<html><body>
A two bedroom two bathroom Gaythorne, Qld apartment has been listed by its mortgagee.
Situated at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-apartment-qld-gaythorne-129897326" target="_blank">10/480 Samford Road, Gaythorne</a> the home is set for a December 15 auction.
Featuring one car garaging the unit also comes with a balcony.
Located near public transport links as well as cafe's and shops the apartment has an open plan living arrangement.
Earlier this year the home was listed and asking for offers over $390,000.
The median price for a home in <a href="/developments/gaythorne-qld-4051">Gaythorne, Qld</a> is $694,000, according to CoreLogic Data.
</body></html>

j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

Two bedroom Gaythorne, Qld home listed by mortgagee

<html><body>
A two bedroom one bathroom unit in Cairns North, Qld has been listed by its mortgagee.
Situated at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-unit-qld-cairns+north-129907894" target="_blank">2/323 McLeod Street, Cairns North</a> the home is set for auction December 12.
Set on 86 sqm the property contains one parking space.
According to the listing the home has an estimated rental income of $300 - $330 per week.
Located inside of a gated complex the apartment features an in-ground pool.
The home last sold in 2004 for $169,000.
The median sale price for a home in <a href="/developments/cairns-north-qld-4870">Cairns North</a> is $435,000 , according to CoreLogic data.
</body></html>

Two bedroom Cairns North, Qld home listed by mortgagee.

<html><body>
A two bedroom two bathroom Redbank Plains, Qld house has been listed by its mortgagee.
Situated at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-qld-redbank+plains-129870966" target="_blank">72 Glorious Promenade, Redbank Plains </a>the home is set for a December 15 auction.
Set on 159 sqm the house features a one car garage.
The listing notes that the home has is relatively new and has only been lived in for two years.
The home is located a short walk to nearby shops, bakery, parks and new primary school.
Last sold in 2016 for $275,000, the property was recently listed for over a year previous to this current auction campaign for $289,000.
The median price for a home in <a href="/developments/redbank-plains-qld-4301">Redbank Plains</a> is $335,000, according to CoreLogic data.
</body></html>

Two bedroom Redbank Plains home listed by mortgagee

<html><body>
Queensland's Airlie Beach Hotel has been sold after being on the market for the first time in over 30 years.
It took around a year to find the buyer and there was no price revealed.
It is understood local interests secured the leasehold of the waterfront Airlie Beach Hotel.
CBRE Hotels’ Wayne Bunz and Hayley Manvell managed the transaction on behalf of the O’Neill family, who have owned the asset for over 30 years.
The family will continue to own the freehold with a new operator.
The Courier Mail advised industry sources calculated the leasehold sold for about $3 million.
The hotel has three major street frontages and is on what is considered to be one of the most strategic land holdings on the Whitsunday coast. 
Wayne Bunz, CBRE Hotels agent said the Airlie Beach Hotel is situated on a significant 8,819 sqm waterfront site, in what is arguably the best location in the Airlie Beach CBD, with never to be built out views across to the Whitsunday Island
“It has been well maintained by the family with constant capital expenditure totalling approximately $3.5 million over the past five years,” he said.
The building facilitates 80 accommodation rooms, conferencing facilities, a commercial car park, a restaurant, a pub, retail liquor sales, 35 gaming machines and a stable retail rental income.
The retail tenancies have a "substantial" Weighted Average Lease Expiry (WALE), with the first lease expiring in 2022.
Christie Leet from PRD Nationwide said the property is one of the most strategic land holdings on the Whitsunday coast.
“A site of this size cannot be replicated on Airlie Beach’s Main Street, where over 60% of properties are already strata titled,” Mr Leet said.
</body></html>

Airlie Beach Hotel leasehold sold

<html><body>
GUEST OBSERVATION
There’s little doubt the information technology revolution has improved our lives. But unless we find a new form of electronic technology that uses less energy, computing will become limited by an “energy crunch” within decades.
Even the most common events in our daily life – making a phone call, sending a text message or checking an email – use computing power. Some tasks, such as watching videos, require a lot of processing, and so consume a lot of energy.
Because of the energy required to power the massive, factory-sized data centres and networks that connect the internet, computing already <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214629618301051" target="_blank">consumes 5% of global electricity</a>. And that electricity load is doubling every decade.
Fortunately, there are new areas of physics that offer promise for massively reduced energy use.
The end of Moore’s Law
Humans have an insatiable demand for computing power.
Smartphones, for example, have become one of the most important devices of our lives. We use them to access weather forecasts, plot the best route through traffic, and watch the latest season of our favourite series.
And we expect our smartphones to become even more powerful in the future. We want them to translate language in real time, transport us to new locations via virtual reality, and connect us to the “Internet of Things”.
The computing required to make these features a reality doesn’t actually happen in our phones. Rather it’s enabled by a huge network of mobile phone towers, Wi-Fi networks and massive, factory-sized data centres known as “server farms”.
For the past five decades, our increasing need for computing was largely satisfied by incremental improvements in conventional, silicon-based computing technology: ever-smaller, ever-faster, ever-more efficient chips. We refer to this constant shrinking of silicon components as “Moore’s Law”.
Moore’s law is named after Intel co-founder Gordon Moore, who observed <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/mooreslaw.asp" target="_blank">that</a> "the number of transistors on a chip doubles every year while the costs are halved".
But as we hit limits of basic physics and economy, Moore’s law is winding down. We could see the end of efficiency gains using current, silicon-based technology as soon as 2020.
Our growing demand for computing capacity must be met with gains in computing efficiency, otherwise the information revolution will slow down from power hunger.
Achieving this sustainably means finding a new technology that uses less energy in computation. This is referred to as a “beyond CMOS” solution, in that it requires a radical shift from the silicon-based CMOS (complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor) technology that has been the backbone of computing for the last five decades.
Why does computing consume energy at all?
Processing of information takes energy. When using an electronic device to watch TV, listen to music, model the weather or any other task that requires information to be processed, there are millions and millions of binary calculations going on in the background. There are zeros and ones being flipped, added, multiplied and divided at incredible speeds.
The fact that a microprocessor can perform these calculations billions of times a second is exactly why computers have revolutionised our lives.
But information processing doesn’t come for free. Physics tells us that every time we perform an operation – for example, adding two numbers together – we must pay an energy cost.
And the cost of doing calculations isn’t the only energy cost of running a computer. In fact, anyone who has ever used a laptop balanced on their legs will attest that most of the energy gets converted to heat. This heat comes from the resistance that electricity meets when it flows through a material.
It is this wasted energy due to electrical resistance that researchers are hoping to minimise.
Recent advances point to solutions
Running a computer will always consume some energy, but we are a long way (several orders of magnitude) away from computers that are as efficient as the laws of physics allow. Several recent advances give us hope for entirely new solutions to this problem via new materials and new concepts.
Very thin materials
One recent step forward in physics and materials science is being able to build and control materials that are only one or a few atoms thick. When a material forms such a thin layer, and the movement of electrons is confined to this sheet, it is possible for electricity to flow without resistance.
There are a range of different materials that show this property (or might show it). Our research at the ARC Centre for Future Low-Energy Electronics Technologies (<a href="http://www.fleet.org.au/" target="_blank">FLEET</a>) is focused on studying these materials.
The study of shapes
There is also an exciting conceptual leap that helps us understand this property of electricity flow without resistance.
This idea comes from a branch of mathematics called “topology”. Topology tells us how to compare shapes: what makes them the same and what makes them different.
Image a coffee cup made from soft clay. You could slowly squish and squeeze this shape until it looks like a donut. The hole in the handle of the cup becomes the hole in the donut, and the rest of the cup gets squished to form part of the donut.
Topology tells us that donuts and coffee cups are equivalent because we can deform one into the other without cutting it, poking holes in it, or joining pieces together.
It turns out that the strange rules that govern how electricity flows in thin layers can be understood in terms of topology. This insight was the focus of the <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/physics/2016/press-release/" target="_blank">2016 Nobel Prize</a>, and it’s driving an enormous amount of current research in physics and engineering.
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/LV4uFHqdio4?wmode=transparent&amp;start=0" frameborder="0" width="440" height="260"></iframe>
We want to take advantage of these new materials and insights to develop the next generation of low-energy electronics devices, which will be based on topological science to allow electricity to flow with minimal resistance.
This work creates the possibility of a sustainable continuation of the IT revolution – without the huge energy cost.<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/106060/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;">
Daisy Wang, Postdoctoral Fellow, UNSW School of Physics, UNSW
Jared Cole, Professor of Physics, RMIT University
This article is republished from <a href="http://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/computing-faces-an-energy-crunch-unless-new-technologies-are-found-106060" target="_blank">original article</a>.
</body></html>

Computing faces an energy crunch unless new technologies are found

<html><body>
The Williamstown home of legendary racing broadcaster Greg Miles has been listed for sale.
Miles, who called a record 36 Melbourne Cups before retiring last year, is tipping a $2.3 to $2.5 million price guide.
It comes with five bedrooms and a pool.
It is set to be auctioned on <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-vic-williamstown-129775938" target="_blank">December 1</a>.
The Edwardian home sits on a 552 square metre lot opposite the beauty of Robertson Reserve. 
It comes with over 30 squares of living space.
</body></html>

Racing broadcast legend Greg Miles lists in Williamstown 

<html><body>
The off-the-plan buyer of a double-storey penthouse at One A in Sydney's Erskineville has defaulted.
The developer, Abacus and Linear have moved to re-sell the three-bedroom, 231 square metre offering which comes with two car spaces and storage.
It was purpose-fitted for the original buyer and includes two integrated double-door fridges.
The developers say they have dropped the price on the penthouse to "meet the market".
The newly completed building at 1A Couson Avenue offers 175 apartments on a site bought for $32.55 million in 2015.
Fairfax Media reported its Chinese buyer, facilitated by beleaguered Chinese-based agent Ausin, failed to settle its purchase.
The company's China business collapse resulted in 130 failed residential property settlements in Australia.
More than 100 Chinese property investors lost millions of dollars in deposits and payments for off-the-plan houses and apartments in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. 
Ausin's China business has been accused of misappropriating tens of millions of dollars in settlement and deposits.
The Chinese investors were advised that the Ausin properties seemed like a great wealth management product, which guaranteed a five-year lease and 10% return.
The investors turned to Ausin because the agency had found a way to circumvent China's capital outflow restrictions which restrict them from sending more than the equivalent of US$50,000 out of the country.
They said they would pay Ausin in yuan, and it would find its way to Australia.
They estimate the entire amount lost by property investors through Ausin is 358 million yuan.
The Chinese investors are banding together to press their claims for more than $60 million.
The group is led by Chinese businessman Qu Haotian, who estimates that as many as 300 Chinese families may have been harmed by the collapse of Shenzhen Ausin Investment Consulting Group in August.
Qu asked The Australian to disguise his real name for fear of reprisals.
They are planning legal action against Ausin Group's Australian operation, which is still solvent.
The Chinese-based company, which was run by businessman Jin Tianyou, had a marketing agreement with the Australian company to use its name and refer prospective clients from China.
ASIC records show Jin was also a director of Ausin Australia from 2009 until February.
The Ausin Group in Australia has cut its ties with the Chinese company.
It has issued a statement saying it is “saddened by recent allegations of fund misappropriation in China against its Chinese marketing partner” and is working with NSW police on the issue.
Qu estimates the total amount lost could be $60 million.
Ausin Group (Australia), in a statement, said it had sold more than 8000 properties over the 10 years of its marketing agreement with the company in China.
It said payments made directly to Jin were in breach of his company’s agreement with Ausin Australia.
</body></html>

Ausin buyer defaults on One A Erskineville penthouse

<html><body>
GUEST OBSERVATION
A commonly held view is that changing planning rules could significantly increase housing supply and hence make housing more affordable. Recent commentary, <a href="https://theconversation.com/to-make-housing-more-affordable-this-is-what-state-governments-need-to-do-105050" target="_blank">including here</a>, repeats this. It’s a view that glosses over the special features of land, which allow property developers to control housing supply to a significant extent.
To understand what’s going on, we need to look at why land makes the housing market different from any other.
Economic theory and the special features of land
<a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=oACQM7HMDDoC&amp;pg=PA1658&amp;lpg=PA1658&amp;dq=land+is+not+a+homogeneous+product&amp;source=bl&amp;ots=7zrLO8-FDl&amp;sig=ymeg8EJNeO5A2_15zvWF3hir6gQ&amp;hl=en&amp;sa=X&amp;ei=_n4CVbD8HIjr8AXjxgI&amp;ved=0CB0Q6AEwAA#v=onepage&amp;q=land%20is%20not%20a%20homogeneous%20product&amp;f=false" target="_blank">Land has special features</a> that other goods don’t usually have. The most fundamental of these features is fixed location.
What’s more, land does not physically degrade over time. As a result, it doesn’t have to be sold but instead can be withheld from sale without financial cost.
These features are important when considering the application of standard supply-demand theory to housing markets.
Economic theory says increasing the supply of a good will lower the price for a given level of demand. Like a lot of economic theory, this is <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfect_competition" target="_blank">based on simplifying assumptions</a>. The following assumptions are particularly relevant when considering land:
<ul>
<li>the good is homogeneous</li>
<li>all market participants have full information about the market</li>
<li>no participant has an undue influence on the market</li>
<li>there are no barriers for new market participants.</li>
</ul>
However, we know that land is not homogeneous. Location is particularly important.
And property developers generally have much more knowledge of the market than individual buyers, potentially giving developers undue influence.
The capacity of developers to withhold land from sale and the fact that new developers wanting to enter the market face significant barriers – importantly the financial capacity to hold back land when demand and sales are reduced – are also at odds with the assumptions of supply-demand theory.
UK economist <a href="http://evonomics.com/josh-ryan-collins-land-economic-theory/" target="_blank">Josh Ryan-Collins notes</a> that current economic theory does not differentiate between land and capital (such as machinery). This may well be one of the main reasons the special features of land are often overlooked in discussions about housing supply.
Governments don’t control housing supply
<a href="https://www.prosper.org.au/2013/09/03/saul-eslake-50-years-of-housing-failure/" target="_blank">In the past, governments developed more housing directly</a>, but over the past 20-30 years the role of government has been mainly to enable private developers to provide housing.
Governments may release enough land for the expected population, but <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/from-big-land-banks-little-things-grow-20120601-1znb4" target="_blank">private developers decide</a> how much housing is <a href="http://www.parliament.wa.gov.au/parliament%5Ccommit.nsf/%28Report+Lookup+by+Com+ID%29/F4088CA4544382084825793D00061BD2/%24file/30105662.pdf" target="_blank">offered for sale</a> at any time. It’s no secret that, for larger residential estates in particular, <a href="https://www.lmw.com.au/media/1369/gold-coast-residential-land-review-october-2016.pdf" target="_blank">demand dictates the rate at which lots are released</a> to market. This is a logical business strategy, but much of the commentary on housing supply fails to acknowledge this.
In the Gold Coast region, for example, where a relatively small number of larger estates provide most of the new residential land, the <a href="https://statistics.qgso.qld.gov.au/profiles/rlda/pdf/DZ4A2J5N7IOXGDVO39YD9X7VBGEUPH6YKQM08T3EY6W1HMYQUQYMKFWPFI5S0CLS8BXP7Z22FVERJ5L56CGAW3NZ9RS96P67HUQPL1S9LDE3LIVLVM2XG9SI2QYEO89X/rlda-profiles#view=fit&amp;pagemode=bookmarks" target="_blank">median price of vacant residential land has remained remarkably stable</a> since the GFC despite large fluctuations in the number of sales. This suggests something other than the standard supply-demand theory is operating.
As noted above, developers of new estates in outer areas can “drip-feed” the market to keep prices up.
For new apartments in established suburbs, off-the-plan sales allow developers to test the market before building. If interest in the apartments at prices set by the developer is insufficient, the project will not go ahead. Of course, there can still be an <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/news/offtheplan-apartments-face-price-falls-as-market-supply-exceeds-demand/" target="_blank">oversupply of apartments</a> if future demand is overestimated.
Planning rule changes won’t make much difference to supply
Markets for residential land are distorted by three main factors:
<ul>
<li>location is very important</li>
<li>land is a not a homogeneous good</li>
<li>developers can influence supply.</li>
</ul>
This means that changing planning rules is unlikely to make much difference to housing supply or affordability. Housing supply can’t readily be increased without direct government construction. Even then developers will be likely to respond by restricting overall housing supply if they can.
With supply restricted, <a href="https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/first-home-ownership/submissions/sub199/sub199.pdf" target="_blank">price is significantly influenced by demand factors</a>. These include finance interest rates, tax concessions and buyers’ expectations of future capital gains.
Therefore, policy that focuses on <a href="https://theconversation.com/tax-on-unearned-gains-is-the-missing-piece-of-the-affordable-housing-puzzle-77010" target="_blank">managing demand factors</a> offers much more hope of improving housing affordability than do changes to planning rules.
Brian Feeney, Adjunct Fellow, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Queensland
This article is republished from <a href="http://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/land-makes-the-housing-market-different-so-changing-planning-rules-wont-fix-affordability-107182" target="_blank">original article</a>.
</body></html>

Land makes the housing market different, so changing planning rules won’t fix affordability

<html><body>
Auction activity across the combined capital cities is expected to remain relatively steady week-on-week, with a total of 2,610 homes scheduled for auction this week, down only slightly on last week when 2,701 auctions took place.
<img src="https://www.urban.com.au/images/2018/11/29/Auctions%20this%20week%20Nov%2029.JPG" alt="">
Melbourne will see a higher volume of auctions take place this week, with volumes increasing by 14.5 per cent on last week.
There are 1,296 homes scheduled for auction across the city, up on last week when 1,132 auctions were held.
There are fewer auctions scheduled this week in Sydney, with 904 homes scheduled to go under the hammer, after last week saw over 1,000 homes taken to auction across the city.
Perth and Tasmania are expected to see a higher number of homes auctioned this week, while volumes are down in Adelaide, Brisbane and Canberra
Indicative of the high number of auctions in Glen Waverley is <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-vic-glen+waverley-129760878" target="_blank">12 Brazilia Drive, Glen Waverley</a> (pictured top).
The five bedroom five bathroom home features it's own home theatre and comes with a price guide of $2 - $2.2 million.
Set on 741 square metres, the house last sold in 2011 for $735,100.
<img src="https://www.urban.com.au/images/2018/11/29/Nottingham%201.JPG" alt="">
Another example of the high number of auctions in Glen Waverley is <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-vic-glen+waverley-129500450" target="_blank">50 Nottingham Street, Glen Waverley</a> (pictured above). 
The four bedroom two bathroom home comes with a price guide of $1.75 - $1.85 million.
<div>
<div>Set on 780 square metres, the property last sold for 170,000 in 1998.</div>
<div> </div>
<div><img src="https://www.urban.com.au/images/2018/11/29/Nottingham%202.JPG" alt=""></div>
</div>
A third example of the high auction volumes in Glen Waverley is <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-townhouse-vic-glen+waverley-129750210" target="_blank">74B Nottingham Street, Glen Waverley</a> (pictured above).
The four bedroom two bathroom home features comes with a price guide of $1.2 - $1.3 million.
Set on 312 square metres, the property last sold for $1.03 million in 2014.
</body></html>

Glen Waverley the busiest auction suburb this weekend: CoreLogic

<html><body>
Sydney house prices will remain close to unchanged in the year to December 2019 after falling by about 8% in 2018, according to the latest Domain forecasts.
Domain predicts house prices will grow modestly in 2020.
They believe that house prices will fall by about 12% from their peak of almost $1.2 million in June 2017 to a low point of just above $1 million in mid-2019.
<img src="https://www.urban.com.au/images/2018/11/29/Sydney%20Domain%201.JPG" alt="">
Source: Domain
Sydney unit prices are expected to be more resilient than house prices.
Domain Economist Trent Wiltshire said: "Unit prices are expected to fall by about 3% over the year to December 2018, but then prices are expected to grow modestly over the next two years at about 3-5%.
"Sydney unit prices are predicted to fall by 6% from their peak of $769,000 in June 2017 to their lowest point of about $720,000.
"At this low point, Sydney unit prices will be back at their late-2016 level.
"The NSW government’s stamp duty concessions are also likely to support unit price growth."
<img src="https://www.urban.com.au/images/2018/11/29/Sydney%20Domain%202.JPG" alt="">
Source: Domain 
However, one risk to Sydney unit prices is whether the large pipeline of new unit construction is absorbed.
Given projected strong population growth, Domain is of the opinion that this will not result in city-wide price falls, although some areas with a particularly large amount of new construction may see prices remain weak.
"Tighter lending conditions have weighed heavily on Sydney property prices, particularly for more expensive properties, but we think this is likely to have played out by mid-2019," Wiltshire said. 
Click <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/images/2018/11/30/Domain%20forecasts%201.JPG" target="_blank">here</a> to enlarge.
<img src="https://www.urban.com.au/images/2018/11/30/Domain%20forecasts%201.JPG" alt="">
Click <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/images/2018/11/30/Domain%20forecasts%202.JPG" target="_blank">here</a> to enlarge.
<img src="https://www.urban.com.au/images/2018/11/30/Domain%20forecasts%202.JPG" alt="">
</body></html>

Sydney house prices will drop 12% from peak: Domain

Nature Based Cities (NBC), the not-for-profit organisation focused on improving biodiversity and nature outcomes in urban development, has launched its latest industry design guidelines and accreditation framework, this time targeting precinct-scale residential communities.

The move extends NBC’s influence beyond its initial focus on medium and high-density residential developments. Several projects have already achieved NBC accreditation since the launch of its Medium &amp; High-Density Residential Guidelines in early 2025.

The expansion into masterplanned communities and new residential precincts reflects the growing need for stronger nature-positive benchmarks as Australia’s outer suburban growth corridors continue to expand at pace.

Paul Hameister OAM, NBC Founder and the Executive Chairman of Melbourne developer Hamton who itself leans heavily into nature and biodiversity in its developments, says the&nbsp;nature-first approach to mitigate the effects of climate change has become standard in other parts of the world such as the UK, but Australia is lagging.&nbsp;Australia’s environmentally sustainable design (ESD) rating tools have no minimum mandatory requirements for living landscapes.

“We’ve always wanted to do more, and we know other developers who want to do more, but the ESD rating tools just aren’t there,” Hameister says. “In Australia, you can have a five-green-star rated building that’s concrete and glass with not a blade of grass. 
 
“The focus is on reducing emissions, which is laudable, but there hasn’t been enough attention paid to protecting and re-establishing nature. We need both for the health of the environment and for communities.”

He says that having now&nbsp;made good progress in supporting developers of medium and high-density residential projects, NBC is now looking to bolster better nature-based decision-making and recognise developers of greenfield projects in the outer ring and large inner-ring brownfield precincts, who want to champion nature and living landscape as a defining feature.

Since 2022, the not-for-profit has sought to remove the roadblocks preventing developers from incorporating nature and living landscapes into their projects, shifting the conversation from the reduction of emissions and grey infrastructure, toward recognising nature as an essential infrastructure.

The New Communities Design Guidelines and Scorecard arm developers with the tools needed to deliver a nature positive outcome for their new communities. Intended to be adopted at the outset of the planning process, the guidelines are designed to help create communities that are cooler, healthier and more resilient while also enhancing social wellbeing and long-term economic value.&nbsp;

New Communities developers seeking accreditation will be independently assessed across a range of key criteria including ecology, tree canopy, biodiversity, and walkability. Once the masterplan is complete and submitted for approval, the scorecard is formalised based on proposed outcomes. Projects that meet the NBC criteria will receive either Commended or Exemplary accreditation outcomes, creating a clear benchmark for nature-positive new communities in Australia.&nbsp;

Janis Fischer, Director at Tract and NBC Advisory Council member, said the development of new communities in our suburbs can have a substantial impact on nature and biodiversity.

"By incorporating nature-based design principles at the inception of a project, developers and their design teams can achieve nature positive outcomes that are good for both people and the planet.’’&nbsp;

NBC accredited New Community projects will gain access to NBC branding and marketing tools to help communicate their nature-based credentials to purchasers and the broader market.&nbsp;

Joel Robinson

Nature Based Cities: A new Australian benchmark for developing nature-positive new communities

Apartment buildings are increasingly being designed around how people actually live day to day, not just how they want a building to look.

For buyers, that shift is showing up in practical inclusions that respond to changing habits. Work-from-home spaces, EV charging, wellness amenities, secure bike storage and parcel management are becoming part of the broader apartment conversation, reflecting a move toward buildings that reduce friction in everyday life.

Online shopping has become one of the clearest examples of that change.

Australians spent a record $82.6 billion online in 2025, with nearly one in four retail dollars now spent online. That has made parcel delivery a regular part of apartment living, rather than an occasional inconvenience.

For apartment residents, however, the delivery process can be less straightforward than it is for detached homes. Parcels may be left in lobbies, redirected to Post Offices, missed entirely, or placed under the responsibility of building managers and concierge teams.

That is why secure parcel infrastructure is increasingly being considered alongside more familiar apartment amenities.

<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-VjjLwoViX0?si=A3k7ws9NX35Uac7_" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>

Australia Post Parcel Lockers offer one way to address the issue. When a parcel arrives, residents receive a notification through the AusPost app or SMS, then collect it using a QR code or one-time PIN. The parcel is kept secure, accessible and removed from common areas.

The broader Parcel Locker network now includes more than 1,500 locations across Australia, positioned at Post Offices, shopping centres, supermarkets, transport hubs and other accessible locations.

For new apartment projects, the relevance is clear. A building’s amenity offering is no longer only about lifestyle spaces, but also about convenience, security and functionality.

As buyer expectations evolve, secure parcel delivery is becoming part of the same design conversation as flexible working, sustainable transport and resident wellbeing.

It is one less thing for residents to worry about, and another example of apartment design adapting to the way Australians now live.

Apartment design is adapting to the way Australians shop

While school holidays and trips to Europe tend to define the winter property market, there's been no cold snap at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-walden-north-sydney-177-walker-street-north-sydney-nsw-2060">The Walden</a> in North Sydney.

Developer-builder&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/aland">ALAND</a> sold more than $35 million worth of apartments throughout June, including a $6.8 million apartment that now ranks among the highest apartment sales ever recorded in North Sydney.

SRM Residential agent Ben Stewart said buyer demand throughout June reflected a mix of improving market confidence and longer-term thinking from owner-occupiers.

"We're seeing strong demand from owner-occupiers who are taking a longer-term view," Stewart said.

"Many recognise the opportunity to secure an apartment in an iconic building and premium location while values remain attractive. They may initially lease the property, but the intention is to eventually move in themselves, rather than purchasing purely as an investment."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134323 project_image_fid=367129]

Located at 177 Walker Street, The Walden will deliver 161 one, two, three and four-bedroom residences across a 30-storey tower designed by Rothelowman. Every apartment occupies a corner position, maximising natural light, cross ventilation and views across Sydney Harbour, the Opera House, Sydney Heads and the northern districts.

Rather than a traditional balcony, the residences feature winter gardens that seamlessly extend the open plan living areas, creating versatile spaces for relaxing or entertaining throughout the year. Floor-to-ceiling glazing draws in natural light while showcasing sweeping views from the building's elevated Walker Street position.

Every apartment features high-end Calacatta marble, bespoke joinery, and fully integrated appliances.

The larger residences have been planned with distinct entertaining and private zones, with many master suites positioned on corners to capture natural light and harbour views. Walk-in dressing rooms, freestanding baths and refined stone finishes reinforce the house-like feel that has resonated with downsizers and owner-occupiers.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134323 project_image_fid=6393]

Rothelowman Principal Ben Pomroy said the project was designed to make the most of its unique position overlooking the harbour.

"The Walden is a celebration of all things beautiful, curated for those who expect nothing less than exceptional," Pomroy says.

"Meticulously designed entertaining spaces and light-filled living areas that capitalise on capturing the natural beauty of Sydney's iconic harbour."

Residents will also have exclusive access to The Pavilion, a dedicated amenity building featuring a rooftop pool, wellness studio, gymnasium, sauna, concierge service, residents' lounge, private dining spaces and work-from-home facilities.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134323 project_image_fid=6402]

The project marks ALAND's first major luxury apartment development in Sydney's inner-city market after more than two decades delivering residential communities across Greater Sydney.

Founder and CEO Andrew Hrsto previously said the rarity of the Walker Street site made it an opportunity the company could not overlook.

"This is a rare opportunity to bring a truly exceptional project to life in one of Sydney's most iconic locations, and to showcase our craftsmanship and design expertise at a world-class level," Hrsto said.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134323 project_image_fid=6383]

The Walden has been introduced to the market at a time when demand for living in North Sydney is at an all-time high. Billions of dollars have been invested in infrastructure, including the recently opened Victoria Cross Metro station, located just 300 metres from The Walden, providing residents with direct access to the Sydney CBD in just minutes.

Private investment has also transformed the area through the arrival of new retail and dining destinations, elevating the lifestyle offering in what was once considered primarily a commercial precinct rather than an aspirational residential address.

The Walden is currently under construction and is scheduled for completion in 2028.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=134323]

ALAND records $35 million in sales in North Sydney as The Walden bucks quiet winter selling season

The long-awaited redevelopment of the former Eastlakes Shopping Centre site has reached a major milestone, with Conquest's plans for a new mixed-use precinct officially placed on public exhibition.

The State Significant Development Application would transform the 1.7-hectare site at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/19a-evans-avenue-eastlakes-nsw-2018">19A Evans Avenue</a> into one of Sydney's largest urban renewal projects, delivering 736 apartments above a new shopping centre anchored by Woolworths, alongside specialty retail, dining, commercial space and new public open spaces.

The public exhibition marks the next chapter for the project after <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/conquest">Conquest</a> acquired the stalled Stage Two development from Crown Group, who completed the first stage across the road prior to their voluntary liquidation.

<img alt="First look: Conquest unveils plans for 736-home Eastlakes Shopping Centre redevelopment" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="5fca22c5-d1ed-4e2c-8801-03f7df1eafc8" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/eastland%20podium.png?VersionId=uomwr41nF8CmLUZRDcu3mHQechlbxucS" />

&nbsp;

Designed by DKO Architecture, the proposal comprises four residential buildings ranging from 14 to 18 storeys above a two-level retail podium. The development would deliver 736 apartments, including 74 affordable homes, 215 Build-to-Rent apartments and 521 market residences. Provision has also been made for dual-key apartments, which could increase the total number of dwellings to 877.

At ground level, the shopping centre has been designed as the suburb's new meeting place, anchored by a full-line Woolworths and complemented by a curated mix of fresh food retailers, cafés, restaurants, health services and everyday convenience shopping. Generous pedestrian links and landscaped public spaces will connect the retail precinct through to Jack Mundey Reserve, creating a more walkable and connected neighbourhood.

Conquest CEO Michael Akkawi said the redevelopment was about far more than replacing a shopping centre.

"Eastlakes has been overlooked for too long, and this is the community’s moment. We are building a shopping centre and homes, a genuine heart for the suburb, and we genuinely want locals to help shape it."

"We enrich communities through the creation of homes, places, and experiences designed for life, built to last, and owner for generations. That starts with listening, so we warmly encourage everyone with a connection to Eastlakes to view the plans and share their thoughts."

<img alt="First look: Conquest unveils plans for 736-home Eastlakes Shopping Centre redevelopment" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="22f6fb20-54fb-4bd7-8a92-48fafdd00608" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/eastland.png?VersionId=cugp7s9hrMHGJJdYzkeAkrFoQgnF4GXf" />

DKO said the design had been shaped by the site's landscape setting and surrounding open space.

"Our vision for the site embraces its unique Bidjigal identity by blending the residential living with generous landscaping and a material palette inspired by the Bidjigal locality, and celebrating the panoramic views to Botany Bay and the wetlands reserves."

"Taking cues from Country, we seek to harmonise built form with the landscape and lightly touch the earth. By reconnecting, retaining and regenerating existing ecology, and weaving in natural elements, we can deepen our connection to Country."

The landscape strategy extends across the podium and rooftops, incorporating communal gardens, children's play areas, lawns, community gardens, family gathering spaces and extensive tree planting. New landscaped links will also strengthen the connection between the precinct and Jack Mundey Reserve, while publicly accessible open spaces have been integrated throughout the development.

The proposal builds on Conquest's broader placemaking strategy for the site. Through an ongoing partnership, local artist Joe Rashbrook has been appointed Urban Art Curator, working alongside young residents to transform the project's site hoardings into a public art gallery that allows the community to engage with the redevelopment before construction is complete.

Conquest has rapidly expanded its development pipeline since acquiring the Eastlakes site, with more than $6 billion worth of mixed-use projects now in planning across Sydney, including Stanmore, Castlecrag and Waterloo.

Conquest CEO Michael Akkawi said the redevelopment was about far more than replacing a shopping centre.

First look: ‘Far more than replacing a shopping centre’ as Conquest unveils 736-home Eastlakes redevelopment

Abadeen has lodged a State Significant Development Application (SSDA) for one of Mosman's largest apartment developments in recent years, seeking approval to transform the former Honeysuckle Garden and Midas site on Military Road into a 100-apartment mixed-use development.

The SSDA, lodged with investment partner Phoenix Property Investors, proposes around $230 million worth of new housing on the prominent <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/494-516-military-road-mosman-nsw-2088">494-516 Military Road</a> site.

The proposal comes as Mosman Council continues to progress its recently endorsed Masterplan, which identifies the precinct for increased housing density while maintaining the suburb's established character.

Designed by DKO Architecture, the development would comprise 100 apartments above ground-floor retail, with a rooftop wellness precinct including a gym, sauna, entertaining areas and landscaped communal spaces.

Rather than pushing to the full 12-storey height identified in Council's Masterplan, the proposal ranges between five and nine storeys, stepping down towards Hale Road. A tenth level would accommodate resident amenities rather than additional apartments.

The project has been designed to appeal to a broad range of buyers, from first home buyers and young professionals through to families and local downsizers looking to remain on the Lower North Shore.

<img alt="Mosman" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="5dada03f-5b4c-43ba-ba62-2868add31440" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-07-27%20at%209.57.55%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=7LBy0B.Jo8_iWAFJsClcV7Q3UnXrv49r" />

Abadeen Executive Chairman Justin Brown said the apartments had been designed as genuine long-term homes rather than investor-focused stock.

"The apartments have been designed as genuine long-term homes, with efficient floorplans that maximise usable living areas, generous storage, natural light and strong connections between indoor and outdoor spaces," Brown says."

"We've focused on creating homes for a broad range of buyers, from first home buyers and growing families through to downsizers who want to remain in Mosman."

The rooftop wellness offering forms a key part of the proposal, with residents set to have access to a gym, sauna, outdoor entertaining spaces, communal dining areas, landscaped gardens and a multi-use recreation court overlooking Sydney Harbour.

<img alt="Mosman" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="d37c2d6b-583a-4a0f-b7a9-9f46b893d2f4" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-07-27%20at%209.58.06%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=FPoa5FCm2RtzjhAh2w5FTWJbV6GHfY8D" />

DKO drew heavily on the site's natural and cultural history, undertaking a Connecting with Country process with local Aboriginal Elders to inform the architectural and landscape design.

Senior Associate Matthew Ritchard said the design sought to create a building that responded to both the site's landscape and its cultural significance.

"The architectural language of the project is a deep expression of Connecting with Country, where the materiality and colour palette serve as a bridge between the site's geological history and its future as a residential sanctuary."

The proposal also retains the site's established blue gum tree as the centrepiece of the communal landscaped gardens, while introducing activated retail fronting Military Road to strengthen the connection between Mosman and Cremorne villages.

If approved, the project would deliver 100 new homes within walking distance of shops, public transport, schools and local amenities, adding to the limited pipeline of new apartments on the Lower North Shore.

<h2>Project Snapshot</h2>

Project: Honeysuckle Garden Redevelopment

Address: 494-516 Military Road, Mosman

Developer: Abadeen and Phoenix Property Investors

Architect: DKO Architecture

Lead Architect: Matthew Ritchard

Value: $230 million

Residences: 100 apartments

Key features:

<ul>
	<li>
	Ground-floor retail
	</li>
	<li>
	Rooftop wellness precinct
	</li>
	<li>
	Gym and sauna
	</li>
	<li>
	Outdoor entertaining and BBQ areas
	</li>
	<li>
	Landscaped communal gardens
	</li>
	<li>
	Multi-use recreation court
	</li>
	<li>
	Retained mature blue gum tree
	</li>
	<li>
	Connecting with Country design process
	</li>
	<li>
	Harbour, CBD and Balmoral views from upper-level apartments
	</li>
</ul>

Abadeen Executive Chairman Justin Brown said the apartments had been designed as genuine long-term homes rather than investor-focused stock

Staff reporter

Editor's Picks

Have something to contribute?

Developments

New apartments

New townhouses

News