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GUEST OBSERVATION
Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr famously observed in 1927 that “taxes are what we pay for civilised society, <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/http://www.worldlii.org/us/cases/federal/USSC/1927/178">including the chance to insure</a>”.
Whilst tax as a price for civilised society is well understood, less appreciated is the second part of his observation – that tax provides a chance to insure against a crisis.
As nations emerge from the COVID-19 crisis with policies unthinkable just six months ago, and associated debts previously unimaginable, it is becoming clear that while some were well insured and able to respond rapidly, most were underinsured, exposing their civilisations to previously unthinkable risks.
In many ways Australia is an exemplar in its use of taxation to provide the “chance to insure”. It funds Medicare; the Pharmaceuticals Benefit Scheme; the Higher Education Loan Program; the Superannuation Guarantee Charge and contingency-based welfare payments.
COVID has exposed the weakness in our system
COVID-19 has exposed how underinsured Australia is in other ways. It will have to borrow heavily to protect the economy, but for many years won’t be able to impose the extra taxes that will be needed to pay down the debt.
Introducing new taxes or increasing existing tax rates would threaten what will be a fragile recovery.
The only realistic option is to review what Australia gives away, such as <a href="https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-01/complete_tbvs_web.pdf">tax concessions,</a> and what it fails to collect, as measured by the so-called <a href="https://www.ato.gov.au/About-ATO/Research-and-statistics/In-detail/Tax-gap/Australian-tax-gaps-overview/">tax gap</a>.
The tax gap is the difference between the amount the Tax Office collects and what we would have collected if every taxpayer was fully compliant with tax law.
In 2016-17, the Commonwealth raised <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/5506.0">A$389 billion</a> in taxes, intentionally gave away an estimated <a href="https://treasury.gov.au/publication/p2019-357183">$166 billion</a> and unintentionally failed to collect a further <a href="https://www.ato.gov.au/About-ATO/Research-and-statistics/In-detail/Tax-gap/Australian-tax-gaps-overview/?anchor=Summaryfindings#Summaryfindings">$30-35 billion</a> that the Tax Office knows of.
Mapping out a pathway to winding back government debt and funding programs to better insure our civilised society has to begin with ensuring those who are not currently carrying their fair share of the legislated tax burden do so through reforms to reduce non-compliance.
Many of us aren’t paying the tax we should
The Tax Office conservatively estimates that non-compliance for the taxes it has so far examined is equivalent to more than <a href="https://www.ato.gov.au/About-ATO/Research-and-statistics/In-detail/Tax-gap/Australian-tax-gaps-overview/?anchor=Summaryfindings#Summaryfindings">8%</a> of the tax revenue it collected in 2015-16.
The Treasury also estimates that tax concessions in 2017-18 were equivalent to <a href="https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-01/complete_tbvs_web.pdf">41%</a> of Commonwealth government revenue, or more than 9% of GDP (although it cautions against adding estimates together as reducing one concession can affect the use of others).
Given the scale of the Commonwealth response to COVID-19, the government will need additional tax revenues of around 2.5% of GDP (about $50 billion) for some years.
This should not prove insurmountable. In comparison with other advanced economies, Australia is a relative low taxer with a total tax burden of 28.6% of GDP in 2017-18, well below the OECD average of about 34.5%.
There’s revenue going begging
The tax gap estimates show billions can be raised from integrity measures such as addressing overclaimed work-related expenses ($3 billion), unreported cash wages ($1 billion) unreported rental property net income ($2 billion) and unreported business income ($2-3 billion).
There’s much more available from reducing tax concessions, removing the personal tax-free threshold, winding back retirement savings concessions, and broadening the goods and service tax (especially from fully taxing the food that is already partially taxed).
Lower income groups affected by the changes should be compensated by improved targeting of expenditure programs.
Right now we’ve a near-universal welfare system and a targeted tax system.
The way out of our present problems is to make the tax system more universal and the welfare system more targeted.
New taxes and higher rates should be resisted, especially if made more palatable by more concessions.
What we are proposing would not only result in a tax system that was simpler and harder to escape – but one that was capable of funding the insurance we will need to preserve our society into the future
There’s no reason to think there won’t be another pandemic exposing the weaknesses in our tax system that remain.<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/137232/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;">
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/neil-warren-278638">Neil Warren</a>, Emeritus Professor of Taxation, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/unsw-1414">UNSW</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/richard-highfield-1049892">Richard Highfield</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/unsw-1414">UNSW</a>
This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/post-coronavirus-well-need-a-working-tax-system-not-more-taxes-and-not-higher-rates-137232">original article</a>.
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j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

Post-coronavirus, we'll need a working tax system, not more taxes and higher rates

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Emerging integrated property group Top Spring Australia has announced their latest project in the company’s Sydney portfolio, with the submission of a development application for a site in Elizabeth Bay.
Located at <a href="https://www.commercialrealestate.com.au/property/11-13-greenknowe-avenue-elizabeth-bay-nsw-2011-2015655477" target="_blank">11-13 Greenknowe Avenue, Elizabeth Bay</a>, the disused 1,347 sqm site has most recently been occupied by SHMH Group Australia and is the former headquarters of the NSW Country Women's Association.
SHMH previously planned to develop the property themselves.
Top Spring Australia's plans for the site include the construction of a six-storey residential development comprising 30 luxury one, two and three-bedroom residences, above a single level of basement car parking accommodating 31 vehicles.
Sydney Ma, Director and General Manager of Top Spring Australia said, “as property in this suburb is traditionally very tightly-held, with very little new stock coming to market, we expect there to be significant interest in this project.”
With multiple smart and adaptable living spaces, including outdoor communal areas, Top Spring Australia hopes buyers will recognise the proposed residences. 
The project’s landscape architects Taylor Brammer have also curated a series of landscaped elements intended as an urban oasis, with green walls and privacy screening, plus an outdoor entertaining terrace for residents with water features, a BBQ and a kitchenette, and a sensory garden with productive garden beds and in-built work pods.
A more detailed vision of the project will be released in the coming months, with expected completion by 2023.
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Top Spring Australia unveil Greenknowe Avenue, Elizabeth Bay CWA redevelopment proposal

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Only two out of the 42 economists who participated in Finder’s RBA Cash Rate Survey are expecting the RBA to cut the cash rate on Tuesday.
Alison Booth of ANU and Nicholas Frappell of ABC Bullion both expect the cash rate to hit 0% this week due to the state of the economy.
“With effective cash rates at around 0.15%, another reduction may just formalise the current effective rate scenario,” Frappell said.
As for when the cash rate will next move, experts were flummoxed.
Twenty-one respondents indicated an eventual rise, but could not point to any particular time in the next three years.
Interestingly, ten other economists selected both a potential rise and cut in the future indicating that the next actions of the RBA really do remain uncertain.
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95% of experts say cash rate will hold at 0.25%: Finder.com.au

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Australia is projected to lose $25 billion in foreign spending as COVID-19 cripples tourism from outside of Australia, according to Finder.com.au.
In this month’s Finder RBA Cash Rate Survey™ – the largest of its kind in Australia – 42 experts and economists weighed in on future cash rate moves and other issues related to the state of the Australian economy. 
The vast majority of experts (87%, 27/31) who weighed in on tourism, expect Australia’s borders to remain closed for the rest of the year, with only four respondents (13%, 4/31) indicating international travel restrictions would be lifted in 2020.
<img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ZdyacFGEAxiw86iiqygX2ck5EbsLNId8PHvfw-NrEyS91Ab3Gf3X9wctdwrMHIzmZ6YDNjhmgM5iySPAicizgnjLEcYqDMIoJuqVyEqlt6O5gET_Hx9U21Zl70bwtEdFrvI1Jzud" width="619" height="484" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; font: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; color: inherit; outline: none;" data-imagetype="External">
In total, 13 believe the border will fully reopen in the first 6 months of 2021, while 12 think it will happen later in the year.
Graham Cooke, insights manager at Finder said there is a risk that the volume of international travellers won’t return for many years. 
"Continuing restrictions are projected to result in millions of fewer tourists into 2021 and with it, billions in foregone spending.
“This is a problem for all corners of Australia, with 44 cents of every tourism dollar spent in regional destinations,” Cooke said.
Tourism directly employs 666,000 Australians making up 5% of Australia’s workforce, according to Tourism Australia.
Australia shut its borders to non-residents amid the coronavirus pandemic on March 20.
International tourists delivered $45.4 billion to the economy last year, Tourism Research Australia figures show. 
Of that, $17.2 billion was spent by holidaymakers and $7.6 billion was spent by tourists visiting friends and relatives. Just over $13.3 billion was on education from visitors on a student visa. 
Foreigners typically spend around $5,211 on Australian travel and tourism per trip. 
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Australia to lose $25 billion as COVID-19 cripples foreign spending: Finder.com.au

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The latest figures from the Essential Services Commission (ESC) reveal that more than 1,000 requests have been made to disconnect Victorians from electricity for not paying their bills since late March this year.
According to the Consumer Action Law Centre, by continuing to request for people’s power to be shut off, energy retailers are failing to do their part in keeping Victorians safe during the Covid-19 crisis.
The disconnection requests are being made despite energy retailers promising there would be no disconnections for people receiving hardship assistance if they are unable to afford their energy bills.
More than 65 community organisations and service providers have called on federal and state governments, and energy retailers to implement a proactive moratorium on all disconnections during the Covid-19 health crisis. This should include people having difficulty paying their bills.
Only two energy retailers have ruled out disconnections entirely: the state-owned Ergon Energy (Queensland) and Aurora Energy (Tasmania), with some electricity networks  attempting to block requests from energy retailers to disconnect households who have been unable to pay their bills. It is unclear if gas networks are doing the same.
"Energy retailers have existing financial hardship policies in place, but these put the onus on the households to keep in contact with their retailer. People can easily fall through the gaps when they are required to navigate large call centres to seek assistance – we’re hearing of people spending hours on the phone to contact basic utilities," Senior Policy Officer with Consumer Action Law Centre Jake Lilley says.
“Many people don’t even realise their energy retailer is required to help them, especially where energy retailers fail to reach out and discuss the assistance that’s available. Often, a person’s energy bill might not be top of mind when they’re worrying about a sick family member or putting food on the table. Energy retailers need to do what’s right for the community.”
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Requests to disconnect Victorians for unpaid electricity bill during Covid-19 crisis

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We have seen an unprecedented rise in the number of people working from home as directed by governments and employers around the world to help stop the spread of COVID-19.
If, as some expect, <a href="https://amp-theguardian-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/amp.theguardian.com/technology/2020/mar/13/covid-19-could-cause-permanent-shift-towards-home-working" target="_blank">people are likely to work from home more often</a> after the pandemic, what will this mean for infrastructure planning? Will cities still need all the multibillion-dollar road, public transport, telecommunications and energy projects, including some already in the pipeline?
World’s largest work-from-home experiment
Remote working was <a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/blog/post/flexjobs-gwa-report-remote-growth/" target="_blank">steadily on the rise</a> well before COVID-19. But the pandemic suddenly escalated the trend into the “<a href="https://time.com/5776660/coronavirus-work-from-home/" target="_blank">world’s largest work-from-home experiment</a>”. Many people who have had to embrace remote working during the pandemic might not want to return to the office every day once restrictions are lifted.
They might have found some work tasks are actually easier to do at home. Or they (and their employers) might have discovered things that weren’t thought possible to do from home are possible. They might then question why they had to go into the workplace so often in the first place.
But what impact will this have on our cities? After all, many aspects of our cities were designed with commuting, not working from home, in mind.
Stress test for NBN and energy networks
From a telecommunications perspective, the huge increase in people working from home challenges the ways in which our existing networks were designed.
<a href="https://www.aussiebroadband.com.au/blog/aussie-broadband-reveals-bandwidth-usage-increases-by-25/" target="_blank">Data from Aussie Broadband</a> show evening peak broadband use has increased 25 per cent during the shutdown. Additional daytime increases are expected due to home schooling with term 2 starting.
<a href="https://www.communications.gov.au/publications/demand-fixed-line-broadband-australia" target="_blank">Research by the then federal Department of Communications</a> in 2018 estimated the average Australian household would need a maximum download speed of 49Mbps during peak-use times by 2026. If more people work from home after COVID-19, the size and times of peak use might need to be recalculated.
Another factor not modelled by the government research was the potential impact of an increase in uploads. This is a typical requirement for people working from home, as they now send large files via their suburban home networks, rather than their office networks in the city.
<a href="https://octopus.energy/blog/domestic-energy-usage-patterns-during-social-distancing/" target="_blank">Recent research</a> by Octopus Energy in the UK has found domestic energy use patterns have also changed since COVID-19. With more people working from home, domestic energy use in the middle of the day is noticeably higher. Some 30 per cent of customers use an average of 1.5kWh more electricity between 9am and 5pm.
Conversely, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/04/08/upshot/electricity-usage-predict-coronavirus-recession" target="_blank">data</a> from the US show electricity use in city centres and industrial areas has declined over the same period.
Less commuting means less congestion
Closer to home, <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/how-coronavirus-turned-peak-hour-into-a-sunday-morning-drive-20200402-p54gem" target="_blank">new data</a> from HERE Technologies illustrate just how much traffic congestion has eased.
Thursday afternoons from 5-5.15pm are normally the worst time of the week for traffic congestion in Melbourne. Last week the city’s roads recorded the sort of free-flowing traffic usually seen at 9.30am on a Sunday. Just 1.8 per cent of Melbourne’s major roads were congested, a fraction of the usual 19.8 per cent at that time.
All of Australia’s major cities are experiencing similar reductions. Transurban has reported traffic is down 43 per cent on the Melbourne airport toll road, 29 per cent on its Sydney roads and 27 per cent in Queensland.
Passengers are also staying away from public transport in droves. For example, South Australian government <a href="https://indaily.com.au/news/2020/03/30/the-overland-in-limbo-public-transport-numbers-crash/">statistics</a> for Adelaide show passenger numbers have slumped by 69 per cent for buses, by 74 per cent for trains and by 77 per cent for trams, compared with this time last year.
What does this mean for infrastructure planning?
With these trends in mind, future investment in roads, public transport, energy and telecommunications will need to consider the likelihood of more people working from home.
Prior to COVID-19, <a href="https://theconversation.com/amp/flexible-working-the-neglected-congestion-busting-solution-for-our-cities-122130" target="_blank">Melbourne research</a> found 64 per cent of city workers regularly worked from home, but usually only one day a week, even though 50 per cent of their work could be done anywhere. While the changes we are now seeing are a result of extreme circumstances, it is not inconceivable that, on average, everybody could continue to work from home one extra day per week after the pandemic. Even this would have significant implications for long-term urban planning.
The most recent <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by%20Subject/2071.0.55.001%7E2016%7EMain%20Features%7EFeature%20Article:%20Journey%20to%20Work%20in%20Australia%7E40" target="_blank">Australian Census data</a> show 9.2 million people typically commute to work each day. If people worked from home an average of one extra day per week, this would take 1.8 million commuters off the roads and public transport each day.
Many road and public transport projects will be based on forecasts of continuing increases in commuter numbers. If, instead, people work from home more often, this could call into question the need for those projects.
Areas outside city centres would also require more attention, as working from home creates a need for more evenly distributed networks of services for the likes of energy and telecommunications. Interestingly, such a trend could support long-term decentralisation plans, like those outlined in Melbourne’s Metropolitan Planning Strategy. And if such change encourages more people to live away from the big cities, it also could help to make housing more affordable.
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/john-l-hopkins-255434" target="_blank">John L Hopkins</a>, Innovation Fellow, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/swinburne-university-of-technology-767" target="_blank">Swinburne University of Technology</a>
This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/if-more-of-us-work-from-home-after-coronavirus-well-need-to-rethink-city-planning-136261" target="_blank">original article</a>.
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If more of us work from home after coronavirus we'll need to rethink city planning

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GUEST OBSERVATION
First the drought, then bushfires and then flash floods: a chain of extreme events hit Australia hard in recent months. The coronavirus pandemic has only temporarily shifted our attention towards a new emergency, adding yet another risk.
We knew from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that the risk of extreme events was rising. What we perhaps didn’t realise was the high probability of different extreme events hitting one after the other in the same regions. Especially in the fringes of Australian cities, residents are facing new levels of environmental risk, especially from bushfires and floods.
But this cycle of devastation is not inevitable if we understand the connections between events and do something about them.
Measures to slow climate change are in the hands of policymakers. But, at the adaptation level, we can still do many things to reduce the impacts of extreme events on our cities.
We can start by increasing our capacity to see these phenomena as one problem to be tackled locally, rather than distinct problems to be addressed centrally. Solutions should be holistic, community-centred and focused on people’s practices and shared responsibilities.
Respond to emergency
We can draw lessons from humanitarian responses to large disasters, including both national and international cases. A recent review of disaster responses in urban areas found several factors are critical for more successful recovery.
One is to prioritise the needs of people themselves. This requires genuine, collaborative engagement. People who have been through a bushfire or flood are not “helpless victims”. They are survivors who need to be supported and listened to, not dictated to, in terms of what they may or may not need.
Another lesson is to link recovery efforts, rather than have individual agencies provide services separately. For instance, an organisation focusing on housing recovery needs to work closely with organisations that are providing water or sanitation. A coordinated approach is more efficient, less wearying on those needing help, and better reflects the interconnected reality of everyday life.
In the aid world this is known as an “area-based” approach. It prioritises efforts that are driven by people demand rather than by the supply available.
A third lesson is give people money, not goods. Money allows people to decide what they really need, rather than rely on the assumptions of others.
As the bushfires have shown, donations of secondhand goods and clothes often turn into piles of unwanted goods. Disposal then becomes a problem in its own right.
Combining local knowledge and engagement
Planning approaches in outer urban areas should be realigned with our current understanding of bushfire and flood risk. This situation is challenging planners to engage with residents in new ways to ensure local needs are met, especially in relation to disaster resilience.
In areas of high bushfire risk, planning needs to connect equally with the full range of locals. Landscape and biodiversity experts, including Indigenous land managers, and emergency managers should work in association with planning processes that welcome input from residents. This approach is highly likely to reduce risks.
Planners have a vital job to create platforms that enable the interplay of ideas, local values and traditional knowledge. Authentic engagement can increase residents’ awareness of environmental hazards. It can also pave the way for specific actions by authorities to reduce risks, such as those undertaken by Country Fire Service community engagement units in South Australia.
Managing water to build bushfire resilience Regenerating ecosystems by responding to flood risk can be crucial to increase urban and peri-urban resilience while reducing future drought and bushfire impacts.
Research on flood management suggests rainwater must be always seen as a resource, even in the case of extreme events. Sustainable water management through harvesting, retention and reuse can have long-term positive effects in regenerating micro-climates. It is at the base of any action aimed at comprehensively increasing resilience.
In this sense, approaches based on decentralised systems are more effective at countering the risks of drought, fire and flood locally. They consist of small-scale nature-based solutions able to absorb and retain water to reduce flooding. Distributed off-grid systems support water harvesting in rainy seasons and prevent fires during drought by maintaining soil moisture.
Decentralisation also creates opportunities for innovation in the management of urban ecosystems, with responsibility shared among many. Mobile technologies can help communities play an active role in minimising flood impacts at the small scale. Information platforms can also help raise awareness of the links between risks and actions and lead to practical solutions that are within everybody’s reach.
Tailor responses to people and ecosystems Disrupted ecosystems can make the local impacts of drought, fire and flood worse, but can also play a role in global failures, such as the recent pandemic. It is urgent to define and implement mechanisms to reverse this trend.
Lessons from disaster responses point towards the need to tailor solutions to community needs and local environmental conditions. A few key strategies are emerging:
1. foster networks and coordinated approaches that operate across silos
2. support local and traditional landscape knowledge
3. use information platforms to help people work together to manage risks
4/ manage water locally with the support of populations to prevent drought and bushfire.
Recent environmental crises are showing us the way to finally change direction. Safe cities and landscapes can be achieved only by regenerating urban ecosystems while responding to increasing environmental risks through integrated, people-centred actions.T
Elisa Palazzo, Urbanist and landscape planner - Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Built Environment, UNSW; Annette ˚Bardsley, Researcher, Department of Geography, Environment and Population, University of Adelaide, and David Sanderson, Professor and Inaugural Judith Neilson Chair in Architecture, UNSW
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Drought, fire and flood: how outer urban areas can manage the emergency while reducing future risks

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A two floors of penthouse in South Perth with city and river views has been listed for sale with $7.9 million hopes.
The four bedroom, four bathroom apartment is situated at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-apartment-wa-south+perth-131219458" target="_blank">4/47 South Perth Esplanade</a>. 
The 585sqm apartment comprises 2 kitchen, 2 dining areas and 2 alfresco dining areas, 4 living areas and 2 balconies. 
Other highlights include laundry with private drying area, storage room and four car garage. 
The apartment is fully self contained with its own separate lift access.
Situated within a boutique apartment block of only 4, the penthouse is close to restaurants, retail, public transport and Perth City.
Gary Carlton of Gary Carlton Real Estate has the listing. 
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South Perth penthouse with city views listed 

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Traditional drivers of the western Sydney property market include interest rates, the availability of credit, affordability, employment and infrastructure spending, according to the latest Herron Todd White (HTW) residential report. 
The current COVID-19 epidemic is going to have a negative impact on key drivers, so it will be interesting to see what impact this may have on the property market in the short to medium term, the valuation firm said.
The report notes that first home buyer market has seen a bounce back in recent months with many local agents noting an increase in buyer activity. This can be attributed to continued low interest rates and some confidence returning to the market after a period of decline.
"St Clair is a suburb within the Penrith LGA and is well positioned within the first home buyer’s price range," the valuation firm said. 
With a $662,000 current median dwelling price (source: CoreLogic), this suburb offers buyers detached brick dwellings on slightly larger parcels of land compared to their more easterly neighbouring subdivisions.
A St Clair dwelling at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/sold/property-house-nsw-st+clair-132656006" target="_blank">8 Ontario Avenue</a> (pictured above) recently sold for $642,000 and comprised four bedrooms, one bathroom and a single garage on 568 square metres of land.
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"Upgraders rely on the strength of the first home buyer and entry level market to allow them to secure the right price in order to upgrade," the valuation firm said.
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Traditional areas for upgraders have been new estates with low maintenance blocks such as in Box Hill in the north-west and Leppington in the south- west. 
These new estates allow local upgraders the opportunity to buy a larger modern house with quality inclusions, the report noted. 
A recent sale at Box Hill achieved a price of $1.01 million.
The four-bedroom, two- bathroom home is situated at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/sold/property-house-nsw-box+hill-132775106" target="_blank">47 Longerenong Avenue </a>(pictured above) on a low maintenance 375 square metre block.
Note regarding COVID-19
<div>This edition of Month In Review had its topic defined in late February with submissions from our offices collated through to late March. During this period, shifts in the social and economic landscape due to COVID-19 became increasingly dramatic, as demonstrated by the varied information provided by offices over the course of three weeks.</div>
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<div>This month’s residential theme on baseline property market drivers remains a common thread, and provides an indication of what influences to monitor as the property sector recovers post-crisis.</div>
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Western Sydney first home buyer market sees a bounce back: HTW residential 

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The prestige market, generally considered to be above $5 million in Sydney, has tended to move differently to the wider market, according to the latest Herron Todd White (HTW) residential report. 
The current COVID-19 epidemic is going to have a negative impact on key drivers, so it will be interesting to see what impact this may have on the property market in the short to medium term, the valuation firm said.
"As the wider market bounced back quickly after the GFC on the back of low interest rates and government incentives for first home owners, the prestige market saw significant price declines as share markets and executive bonuses were hit hard.
"On the flip side, the prestige market was generally immune to the recent wider market decline between mid-2017 and mid-2019, with buyers in the prestige market not as susceptible to the tighter lending policies which led to the downturn," the valuation firm said. 
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Given the GFC experience, there must now be some concern for the prestige market around the current COVID-19 pandemic and its effect on share markets and both local and world economies.
"Prestige agents however are currently observing significant demand in the prestige space, particularly at the lower end, in the $5 to $7 million bracket," the valuation firm said. 
The HTW notes that an example of this demand is a property at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property/466-bronte-rd-bronte-nsw-2024" target="_blank">466 Bronte Road, Bronte</a> (pictured below) which sold through Phillips Pantzer Donnelley just five days into its auction campaign.
 The renovated, three level, semi-detached home on 536 square metres of land sold in early March for $5.48 million.
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The selling agent advised that this was a common experience in this price range, with a large proportion of similarly priced homes not even making it to listing, as agents match unsuccessful purchasers to potential sellers of other properties.
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Another example of the current buoyancy in the prestige market is the recent sale of 8/41-43 Middle Head Road, Mosman, the report added. 
The property reportedly sold for $6.9 million in the middle of February and was only on the market for 22 days (source: RP Data). 
This property last transacted on 3 March 2018 for $5.675 million with no obvious improvements made between sales.
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"The Sydney property market is considered to be a safe market to invest in compared to others around the world and with the Australian dollar falling significantly over the past month, interest from overseas purchasers and ex-pats is also likely to strengthen.
"Whilst there may be a softening of market conditions over the coming months as the number of COVID-19 cases in Australia increases and (hopefully) peaks, there are no current signs to suggest that there will be any long term downturn for the prestige market." 
Note regards COVID-19
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This edition of Month In Review had its topic defined in late February with submissions from our offices collated through to late March. During this period, shifts in the social and economic landscape due to COVID-19 became increasingly dramatic, as demonstrated by the varied information provided by offices over the course of three weeks. 
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<div>This month’s residential theme on baseline property market drivers remains a common thread, and provides an indication of what influences to monitor as the property sector recovers post-crisis.</div>
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No current signs suggesting long term downturn for Sydney prestige market: HTW residential 

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/sunland-group">Sunland Group</a> has officially lodged plans for its first Gold Coast apartment project since the departure of the Abedian family from the company three years ago, unveiling a new high-rise proposal for a prominent Broadbeach corner site on Old Burleigh Road.

The application was submitted by an entity directed by Tom Jamieson, stepson of longtime Sunland leader Soheil Abedian, and Riaz Rezvanipour, brother-in-law of Sahba Abedian, Soheil’s son.

Sunland acquired the 1,283 sqm site on the corner of Old Burleigh Road and Armrick Avenue for $9.5 million late last year and is now seeking approval for a <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/99-101-old-burleigh-road-broadbeach-qld-4218">42-storey tower with 81 apartments</a>.

<img alt="First look: Sunland Group returns to Broadbeach with new Old Burleigh Road tower plans" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="fea2946d-90ee-4cfc-babe-2a8ad5db2cb6" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/pers.png?VersionId=BV0fihJw31nDIQ8ozY_h3GbS8mxDyhnm" />

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/contreras-earl-architecture">Contreras Earl Architecture</a>, the proposed tower at 99-101 Old Burleigh Road would deliver a predominantly larger-format apartment mix aimed at the owner-occupier market. Plans include 17 two-bedroom apartments, 55 three-bedroom apartments, and nine four-bedroom residences across 35 residential levels.

The development also incorporates three basement levels, four podium parking levels, two levels of communal recreation facilities, and rooftop plant and equipment. A total of 189 car spaces are proposed, significantly exceeding the 90 spaces required under the planning scheme.

The architecture adopts a sculpted, curvilinear form, with deep wraparound balconies and integrated landscaping intended to soften the tower’s vertical expression. The planning report states the building’s “slender footprint/form provides a complimentary yet varied built form within the local streetscape” and contributes to “a varied, yet ordered skyline.”

Contreras Earl noted in its Architectural Statement that from the early stages, the project addressed a fundamental challenge: how to accommodate the required residential yield while avoiding the conventional model of a tower sitting on a rigid, fully resolved parking podium.

“The most direct response would have been to consolidate parking into a singular, flat podium and extrude a repetitive tower above,” the statement said. “While efficient, this approach would result in a consolidated built form with limited engagement with the surrounding landscape and public realm.”

Instead, the conventional podium model was “deliberately rejected”. The architects described the base of the building as “a landscaped architectural condition where structure, planting and circulation are integrated”.

“Rather than presenting a continuous built mass, the base of the building is articulated through a series of concrete planter elements that organise the podium into a fragmented system,” the statement said. “This approach reduces the perceived bulk of the lower levels while establishing a more permeable interface with the streetscape and adjacent open space.”

<img alt="Sunland" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="923fad8d-c960-4527-8fbe-975cf1ddf88d" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-25%20at%2010.32.03%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=pngwb0hYOIUpq9vDw6F2EsOiVuHF3DiX" />

&nbsp;

The site sits within the High Density Residential Zone and inside the City of Gold Coast’s unrestricted “HX” building height area, where the planning framework anticipates intensified residential development tied to the expanding light rail corridor. The planning report notes the area is undergoing “transition toward more intense development forms” given its proximity to Broadbeach, Surfers Paradise, and high-frequency public transport infrastructure.

Positioned directly opposite Broadbeach Park and within walking distance of Florida Gardens light rail station, the development would sit among a rapidly evolving stretch of Old Burleigh Road that has become one of the Gold Coast’s most active apartment development corridors.

The application joins a growing pipeline of luxury residential projects reshaping Broadbeach, including nearby developments by 5Point Projects, Polycell, and Graya.

The planning report argues the project contributes toward the Gold Coast’s long-term housing targets under the South East Queensland Regional Plan, which forecasts the need for more than 100,000 additional high-rise dwellings across the city by 2046.

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The Abedian family departed Sunland Group in late 2023, ending a four-decade association with the company, and subsequently established the private development firm Abedian &amp; Co. The group is currently delivering <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/greenmount-residences-cnr-hill-street-and-marine-parade-coolangatta-qld-4225">Greenmount Residences</a> at Rainbow Bay and recently launched <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/18-mary-avenue-14-18-mary-avenue-broadbeach-qld-4218">18 Mary Avenue</a> in Broadbeach.
</section>

Joel Robinson

First look: Sunland Group returns to Broadbeach new apartment market with new Old Burleigh Road tower plans

The Minns Labor Government has established the new Bays West Delivery Authority to lead the development&nbsp;of the Bays West Precinct and Blackwattle Bay Precinct.&nbsp;

The Authority is charged with creating Sydney’s newest precinct, a thriving, connected, sustainable hub with White Bay Power Station as its cultural heart. Its vision is to build on the area’s natural, cultural and industrial history to shape a vibrant new neighbourhood.

The precinct will deliver up to 8,500 well-located homes, including a minimum of 10 per cent affordable and essential worker homes. Combine new housing with public open space, opening public access to the waterfront for the first time in more than 100 years, while retaining important deep-water facilities to support Sydney’s working harbour.

Located just minutes from the Sydney CBD and connected to a world-class metro, ferry, walking and cycling links, the Bays West precinct will rebalance housing growth towards well-serviced inner-city locations and help tackle the state’s housing crisis.

The Bays West Delivery Authority,&nbsp;an agency of the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure, will report to the NSW Minister for Lands and Property who already has oversight of major precinct renewal projects including at Blackwattle Bay and Barangaroo.

As part of the broader Bays West transformation, the Minns Government recently announced that a proposal from Lendlease to redevelop part of the Bays West Precinct has progressed to Stage 2 of the NSW Government’s unsolicited proposals process.

<img alt="Sydney" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2ed71eb9-d8e8-4fa7-b9d1-de4531dcf2f3" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-25%20at%209.42.31%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=IDryFIbped9SNDg72LEN_EecvhUsOPvp" />

The Minns Labor Government has also confirmed the Bays West precinct will have a new suburb name. This will be the first major suburb built in close proximity to Sydney’s CBD in decades and will encompass the area currently being referred to as Bays West, including Glebe Island and the White Bay Power Station. Served by a new Metro station just five minutes from the CBD, it will become one of the most populous suburbs in the Inner West and one of Sydney’s premier cultural destinations.

An early works program is taking shape, which&nbsp;includes the first stages of an international design competition.&nbsp;

The aim of the Bays West&nbsp;International&nbsp;Design Competition is to&nbsp;ensure design excellence is embedded in the project from the start. The competition will deliver an&nbsp;urban framework that defines the character, ambition and long-term identity of&nbsp;this&nbsp;former industrial precinct as it transitions to a vibrant, inclusive and sustainable residential&nbsp;neighbourhood.

The competition will be led by the Bays West Delivery Authority in partnership with Government Architect NSW.&nbsp;

It will launch with an invitation for a global Expressions of Interest, before moving to an invitation-only stage that will be assessed by a panel that&nbsp;will provide advice to Cabinet who will select a winner.

Premier of NSW, Chris Minns said the establishment of the new Authority is the first step in transforming the Bays West precinct into a vibrant, livable suburb minutes from the Sydney CBD and two stops from Hunter St Station on the Metro West line.

“The Authority will deliver well-located homes close to the heart of the city and integrate the new precinct with Blackwattle Bay and the new Sydney Fish Market.

“This is a generational opportunity to build a new suburb on the city’s edge and open the harbour foreshore to the public for the first time in a century.”&nbsp;

Minister for Lands and Property Steve Kamper said the new Bays West Delivery Authority established by the Minns Government will turbocharge the development of Sydney’s newest suburb.

“The Authority is working at a record pace to deliver an international design competition, planning pathways and a financial model so that this development benefits Sydney with well-designed homes in a central location, close to public transport, jobs, entertainment and essential services.

“If we want Sydney to stay liveable and affordable, we need to be bold about using underutilised government-owned land to deliver homes for the future while making sure essential working harbour functions can be accommodated.”

Bays West Delivery Authority established to "turbocharge" Sydney’s newest suburb

Around 400 additional homes could be built at Southwark Grounds on Port Road, lifting total site capacity from 1300 to around 1700 dwellings.

A recently approved code amendment would allow apartment towers of up to 14 storeys in some areas of Renewal SA’s redevelopment of the former West End Brewery.

Renewal SA Acting Chief Executive Shane Wingard said he welcomed the code amendment, with the increase in heights and homes making a positive impact on the supply of high-quality, well-connected housing close to the city.

“By going higher across some parts of Southwark Grounds, we are adding a substantial number of very well-located homes with little impact on project delivery time or planned open space,” Mr Wingard said.

Since the project officially launched in 2025, Mr Wingard said more than 12,000 enquiries had been received about living at Southwark Grounds.

“The very strong early interest we’ve seen since homes were first released in the precinct reinforces our plans to create more housing opportunities,” he said.

The Southwark Grounds code amendment was launched in December last year, with community engagement undertaken over five weeks from January.

It proposed increasing maximum building heights from eight to 14 storeys on the eastern section of Southwark Grounds, and to 12 storeys across the remainder of the site, with minimum building heights ranging from two to four storeys.

The code amendment was implemented through an Early Commencement policy in late January, allowing developers to quickly explore the viability of increased height and housing yield while other planning processes continue.

One of the first developers delivering apartment sites have already finalised redesigns to increase the number of apartments following the code amendment.

Samaras’ development adjacent to the future Colonel Light Park is now planning to deliver 125 apartments across 11 storeys, significantly greater than original plans of around 50 apartments across four storeys.

The developer is also exploring the potential for additional affordable housing outcomes.

Most of the apartments at Southwark Grounds will be delivered within a master-planned precinct on a large parcel of land on the eastern portion of the site, covering around two-thirds of its 8.4 hectares.

Wingard said detailed precinct planning over the coming months may identify further opportunities to increase yield further that could see total apartment numbers at Southwark Grounds, exceed this number.

Affordable homes at Southwark Grounds will also see a net increase, with Renewal SA maintaining its commitment to a minimum of 20 per cent affordable housing across the development.

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Civil works have begun across the site, with construction under way on the first new roads surrounding a townhouse precinct in the south‑west corner of Southwark Grounds. This includes Renewal SA’s 17 Founder’s Row homes, which are on track for completion by Christmas.

“We expect to have people living at Southwark Grounds by the end of the year, so delivering roads and public spaces for those residents is among our highest priorities.”

Construction of 40 townhouses off Anderson Street, known as West Village and being delivered by Contour, is forecast to begin in mid‑2026. Kolabb’s Anderson Lane development will follow shortly after, delivering a further 26 townhouses.

Southwark Grounds is a state government‑led urban renewal project now set to deliver around 1,700 homes over the next decade.

Homes will be supported by a supermarket, a range of retail and hospitality offerings anchored by a revitalised Walkerville Brew Tower, a childcare centre, car parking and well‑connected public spaces.

400 new homes planned for Adelaide's former West End Brewery site

Brisbane developer&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/cavcorp">Cavcorp</a> has lodged plans for a new mixed-use residential development at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/55-wyandra-street-teneriffe-qld-4005">55 Wyandra Street</a>, Teneriffe, anchored by an 85-metre public laneway designed to reconnect the suburb’s riverfront with the Gasworks precinct.

The buildings, known as Teneriffe House and Teneriffe Lane, would replace the existing Queensland Cotton head office site with a 15-storey residential tower transitioning to eight storeys toward Helen Street. The project has been designed by Plazibat Architects and lodged as a code assessable development application for 93 apartments across a 3,401 sqm mixed-use site within the Newstead and Teneriffe Waterfront neighbourhood plan.

Central to the scheme is the transformation of an existing service easement into a publicly accessible cross-block connection linking Wyandra and Helen Streets. Cavcorp says the new laneway will act as both a pedestrian shortcut and a landscaped civic space between the Teneriffe Riverwalk, ferry terminal, and Gasworks precinct.

<img alt="First Look: Cavcorp unveils Teneriffe House and Teneriffe Lane plans for landmark wellness tower in Teneriffe" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="26e7f058-b065-4de8-b13d-a2b8cb64dfcc" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/bldg.png?VersionId=sELS0ZKYi361oYipUa1BIKfe_.DLZoFV" />

“The revised proposal delivers a legacy public-realm cross-block link, permanently secured for community use, transforming an existing private easement into a safe, high-quality pedestrian connection between the Teneriffe heritage riverwalk and the Gasworks–Long Island precinct,” the planning report states.

The laneway will sit beneath a large subtropical loggia integrated into the podium levels of the development. The design incorporates deep landscaping, water gardens, lobby spaces, business lounges, and ground-floor apartments to create what Cavcorp describes as a climate-responsive “urban verandah.”

The tower itself has been designed as a slender form with recessed floorplates and curved translucent corners inspired by contemporary Japanese architecture. The building height aligns with the Commercial Road precinct controls, which permit towers up to 15 storeys within proximity to Longland Street.

<img alt="First Look: Cavcorp unveils Teneriffe House and Teneriffe Lane plans for landmark wellness tower in Teneriffe" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="a8a17d40-43b6-4718-b3fd-67676fcbb485" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/pers%202_1.png?VersionId=i3VwDtp5AmL_8InW7w4qRbDFEpb744Jt" />

The project will comprise a mix of larger-format apartments aimed at owner-occupiers, downsizers, and families. The proposed apartment mix includes 11 loggia apartments across the lower levels, 50 four-bedroom Sky-Terrace apartments from levels three to seven, and 32 Sky-Pool Homes occupying the upper tower levels. The Sky-Pool Homes will feature private thermal plunge pools integrated into oversized balconies.

According to the application, the apartments are intended to reinterpret the scale and character of Teneriffe’s woolstore conversions and Queensland homes within a vertical residential format.

“The sky-pool homes build on Cavcorp’s previous projects and introduce a distinct apartment typology to Teneriffe, informed by both local and international precedent and responding to an identified market demand for enhanced safety, space and amenity,” the planning submission notes.

A major focus of the proposal is its five-level wellness and lifestyle offering, extending from the basement through to the rooftop.

Amenities proposed include a rooftop Swim &amp; Racquet Club with a 25-metre Olympic lap pool and tennis court, coworking spaces and libraries, golf simulators, wine storage, concierge facilities, business lounges, pet wash areas, and rooftop longevity-focused wellness spaces with spas, outdoor fitness zones, and landscaped terraces.

<img alt="First Look: Cavcorp unveils Teneriffe House and Teneriffe Lane plans for landmark wellness tower in Teneriffe" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="944b352c-49b9-4247-a4c6-5967b4b69fda" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/amenity.png?VersionId=Ed_qKjAtMwFT.5gfl3jiA9QwdWxSMsaX" />

All parking will be concealed within basement levels accessed from Wyandra and Helen Streets. Cavcorp says the deep-basement engineering approach allows the entire ground plane to prioritise landscaping, pedestrian movement, and active frontage rather than vehicle infrastructure.

The development continues Cavcorp’s concentration in Newstead and Teneriffe, where the Brisbane developer has delivered a number of apartment projects including Lucent, Le Bain, and Luminare, as well as the Long Island Wellness Precinct nearby. Several of those projects have received national design and architecture awards, including recognition under Brisbane’s “Buildings that Breathe” program.

Cavcorp unveils wellness-focused Teneriffe House and Teneriffe Lane apartment buildings

Focus Group Investments has lodged plans for a new apartment development at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/64-70-hanover-street-fitzroy-vic-3065">64–70 Hanover Street</a> in Fitzroy, seeking to utilise the Victorian Government’s recently introduced Great Design Fast Track pathway to accelerate approvals for the project.

The proposal is among the latest developments to emerge through the state-led initiative, which was established to fast-track well-designed residential projects in activity centres and transport-connected inner-city locations. The pathway allows qualifying developments that meet elevated design and housing benchmarks to bypass traditional council planning timeframes and instead be assessed directly by the Department of Transport and Planning.

Designed by SJB, the development will comprise a mix of apartments above activated lower levels, with a strong focus on architectural articulation, landscaping, and communal amenity. The design response seeks to balance the industrial character of Richmond’s former warehouse precincts with a more contemporary residential form.

<img alt="First look: Focus Group Investments taps Victoria’s Great Design Fast Track for Richmond apartments" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="abea51cc-d85b-479e-9aef-a589f3b37ca7" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/ground.png?VersionId=e1Kf8EyPWwyiVumtqQ4rM5S4GpOR3CCz" />

Proposed are 63 new dwellings, a wide ranging mix of studio, one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments, and townhouses and duplexes. They will be spread across a part-three, part-eight storey building.

The Planning and Urban Context Report by Tract says the development is of an "exemplary architectural standard" and has been carefully crafted by SJB Architects.

"Dwellings&nbsp;will benefit from excellent access to natural light, cross-ventilation opportunities and extensive communal space," the report noted.

The architectural material highlights the project’s integration of landscaped elements and communal spaces throughout the building. The proposal also incorporates sustainability initiatives aligned with the Victorian Government’s push for higher-performing apartment developments under the fast-track program.

The Great Design Fast Track was unveiled by the Victorian Government in 2024 as part of a broader housing supply strategy aimed at accelerating the delivery of new homes. Projects assessed through the pathway must demonstrate high-quality architecture, sustainability outcomes, and housing diversity while being located close to public transport and existing infrastructure.

<img alt="First look: Focus Group Investments taps Victoria’s Great Design Fast Track for Richmond apartments" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="afdbe834-8dc4-4a77-a943-ba07bc927348" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/site_11.png?VersionId=0J657j.TaChAZfp93wqJYBTqSsnREJx2" />

Focus Group, founder and led by Paul De Lutiis, is increasingly active across Melbourne’s inner suburbs, targeting well-connected urban renewal locations suited to medium and higher-density residential development. The Fitzroy proposal continues that strategy, leveraging the area’s strong transport links, established retail amenity, and proximity to the CBD.

Fitzroy has been one of the most popular spots for developers and buyers in recent years. The likes of PACE Development Group, SMA Projects, Crema Group and Chapter Group, currently selling projects in the suburb.

Staff reporter

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