration from the Roman architectural marvels in Istria. The arches, the cascades of greenery and the stonework that define our project pay homage to the structures that once exemplified Roman grandeur."

Residents will have access to a pool, communal green spaces, an office and a coffee shop.

Myriam Robin

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