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Residential tenants and landlords facing financial hardship due to COVID-19 will receive limited support from the NSW Government’s new temporary rental support measures announced on Easter Monday.
The six-month support package includes a moratorium on applications for forced evictions due to rental arrears for those financially disadvantaged by COVID-19.
There are new requirements for landlords and tenants to enter into negotiations over rental payments in good faith.
The six-month support package will include an interim 60-day moratorium on evictions when landlords will have to negotiate with households prior to seeking a forced end to a tenancy.
Where a household has suffered a loss of income equal to or greater than 25 per cent due to COVID-19, there is a new obligation to enter into negotiations with their landlord or managing agent, prior to seeking a forced end to the tenancy.
The Minister for Better Regulation and Innovation Kevin Anderson suggested an interim 60-day moratorium on finalising existing matters, or making new applications to the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) for forced evictions over rent arrears related to COVID-19, sends a clear message that the process is not optional. 
“We know many people are worried about meeting their financial commitments at the moment. That is why we need more stability for tenants and landlords while the new Commonwealth income support payments are rolled-out, and landlords talk to their bank about mortgage relief,” Mr Anderson said.
Tenants will be protected from eviction until NCAT is satisfied that negotiations have concluded. Any unpaid rent will accrue as arrears during this period. 
Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the Government was allocating around $440 million towards rent relief in the form of land tax waivers or rebates – with the expectation that this would be split approximately evenly between business and residential landlords.
Mr Perrottet said residential landlords would be eligible for a land tax waiver or rebate of up to 25 per cent if they passed the saving on to tenants in financial distress.
“This is effectively a $220 million commitment in the residential sector from the NSW Government to help encourage both landlords and tenants to reach agreement on rent reductions during this difficult time,” Mr Perrottet said. 
Mr Anderson said it was important that both landlords and tenants continued to honour existing agreements to the extent possible. 
“No reasonable person wants to end a tenancy right now, which is why we are supporting renters and landlords to negotiate new temporary terms, so tenants keep a roof over their head, and landlords aren’t left without rental income for the next six-months.
“For some people this may be a daunting experience, so to boost available support we’ve announced a one-off $2.5 million boost to tenancy advocacy and advice services across the state.” 
Tenants and landlords will also have access to assistance from Fair Trading and access to the NCAT to resolve matters after the end of the 60-day period: 
<ul>
<li>       NSW Fair Trading’s dispute resolution service will be available to assist if the parties are unable to re-negotiate and agree on new rental arrangements, backed by Fair Trading’s existing legal powers; </li>
<li>       NCAT will be available to make appropriate orders in light of the current circumstances where the parties are unwilling or unable to reach an agreement and action is taken to seek an eviction; </li>
<li>       Action is also being taken to ensure that evictions for reasons not related to rent arrears are also stayed to minimise avoidable housing disruption and movement. The usual periods of required notice under the Residential Tenancies Act will be increased from the minimum of 30 days up to 90 days for terminations due to fixed or periodic leases ending, or other agreement breaches.</li>
<li>       Landlords will however continue to be able to seek to recover premises due to their own genuine hardship. Tenants will also continue to be able to apply to the Tribunal to terminate a fixed-term tenancy on the basis of hardship.</li>
<li>       Tenants will be protected from being added to tenancy databases (or ‘blacklists’) for breaches of agreements resulting from COVID-19 impacts.</li>
</ul>
“I encourage landlords and tenants to approach this new process with an open mind and an empathetic ear. It is important to learn about each other’s current position in order to better support each other during these extraordinary times,” Mr Anderson said.
Around 20 percent of NSW landlords currency pay land tax given <a href="https://www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/taxes-duties-levies-royalties/land-tax" target="_blank">the $734,000 threshold.</a>
NSW Parliament will be recalled to pass the measures, which include upcoming land tax payments being deferred for three months.
NSW Labor welcomed the moratorium on evictions, but expressed concern about unpaid rent accruing and leaving a tenant who lost their job with a rent bill.
 
 
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j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

NSW land tax paying landlords can get relief if cash-trapped tenants get rental discount

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The ban by the Victorian chief health officer on holding private inspections of occupied homes listed for sale or rent was set to be scrapped, the REIV announced today.
The ban reduced the capacity of Victorian estate agents to conduct by appointment open houses.
The new ban was issued late on Thursday, but was set to be abolished Easter Monday, the REIV president Leah Calnan said.
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Occupied properties meant all properties where someone was currently living, the Consumer Affairs department website had advised.
“We’re dumbfounded by the move,” Ms Leah Calnan, the REIV president said on Thursday. 
“Victoria has been very heavy handed about this when other states still allow these inspections to go ahead."
The government made its in initial policy when reaffirming its message that people should stay home.
“There are only four reasons to leave your home: food and supplies, medical care or caregiving, exercise and work or education,” a government spokesperson said last week.
It advised there would be "no exemption for tenants or occupants to temporarily vacate their place of residence to facilitate inspections.
During the Stage 3 restrictions, vendors or landlords wanting to conduct inspections of tenanted properties can do so via virtual inspections, or wait until the property is fully vacated and disinfected."
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Victorian agents are likely to return to previous practice when allowed to take buyers or renters through as long as social distancing guidelines were met.
Since the ban on public auctions and open homes from March 25, SOME 75 per cent of scheduled auctions were switched in Victoria to private sales.
Domain figures also show the number of property listings sat eight per cent lower compared to the same time last year.
Domain’s senior research analyst Nicola Powell had forecast any implementation of the updated pre-Easter ban would cripple the Victorian property market.
“Allowing private inspections gave the real estate market a lifeline. They’ve cut that lifeline. They’ve cut the blood supply to the real estate market."
The Consumer Affairs Victoria’s <a href="https://www.consumer.vic.gov.au/resources-and-tools/advice-in-a-disaster/coronavirus-covid19-and-your-rights" target="_blank">website </a>had changed by 11am on Easter Monday stating “private inspections of an occupied/tenanted residential property are permitted” when just the real estate agent and the person inspecting the property were present.
 
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REIV announce Victorian Government to backflip to allow estate agents conduct by appointment open houses

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There is further reduced capacity of Victorian estate agents to conduct by appointment open houses.
The chief health officer banned private inspections of occupied homes listed for sale or rent.
The new ban was issued late on Thursday. 
It advised there is no exemption for tenants or occupants to temporarily vacate their place of residence to facilitate inspections.
<div class="in-content-ad">
Agents had previously been allowed to take buyers or renters through as long as social distancing guidelines were met – but this has been deemed insufficient.
<a href="https://www.consumer.vic.gov.au/resources-and-tools/advice-in-a-disaster/coronavirus-covid19-and-your-rights" target="_blank">The official website advises</a>:
Agents must no longer conduct public or in-person private inspections of tenanted or occupied properties.
This is because it will not be possible for agents, prospective owners or tenants, and existing tenants to each comply with their legal requirements under the current Directions from the Chief Health Officer.
These directions include requirements:
<ul>
<li>to maintain the required level of social distancing</li>
<li>to ensure homes are cleaned and disinfected before and after each inspection, and</li>
<li>for all Victorians to stay at home except in the four, limited circumstances (to buy needed supplies, for medical or caring reasons, for work or study, or for exercise).</li>
</ul>
There is no exemption for tenants or occupants to temporarily vacate their place of residence to facilitate inspections.
Previously the Consumer Affairs website said the department “encourages” inspections to be delayed until the property is vacant.
Occupied properties means all properties where someone is currently living, the Consumer Affairs department advised.
“We’re dumbfounded by the move,” Ms Leah Calnan, the REIV president said. 
“Victoria has been very heavy handed about this when other states still allow these inspections to go ahead."
The government reaffirmed its message that people should stay home.
“There are only four reasons to leave your home: food and supplies, medical care or caregiving, exercise and work or education,” a spokesperson said.
 
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Reduced capacity of Victorian estate agents to conduct by appointment open houses 

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GUEST OBSERVATION
Local governments are <a href="https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-04/Fact_sheet_supporting_businesses_0.pdf">not eligible for the JobKeeper Payment</a>, while major industries like construction are. Although the JobKeeper scheme has been <a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-130-billion-jobkeeper-payment-what-the-experts-think-135043">broadly welcomed</a>, it is a mystery to business why Australia’s <a href="https://alga.asn.au/about-alga/">537 local councils</a>, which provide vital support for industries like construction, are not eligible. The failure to include local councils (and their wholly owned corporations) will undermine the economic and social impact these policies are meant to have.
This just doesn’t make sense to business or local government. Business and industry are depending on their partnerships with local government to get through the coronavirus crisis. But local councils, which <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/6248.0.55.002">employ almost 200,000 people</a>, are already <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-04-07/local-gov-struggle-to-keep-staff-coronavirus-jobkeeper-payments/12125312">laying off thousands</a>.
Since construction directly <a href="http://lmip.gov.au/default.aspx?LMIP/GainInsights/IndustryInformation/Construction">employs about 1.2 million people</a> (9.2% of the workforce) and indirectly many more, construction sites remain “exempt” as the government closes down all non-essential businesses to combat coronavirus. As Urban Taskforce chief executive Tom Forrest <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/clear-messages-from-government-construction-work-is-exempt-from-the-close-down-and-will-continue/">said</a>:
The building and construction industry will be a critical player in driving the economy through this crisis.
The federal government’s A$130 billion wage subsidy will cover businesses paying their employees A$1,500 a fortnight each for up to six months. Private businesses (including not-for-profits) will be <a href="https://www.business.gov.au/risk-management/emergency-management/coronavirus-information-and-support-for-business/jobkeeper-payment">eligible for the subsidy</a> if they meet the criteria.
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323914/original/file-20200330-146705-7jrmw3.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="">
The Conversation, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a>
Self-employed individuals will similarly be eligible to receive the <a href="https://www.business.gov.au/risk-management/emergency-management/coronavirus-information-and-support-for-business/jobkeeper-payment">JobKeeper Payment</a>.
Registered charities will be eligible if their turnover has fallen or will likely fall by 15% or more relative to a comparable period.
Non-government schools and private vocational education providers are also eligible.
What is happening to local government?
Local government misses out. Yet revenues have been hit extremely hard since local government raises only <a href="https://alga.asn.au/policy-centre/financial-sustainability/">3.6% of its income from taxation and 90% from its own sources</a>. These include rates and fees for services – many of which have had to close.
As a result, <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/councils-bleed-revenue-as-costs-from-coronavirus-surge-20200401-p54g58">city council revenues have plummeted</a>. For example, Blacktown City Council in Sydney estimates its monthly revenue has fallen by about A$1.7 million. The council employs around 2,300 people who serve a population of 400,000 people.
Like all local governments, it is responsible for a wide range of critical local services that support industries like construction that are exempt from current shutdowns. Councils provide planning and development approvals, childcare centres (26 in Blacktown’s case), waste management, infrastructure (such as roads and footpaths, parks, sporting grounds and swimming pools), housing, community amenities, transport and communications, recreation and culture and general public services.
The majority of freight tasks, which are central to keeping the economy going, start and finish on local government-controlled roads. These roads add up to about <a href="https://cdn.alga.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/ALGA-2019-Local-Government-Roads-and-Transport-Agenda.pdf">662,000km in length</a> – about 75% of the total national road length. Of 251.2 billion kilometres travelled in 2016, <a href="https://cdn.alga.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/ALGA-2019-Local-Government-Roads-and-Transport-Agenda.pdf">142.1 billion occurred in capital cities</a>.
Local councils also fund and support major construction projects. To return to the example of Blacktown, the A$76.5 million <a href="https://www.blacktown.nsw.gov.au/About-Council/What-we-do/Transformational-Projects/Warrick-Lane-redevelopment">Warrick Lane development</a> is part of the city centre transformation, which will provide major economic and social benefits for the people of Blacktown.
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DAifmbBs8NU?wmode=transparent&amp;start=0" frameborder="0" width="440" height="260"></iframe>
The Warrick Lane redevelopment is a major construction project that wouldn’t be happening if not for the city council.
Another Blacktown City project is the <a href="https://www.blacktown.nsw.gov.au/About-Council/What-we-do/Transformational-Projects/International-Centre-of-Training-Excellence">International Centre of Training Excellence</a>, a multisport high-performance education, sports medicine and accelerated recovery facility. It’s due to open in 2022.
Nationwide, local government owns and manages non-financial assets with an <a href="https://alga.asn.au/policy-centre/financial-sustainability/">estimated written-down value of A$408 billion</a> in 2015-16. Operational spending by councils totalled about A$35 billion in that year.
A partner of industry and business
Local government spending goes into providing industry support and services across the nation. If you take these services and supports away you undermine government efforts to stimulate industries like construction to get us through this crisis and recover from it.
You also introduce the risk that development approvals are granted without thorough assessments. That’s likely to lead to new problems down the line.
As the federal government says, keeping people in work and businesses open will lay the foundations for a stronger economic recovery once the coronavirus crisis passes. But local government support is key to this strategy. Most people would be concerned to know their local councils are not being supported in the same way as private businesses – some of which have accumulated millions in profits and are incorporated overseas.
The federal government rightly talks about partnership, collaboration and collective responsibility to get through this crisis. Local council activities are critical to the productivity, well-being and liveability of local communities and cumulatively to the nation at this time.
Disaster management experience and <a href="https://www.disaster.qld.gov.au/dmg/Pages/DM-Guideline.aspx">guidelines</a> tell us the response to any crisis must be bottom-up as well as top-down. This means local government’s role is crucial. How can this be achieved without a functioning local government supporting industry and communities to get through this pandemic?
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/martin-loosemore-4690">Martin Loosemore</a>, Professor of Construction Management, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-technology-sydney-936">University of Technology Sydney</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/lack-of-help-for-local-councils-in-coronavirus-package-undercuts-industry-support-135700">original article</a>.
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Lack of help for local councils in coronavirus package undercuts industry support

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GUEST OBSERVATION
No Australian government has ever spent A$130 billion so quickly.
Last Tuesday, when the Prime Minister announced the government would subsidise six million jobs for six months to the tune of $1,500 a fortnight, the nation’s economists were left speechless.
Today, the government unveiled <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/06/labor-to-support-jobkeeper-package-despite-ineligibility-of-1m-casuals">the legislation</a> to be considered by the parliament tomorrow.
In ordinary times, there wouldn’t be a lot of support for a $130 billion wage subsidy. But these aren’t ordinary times.
Whole sectors of the economy have shut down, either directly as part of the health response to the pandemic, or indirectly as part of a wave of knock-on effects.
The JobKeeper wage subsidies will give <a href="https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-04/Fact_sheet_supporting_businesses_0.pdf">direct support</a> to the worst-affected businesses and jobs, helping to keep the economic damage to a minimum. The package isn’t perfect. But it’s a far better response than had been feared.
It will help keep the Australian economy afloat over the next six months, putting it in a position to bounce back when health officials deem it safe to reopen parts of the economy for business.
It has three key features:
<ul>
<li>
businesses get $1,500 per fortnight per worker (only for those workers who were employed on March 1. Short-term casuals with the business and some visa holders are excluded)
</li>
<li>
the employer has to keep those workers on the books and pay them at least $1,500 per fortnight
</li>
<li>
it only applies to businesses whose revenue has collapsed by at least 30% (15% for charities and not-for-profits, 50% for the largest businesses, with banks excluded).
</li>
</ul>
To be effective, it has to deliver on three goals:
<ul>
<li>
to support workers’ incomes through the crisis
</li>
<li>
to keep workers attached to firms, preserving as many job-specific skills and as much know-how as possible
</li>
<li>
to prevent wide-scale business failures which could turn a short and sharp recession into a long and painful depression.
</li>
</ul>
Importantly, this means if it’s working well, both workers and employers will get something out of the deal.
At firms that would otherwise have shut down, workers will benefit considerably.
Many workers will get paid more
The $1,500 payment will give them much more than the Newstart payment they would have received if laid off, even the doubled Newstart (now called JobSeeker) which for six months has been paired with a <a href="https://theconversation.com/scalable-without-limit-how-the-government-plans-to-get-coronavirus-support-into-our-hands-quickly-134353">Coronavirus supplement</a> lifting it from $565.70 to $1,115.60 per fortnight.
And for the one third of workers otherwise earning less than $1,500 per fortnight, the JobKeeper payment will be a pay rise. If the subsidy keeps their firm afloat, they’ll keep their job and be paid even more than before for the next six months.
It’s possible those earning more than $1,500 per fortnight will earn less than they did before in pay and benefits, depending on what the government does with the Fair Work Act.
 
Exactly how it works out for workers who get JobKeeper will depend on the labour market. On one hand, they will be more attractive to employers because their employment comes with a big subsidy that new hires don’t bring with them. On the other hand, they might have few alternative employers to turn to. Jobs might be hard to find.
They’ll get to keep their jobs
Regardless, even if their pay is reduced, their situation will be much better than under the renamed Newstart. And to the extent that cutting their pay helps to keep the firm viable, it will secure a job for them on the other side.
Employers will also benefit. If a business stays open, it will get the benefit of its workers’ labour for free or at a big discount. It might look like corporate welfare, but it’s a feature, not a bug.
A key objective of the scheme is to plug the hole in firms’ revenues to prevent them going under. Most would have been viable if it weren’t for the necessary public health measures governments have taken. Allowing them to fail would mean a pointless destruction of valuable resources.
The wage subsidy is somewhat crude and inevitably there will be some waste. Some firms will be given more money than they need, some workers will be given more, some less.
It was never going to be perfect
Given more time, the treasury could have designed something better targeted, less wasteful. It didn’t have it. The economy has never experienced so sudden a collapse.
But there are a few simple things the government could do to make it better.
It could include short-term casuals and visa holders, and it should take care not to weaken the Fair Work Act.
JobKeeper won’t prevent a serious contraction in the Australian economy, but it should give us a very good chance to bounce back on the other side.
<hr>
We would like to thank Jeff Borland for his comments on a draft version of this article.<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135195/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/steven-hamilton-155869">Steven Hamilton</a>, Visiting Fellow, Tax and Transfer Policy Institute, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/crawford-school-of-public-policy-australian-national-university-3292">Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/bruce-preston-452859">Bruce Preston</a>, Professor of Economics, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-melbourne-722">University of Melbourne</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/chris-edmond-673265">Chris Edmond</a>, Professor of Economics, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-melbourne-722">University of Melbourne</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/jobkeeper-is-quick-dirty-and-effective-there-was-no-time-to-make-it-perfect-135195">original article</a>.
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JobKeeper is quick, dirty and effective, there was no time for perfection

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EXPERT OBSERVER
If you’re working from home for the first time, you might be asking yourself why you didn’t get to do this years ago.
The benefits of remote work have been discussed for nearly half a century. Many thinkers predicted a near future where work moves to the worker, rather than the worker to the work.
In 1969, Alan Kiron, a staff scientist at the US Patent Office, wrote in The Washington Post about how computers and new communication tools could change life and work. He called this “dominetics” – a combination of domicile, connections and electronics. The term never caught on, but the idea did.
Amid the 1973 OPEC oil crisis and skyrocketing fuel prices, a University of Southern California research group led by Jack Nilles conducted one of <a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/Telecommunications-Transportation-Tradeoff-Options-Tomorrow-1976-09-30/dp/B01JXRQ90A/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=The+Telecommunications-Transportation+Tradeoff%3A+Options+for&amp;amp;qid=1585617138&amp;amp;sr=8-1%20%22%22">the first major studies</a> of what Nilles would call “telecommuting”.
Nilles’s team studied a Los Angeles-based insurance company with more than 2,000 employees. Each worker travelled 34.4 kilometres a day on average, at a total cost (in 1974 prices) of US$2.73 million a year.
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325167/original/file-20200403-99349-1xemqvl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="">
Los Angeles traffic in 1972. <a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HOLLYWOOD_FREEWAY_-_NARA_-_542684.jpg">Gene Daniels/US Environmental Protection Agency</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a>
Their study, published in 1976, concluded technology would soon make it more economical for organisations to decentralise using telecommuting. But Nilles also came to understand that “technology was not the limiting factor in the acceptance of telecommuting”.
Satellite work
Still, technology was a factor. This was a time when telephones and telefax machines were the only telecommunications equipment most people knew. Very few homes had personal computers, let alone access to the early internet. So the book focused more on redesigning work to let employees commute to local satellite offices.
Nilles illustrated the idea with the diagrams below.
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324813/original/file-20200402-23090-19tezy3.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="">Jack Nilles’s diagrams for teleworking.
The principles were similar to the early architecture of the internet, whose designers were also interested in system resilience (notably a communications network that could <a href="https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/papers/2005/P2626.pdf">survive nuclear attack</a>).
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325153/original/file-20200403-99351-113b71x.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="">
Baran’s 1962 diagrams of the internet as a distributed communications network.
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325170/original/file-20200403-74243-ddo26s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/325170/original/file-20200403-74243-ddo26s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=237&amp;fit=clip" alt=""></a>
A magazine advertisement for the Apple II computer in December 1977. <a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Apple_II_advertisement_Dec_1977_page_1.jpg">Apple Computer Inc/Wikimedia</a>
Home telecommuting became more viable as the personal computer market exploded in the late 1970s. Apple’s <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.computerhistory.org/revolution/personal-computers/17/300">breakthrough Apple II</a>, for example, was released in 1977.
In 1980 futurist Alvin Toffler, author of the 1970 book Future Shock, predicted in his sequel, <a href="https://archive.org/stream/The_Third_Wave_Alvin_Toffler/The%20Third%20Wave%20-%20Alvin%20Toffler_djvu.txt">The Third Wave</a>, that the home would “assume a startling new importance” in the information age, becoming “a central unit in the society of tomorrow – a unit with enhanced rather than diminished economic, medical, educational and social functions”.
Here comes the internet
Toffler accurately saw technology’s potential, but it would be some time before remote working became relatively easy. Consider what sending an email involved in 1984:
How to send an email 1980s style. Electronic message writing down the phone line first shown on Thames TV’s computer program Database in 1984.
But with the growth in the internet, management guru Peter Drucker felt confident enough <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.amazon.com.au/Ecological-Vision-Reflections-American-Condition/dp/0765807254">by 1993</a> to declare commuting to the office obsolete:
It is now infinitely easier, cheaper and faster to do what the 19th century could not do: move information, and with it office work, to where the people are. The tools to do so are already here: the telephone, two-way video, electronic mail, the fax machine, the personal computer, the modem, and so on.
Vision versus reality
Despite the technology, the growth in working from home has been slow. A large survey of Anglo countries <a href="https://www.ibm.com/downloads/cas/O90WYGXZ">by IBM in 2014</a> found just 9% of employees teleworked at least some of the time, with about half of those doing it full-time or most of the time. Data from Australia and US suggest the proportion was still less than 20% at the end of 2019.
<a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/6333.0Main+Features1August%202019?OpenDocument">Australian statistics</a> state almost a third of people do some work from home. But this inflates the number by including all those who work at home to catch up on work from the office.
There are have been two main barriers to greater uptake.
One, as Nilles himself <a href="https://www.citylab.com/life/2015/12/the-invention-of-telecommuting/418047/">acknowledged</a>, is organisational culture.
How we organise often <a href="https://chiefmartec.com/2016/11/martecs-law-great-management-challenge-21st-century">lags behind</a> what technology permits. Many organisations still cling to traditional ideas about managing people. If managers can’t see their employees working, they assume they won’t be.
The second problem is more intractable.
People actually like to be around each other. We’re social creatures. Indeed, a direct consequence of remote work is the <a href="http://codinginparadise.org/ebooks/html/blog/start_of_coworking">the co-working movement</a>, a response to the psychological and social challenges of working alone from home.
Even the technology companies that make teleworking and electronic cottages possible remain wedded to central offices. In 2013 Yahoo’s new chief executive, Marissa Mayer, <a href="https://www.sesp.northwestern.edu/masters-learning-and-organizational-change/knowledge-lens/stories/2014/are-face-to-face-teams-more-creative-than-virtual-teams">discouraged employees</a> from working from home, because “people are more collaborative and innovative when they’re together face to face”.
Apple founder Steve Job was also apparently obsessed with having physical office space that encouraged staff mingling. This reportedly including stressing over details like bathroom locations so <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/238433">personal encounters</a> would occur.
What about the future?
These challenges remain.
But circumstances should assist at least with the organisational and cultural barriers. Home working is simply, for now, the new reality. Businesses have no choice but to make it work.
After at least <a href="https://7news.com.au/lifestyle/health-wellbeing/scott-morrison-warns-australia-to-prepare-for-six-month-coronavirus-battle-c-746412">six months</a>, it’s easy to imagine some of this will stick.
The issue of social needs will be thornier. As Toffler himself <a href="https://archive.org/stream/The_Third_Wave_Alvin_Toffler/The%20Third%20Wave%20-%20Alvin%20Toffler_djvu.txt">said</a>, “it would be a mistake to underestimate the need for direct face-to-face contact in business, and all the subliminal and nonverbal communication that accompanies that contact”.
Perhaps the future will look a bit more like Nilles’s idea, with the growth of local co-working spaces, designed not overcome the limits of technology but to meet our needs as social beings.<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135034/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/julian-waters-lynch-1005137">Julian Waters-Lynch</a>, Lecturer Entrepreneurship and Innovation, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/rmit-university-1063">RMIT University</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/50-years-of-bold-predictions-about-remote-work-it-isnt-all-about-technology-135034">original article</a>.
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Predictions about remote work, it's not all about technology

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<div>EXPERT OBSERVER</div>
<div> </div>
<div>Housing conditions were strong up until the end of February, the last of the pre-Coronavirus data series showed. </div>
<div> </div>
<div>Total housing lending was fairly steady at $19.5 billion, representing an increase of +13.1 per cent from a year earlier, mainly driven by homebuyers. </div>
<img src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Tj7kB74Cv28/Xo048SI75LI/AAAAAAAA1Jg/s4CFqoIWW4gX7Mo97meC-8FgegCjW6M7wCNcBGAsYHQ/s640/HF2.jpg" width="640" height="366" data-original-height="824" data-original-width="1440">
First homebuyer commitments rose to the highest level since 2009.
 <img src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7d99RZVWWZM/Xo048PZtQVI/AAAAAAAA1JY/mkyCDs4_KPUAmZJBb1bFWbRLACAWaY3awCNcBGAsYHQ/s640/HF3.jpg" width="640" height="378" style="font-size: 12.16px;" data-original-height="828" data-original-width="1398">
<div>At the state level, homebuyer loans (ex-refi) in Queensland and Western Australia were strong, while New South Wales and Victoria saw a partial retracement, although volumes in these states remained +15 per cent and +20 per cent higher than a year earlier respectively.</div>
<div> </div>
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For home buyers purchasing existing dwellings the average loan size was steady at a near-record high.
<div class="separator"><img src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_n553QTxyPs/Xo049K_1vkI/AAAAAAAA1Jk/ubZ9VV4Y3DUgx9yKI7xSyX2DLjkbaiB5QCNcBGAsYHQ/s640/HF4.jpg" width="640" height="382" data-original-height="818" data-original-width="1369"></div>
There was some variation around the states, partly impacted by refinancing activity.
<div class="separator"><img src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-V0wxrfOsSto/Xo049Qhu3uI/AAAAAAAA1Jo/ibRdXCV_EdMM0hP04S3mmFceQHshcVOkgCNcBGAsYHQ/s640/HF5.jpg" width="640" height="374" data-original-height="831" data-original-width="1421"></div>
<div>
The wrap Overall, lending volumes were considerably stronger than a year earlier up until February 2020, but transaction activity is now expected to drop sharply through March and April as movements are restricted. </div>
<div>
 PETE WARGENT is the co-founder of AllenWargent property buyers (London, Sydney) and a best-selling author and <a href="https://petewargent.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">blogger</a>.
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Housing loans declined slightly in February: Pete Wargent

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GUEST OBSERVER
The National Cabinet <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-04-01/coronavirus-eviction-moratorium-in-australia-what-does-it-mean/12105188" style="font-size: 12.16px;">announced a moratorium on evictions</a> just over a week ago in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As government ministers and commentators have <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/apr/02/real-estate-agents-criticised-for-suggesting-tenants-consider-using-superannuation-to-pay-rent" style="font-size: 12.16px;">tried to make clear</a>, it’s intended only to stop evictions – not rent payments. But the sudden losses of jobs and incomes mean many households cannot continue to pay pre-crisis rents.
Tenants are seeking rent reductions or waivers from their landlords, with disturbingly mixed results. It is time for governments to step in and resolve the issue, by legally mandating rent reductions across the board.
<a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02673037.2019.1644297">Recent analysis</a> of renter and landlord household finances clearly shows the latter group are much better placed to take a financial hit from this pandemic.
Up to now the prime minister has encouraged tenants and landlords to make individual arrangements. In the absence of any government guidance, agents’ and tenants’ representatives agree on this much: the <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/a-mess-renters-landlords-and-agents-face-coronavirus-quagmire-20200406-p54hj9">situation is a mess</a>.
Some landlords and agents are responding sympathetically. Others are hesitant, apparently wary voluntary reductions may void their insurance. Some are insisting on full payment, or even increasing rents. And some were <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/apr/02/real-estate-agents-criticised-for-suggesting-tenants-consider-using-superannuation-to-pay-rent">advising tenants to draw on their superannuation</a> to pay rent – until <a href="https://asic.gov.au/about-asic/news-centre/articles/asic-letter-unlicensed-financial-advice-by-real-estate-agents-to-tenants/">ASIC warned them off</a>.
Why should government step in?
Yesterday the National Cabinet <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/update-coronavirus-measures-070420">addressed commercial tenancies</a>, but again left aside residential tenancies. It is within the power of state and territory governments to sort this mess out. They could legislate to reduce rents to some fraction of current rents or to zero – a complete suspension of rent liabilities for the declared duration of the pandemic.
With federal government co-operation, mortgage interest could receive the same treatment: mandatorily reduced or suspended for the pandemic, with principal repayments deferred.
This is the appropriate response to the peculiar nature of this crisis. The key point here is that government is deliberately suppressing economic activity to prevent transmission of the virus. With household incomes much reduced – and governments trying to top them up with new payments – it makes sense also to reduce household outflows.
A look at renter and landlord finances
The biggest household expenses to reduce are rent and interest. Here’s a quick sketch of incomes and outflows in the Australian private rental sector, using the latest available figures from the <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4130.0Main+Features12017-18?OpenDocument">ABS</a>, the ATO, the <a href="https://www.pc.gov.au/research/completed/renters">Productivity Commission</a> and <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02673037.2019.1644297">detailed analysis</a> of previous rounds of data last year by Kath Hulse, Margaret Reynolds and me.
About 2.5 million Australian households rent privately. Just over half are in the bottom 40% of households by income. About one-third are low-income households paying more than 30% of their income in rent – and that’s before the COVID-19 income losses.
Private renters pay about A$43 billion a year in rent to another, smaller group of households: Australia’s 1.3 million landlord households.
A little more than half of that rental income, A$22 billion, flows right out again to banks, as interest payments on investment loans. For 60% of landlords the interest outflow, plus other property-related expenses, is greater than their rental income: they are negatively geared. For them, rental income is not about putting food on the table; it is part-funding their investment or speculation in property.
This negatively geared group receives high incomes from work and other sources. Leaving aside their net rental losses, they have an average annual taxable income of about A$94,000, versus A$54,000 for non-landlords. Landlords’ other incomes may have taken a COVID-19 hit, but the most common occupations for this group – general managers, registered nurses and accountants – have probably fared better than the <a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-130-billion-jobkeeper-payment-what-the-experts-think-135043">casual and gig workers</a>.
Landlords who derive a net positive rental income mostly receive other income too. Their average annual taxable income is A$66,000 before net rent is added.
A relative few landlords, 16%, are post-retirement age. They may well rely on rental income for consumption, but, on average, they are rich, with almost A$3 million in net wealth.
A final point about landlords: they are more likely to have a partner than non-landlords. Presumably, then, they have access to shared resources when times are tough. The average disposable household income for landlords is A$135,000 a year, versus A$82,000 for non-landlords.
So, were tenants’ rental outflows reduced, landlord households are relatively well-positioned to bear a reduction in their rental incomes.
How to ease the burden on landlords
Landlords would, of course, also want to reduce their own outflows. They have probably already done so, because the pandemic has closed so many discretionary spending opportunities.
Another outflow – the A$3 billion a year they spend on real estate agents – would also be reduced, because agent fees are mostly calculated as a proportion of rent. This would cause pain for agents, but many of their activities – inspecting properties, handling eviction proceedings, conducting marketing campaigns – are not needed in a pandemic. <a href="https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-04/Fact_sheet_supporting_businesses_0.pdf">JobKeeper payments</a> could support their businesses.
 
The biggest pain would be the interest outflow. But let’s reduce or suspend interest too, for both owner-occupiers and landlords. This would reduce income for banks, which would have a problem when their own liabilities to whole funders come due.
And at that point a really useful negotiation could take place between banks and the Australian government. They could “sit down, talk to each other and work this out” – as the PM has suggested to millions of individuals – to keep finance operating, in return for reformed service and a public equity stake.
In ordinary times, rents and interest have a controversial role in the economy. They extract value from productive actors in the economy for the benefit of owners of property and financial assets, and are the object of speculation. But, as the political economist David Harvey <a href="https://www.versobooks.com/books/2814-the-limits-to-capital">observes</a>, they also have a co-ordinating role that drives competition and future production.
But these are not ordinary times. For the moment, at least, we don’t need rent to co-ordinate what the economy must do. We need to produce the essentials and whatever else can be safely done at home, with the rest of production in hibernation. And we need to ensure households retain enough income for the essentials, with reductions in income equitably shared.<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135929/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/chris-martin-203935">Chris Martin</a>, Senior Research Fellow, City Futures Research Centre, <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/rents-can-and-should-be-reduced-or-suspended-for-the-coronavirus-pandemic-135929">original article</a>.
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Rents can and should be reduced or suspended for the coronavirus pandemic

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EXPERT OBSERVER
The property development sector has so far proven to be more insulated to the broader economic chaos caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, with developments pressing on where possible.
But the reality is it is only a matter of time before development itself starts to feel the pinch. The normal processes of business are being disrupted and even disabled. This will become fatal to some businesses if action is not taken rapidly.
It’s critical that developers and other industry stakeholders work together now to find mutually beneficial solutions that allow our industry to keep moving in these difficult times.
Planning approval authorities like local Councils in particular need to come to the party.
As supply chains become increasingly disrupted, materials that are critical to meet development compliance are becoming harder to acquire.
If compliance can’t be met, and subdivisions are not completed then titles are not issued – stakeholders don’t get paid and work ceases. It’s a simple domino effect, and all parts of the industry will feel it.
One idea would be to implement a sort of “remaining works schedule” – the idea being that any remaining works that that aren’t complete, as a result of missing materials, can still be issued with an amended statement of compliance – this way settlements and payments keep moving and the industry keeps turning.
If we don’t rise to the challenge presented by this pandemic then we might not have an industry in the foreseeable future.
Our industry has always been renowned for its innovation and agile thinking. It’s needed now more than ever.
FRANCO BEVACQUA is the Managing Director at Charles Lloyd Property Group
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Planning authorities must adapt if construction sector is to survive COVID-19

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GUEST OBSERVATION
In the past, the courts were ideal breeding grounds for spreading disease. In what became known as the “Black Assize”, a deadly fever that swept through prisons and courts in England in 1586, 11 of 12 jurors in one trial died. So did a number of judges and constables.
In the current coronavirus pandemic, Australian courts are taking no chances, with <a href="http://www.supremecourt.justice.nsw.gov.au/Documents/Home%20Page/Announcements/Covid-19,%20Jury%20Trials,%2015%20March%202020.pdf">NSW</a>, Victoria and other states announcing there will be no new jury trials until further notice.
But many courts are rapidly <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/courts-look-to-remote-technology-amid-virus-20200320-p54c85">increasing</a> the use of video for other essential hearings. States and territories are also developing <a href="https://www.courts.act.gov.au/about-the-courts/news/response-to-the-covid-19-virus">new protocols</a> for how to use video in their courtrooms.
In a sense, the courts have been preparing for an outbreak like this for some time. Witnesses and defendants routinely appear in court via video link, as do judicial officers in Northern Territory and South Australia courts. Tribunals have been using video for even longer.
Our research, however, suggests that attempts to translate courtroom interactions to a video-mediated process do not always work. Introducing monitors into the courtroom requires a reimagining of courtroom spaces, social cues, symbols and performances.
Does appearing remotely hurt defendants?
In the case of vulnerable witnesses like sexual assault victims and children, there is little to no evidence that testimony via video (from a special room located in the court building) impacts a jury’s verdict, though users themselves report challenges with such a set-up.
In one of our studies, we <a href="https://researchdirect.westernsydney.edu.au/islandora/object/uws:51755/">simulated</a> a criminal trial in which mock jurors were randomly assigned to different configurations, including:
<ul>
<li>
a defendant sitting in the dock in the courtroom,
</li>
<li>
a defendant sitting beside their lawyer in the courtroom,
</li>
<li>
a defendant appearing remotely on their own (as they would in most standard remote hearings),
</li>
<li>
or a defendant appearing with their lawyer in a video hearing, with the prosecutor also appearing on video.
</li>
</ul>
We found defendants appearing via video were no more likely to be found guilty than if they were sitting beside their lawyers in court.
However, if the defendant was isolated in a dock – the normal situation in most courts – he was significantly more likely to be considered guilty. It seems that <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jols.12033">isolation in the dock</a> is worse for defendants than isolation on a screen.
Other research, however, points to different issues with video hearings. In criminal matters, defendants who appear remotely from police custody or jail are more likely to have a <a href="https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=7365&amp;context=jclc">higher bail set</a>, <a href="https://www.justice.gov.uk/downloads/publications/research-and-analysis/moj-research/virtual-courts.pdf">plead guilty and receive longer sentences</a> than those who appear in person.
Similarly, asylum seekers appearing remotely from detention are less likely to <a href="https://bailobs.files.wordpress.com/2019/10/systematic-failure-1.pdf">actively participate</a> in their tribunal hearing and more likely to be <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ingrid_Eagly/publication/283711668_Remote_Adjudication_in_Immigration/links/5643c27608ae54697fb3e885/Remote-Adjudication-in-Immigration.pdf">deported</a>.
Some defendants have <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.bookdepository.com/Pixelated-Prisoner-Carolyn-McKay/9781138085107">reported</a> feeling disorientated, not being able to hear or understand the proceedings and lacking confidence in the fairness of the hearing.
One reason is the design of a remote criminal hearing is inherently imbalanced. The judge, prosecutor and often defence counsel, as well as court staff and members of the public, are all grouped together in the actual courtroom, while the defendant is alone on a screen.
In this lopsided configuration, it may be hard for the defendant to feel as if they are a part of the proceedings or for those in the courtroom to feel the defendant’s presence.
How different designs and protocols can help
In a <a href="https://researchdirect.westernsydney.edu.au/islandora/object/uws:15505">2013</a> study on remote participation in court, we produced a set of guidelines to help address some of the shortcomings of video technology.
These included putting the remote participant in a room with a window or piece of artwork, which helps to reduce their stress levels. Additionally, making introductions at the start of the hearing and ensuring everyone can see and hear can also make people feel more at ease.
Now, with coronavirus making it impossible for physical gatherings of any kind, we need to reimagine courtrooms as a completely virtual space where all parties meet on the same plane.
This has already been piloted in some instances. In 2018, the UK Ministry of Justice trialled the country’s first-ever “video hearings” in the <a href="https://insidehmcts.blog.gov.uk/2018/09/13/video-hearings-put-to-the-test/">tax tribunal</a>, where appellants and representatives from the tax office attended remotely from their home or office.
As an <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/implementing-video-hearings-party-to-state-a-process-evaluation">independent evaluator</a> of this pilot, we found participants were able to access their hearings easily, understood the proceedings and considered the format to be appropriately formal. This was despite the fact they experienced frequent technical disruptions.
In particular, participants benefited from a “dry run” before the hearing to iron out issues with sound or video, and by the judge making introductions and getting the parties ready at the start.
There were also important design elements that improved the experience for participants, including the introduction of a virtual “waiting room” where they were kept informed about the timing of their case.
The immersive virtual courtroom
In the future, technology will allow us to create an immersive courtroom experience.
Working with a range of justice partners, we developed a <a href="https://courtofthefuture.org/publications/virtual-court-study/">proof of concept</a> of such a virtual courtroom at the Queensland Supreme Court in 2016, showing judges and other stakeholders how could work.
In this set-up, all the participants – the judge, defendant, lawyers, witnesses and jurors – were seated in pods or video suites surrounded by screens with the other participants around them.
Of course, once the world returns to a semblance of normalcy after the pandemic, courts will go back to places where people meet together in a room. But the lessons learned from this time are vital.
We can reimagine courts in a virtual space. Paying attention to key design principles and modifying the way we conduct court rituals on video will allow for effective participation in the courts of the future.<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134386/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/meredith-rossner-1002103">Meredith Rossner</a>, Professor of Criminology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/australian-national-university-877">Australian National University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/david-tait-704895">David Tait</a>, Professor of Justice Research, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/western-sydney-university-1092">Western Sydney University</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/courts-are-moving-to-video-during-coronavirus-but-research-shows-its-hard-to-get-a-fair-trial-remotely-134386">original article</a>.
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Courts moving to video during COVID-19 but its hard to get a fair trial

<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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