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<div>SQM Research calculated that national residential listings fell in October by 1.4 percent to 324,228, with stock levels decreasing in most capital cities.  Melbourne posted the biggest drop of 3 percent, but listings bucked the national trend in Sydney and Canberra. Listings also rose in Adelaide by 2.6 percent.</div>
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<div>There were gains of 2.8 percent in Sydney and 5.3 percent in Canberra. </div>
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<div>Compared to a year ago, listings were down by 4.6 percent across all Australian capital cities. </div>
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<div>The biggest drop was posted in Hobart, with listings down by 25 percent. </div>
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<div>SQM said Melbourne followed, with listings down by 11 percent, reflecting tight supply in those two cities.</div>
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<div>"It is not unusual to record a slight decline in listings in October," Louis Christopher at SQM said.</div>
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<div>"The initial September spring surge in listings has run its course. </div>
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<div>"A second surge in November usually occurs prior to the market closing for the year, and so, we expect listings to rise again next month."  "There is no evidence of any major correction in any city, however the large year-on-year rises in Sydney are demonstrating a downturn," he added.. SQM noted capital city asking prices rose 1 percent for houses but were flat for units for the month to October 24. </div>
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<div>The largest monthly rise came from Hobart, where unit asking prices rose 10 percent.</div>
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<div> In Melbourne, asking prices for houses rose by 1.7 percent, with a 1.3 percent rise in asking prices for units. Year-on-year gains were also the strongest in Melbourne, with both houses and unit prices rising 21 percent and 12.7 percent respectively.</div>
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j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

Sydney's October listings surge are a sign of the downturn: SQM

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David Malouf, the internationally acclaimed author, has sold his long held Chippendale terrace before its weekend auction.
The <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/sold/property-house-nsw-chippendale-126511086" target="_blank">Myrtle Street home</a>, marketed as the matriarch of the street due to its rare six metre wide presence, sold after it spent 19 days on the market.
It's expected to have fetched around $2.2 million, some profit for the home that cost $175,000 in 1985.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/11/1/Malouf2.jpg" alt="">
Malouf bought the home the same year he published his memoirs, 12 Edmondstone Street.
The three level terrace behind an updated facade has four bedrooms and two bathrooms.
The formal dining, living area and timber topped kitchen open to a rear leafy courtyard.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/11/1/Malouf3.jpg" alt="">
LJ Hooker Newtown agents Nick Moraitis and Edward Burns sold the home.
The Brisbane born and bred writer graduated from the University of Queensland in 1955. His first novel, Johnno (1975), is the semi-autobiographical tale.
He who received the Australia Council Award for Lifetime Achievement in Literature last year.
This article first appeared in the Sunday Telegraph.
 
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Internationally acclaimed author David Malouf sells Chippendale terrace

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<div>
The home sharing platform Airbnb has come out in support of  a limit on the number of days a investment property can be rented in NSW strata, as it seeks to avoid a tougher regulatory crackdown by the NSW government.
In a submission to the NSW government, Airbnb said if a host wants to rent out an investment property on Airbnb for more than 180 days in a year, they would have to apply for a development application through the local council.
There are more than 45,000 Airbnb listings in the state with average host earning around $5,300 a year.
Hosts will not require permissions to rent out their primary place of residence or investment property for less than 180 days a year.
The NSW government's options paper, which was released in July, considers a range of options.
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Submissions closed this week with the government is expected to release a response before Christmas.
NSW Planning Minister Anthony Roberts envisages any new policy would need to balance protecting neighbours and allowing people to profit from providing short-term accommodation.
<a href="https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/committees/inquiries/Pages/inquiry-submission-details.aspx?pk=%2053960" target="_blank">Airbnb's prior submission</a> has called for a statewide planning framework which clarifies how individuals are allowed to rent out the homes.
"Airbnb supports a clear, statewide approach that supports our host community sharing their own primary place of residence without the need for approvals, registrations, or caps, and for non-­primary places of residence, an approach that is streamlined with clear information about the safety and planning standards to adhere to," it said in the submission.
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London introduced a 90-day limit a calendar year on Airbnb rentals. 
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In June 2015, Philadelphia became the largest city in the U.S. to pass legislation specifically enabling people to share their homes for up to half a year.
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The city of Hamburg acted to clarify that rules restricting tourist accommodation in residential areas do not apply to primary residences.
The Hamburg housing law gives residents the right to use all of their home to host guests for up to 50% of the year. Alternatively, they can use 50% of their home to host guests all year round. 
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A recent City of Sydney Council survey of 1000 residents showed more than 40 per cent of Sydney inner-city residents oppose short term rentals on Airbnb or Stayz as a full-time investment and believe strata bodies should be able to ban short-term rentals.
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Airbnb also recommends the NSW government set up a "three-strikes-and-you're-out" framework to manage complaints.
Airbnb said it opposes giving strata bodies the power to prohibit short-term renting. 
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Airbnb has been gaining immense traction in New South Wales.
New South Wales’ host community has welcomed nearly 420,000 Airbnb guests during the past twelve months which represents a year-over-year growth rate of 167 percent.
We have a large community of people across New South Wales for whom sharing their home is now part of their lifestyle.
"There are now approximately 20,000 active listings in New South Wales and Sydney ranks as one of Airbnb’s top ten cities for most properties on the platform."
In an Economic Impact Study that Airbnb conducted in Sydney, Airbnbn found that the majority of hosts (85 percent) rent their primary residences occasionally and earn a modest but significant amount of extra income that they use to help make ends meet.
In Australia, the average host earns $7,100 per year and hosts approximately 51 nights per year.
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Airbnb support 180 day limit without formal NSW development approvals

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GUEST OBSERVER
Whether it’s the use of Terminator imagery, visions of dystopia, or discussions of genomics, it’s common practice to use the metaphors and framing of speculative fiction to guide discussion into new and innovative areas.
A common theme is a world where humans do less work and machines do more. Why have we not yet reached that point?
I recently gave a talk on the implications of blockchain technologies for international trade. This technology can automate work that was manual and error-prone, bringing benefits with less human labour.
A colleague from another university reminded me afterwards that the promise of less work in the future was a mainstay of science fiction. Given my interests in smart city technologies, he asked, why did I think that we would finally see a real reduction in human work, as had been promised for so many years?
Trend towards shorter weeks reversed
To answer this question, we need to return to the mid-late 19th century, when the explosion of science-fiction writing began. Here are some Parisian illustrations of the year 2000. In these pictures, manual effort is reduced to button-pushing and supervision. Machines do the work and, hence, humans do less.
But what became of all this saved time? What happened to the leisure-oriented future?
A small amount of history is in order, as the 40-hour working week is a relatively new development. At the start of the 19th century, 100-hour weeks were not uncommon, and Australia has a long history of labour movements to develop a liveable working week.
The adoption of the 40-hour working week is often interpreted as a boon for workers but, as Henry Ford admitted, it is as much a benefit for employers. Ford observed that fatigued workers made more mistakes. Asking his workers to put in more than 40 hours a week usually cost him more money than he made.
John Maynard Keynes, writing in 1930, thought we’d be working 30 hours a week by 2030. Our problem would be too much free time.
We were on track to reducing working hours until 1980, when we went the other way. Working harder, for longer, somehow became desirable. And demandable.
Rutger Bregman has explored this at length in his book, Utopia for Realists. He champions a 15-hour work week to remove “bullshit jobs” and to give humans time to do useful and rewarding things. But this is at odds with how we often think about work. Work, and the amount of work we do, frequently defines our value.
Overwork is often interpreted as commitment, rather than inefficiency. The visions of reduced working weeks were, whether the authors knew it or not, visions of a more effective workforce. But to admit to doing less work is often interpreted as a proxy for caring less.
Given subsistence and thriving are generally related to the job we do, work is not just important in terms of perception, it is vital to survival.
So what’s different now?
Returning to my colleague’s question, have we actually reached a point where we could work less and get the same amount of work done? If so, why now?
In the developed world, home appliances have greatly reduced the need for physical labour. Fewer people need to be involved in tasks that once left them little time to do much else.
For example, the word processor and email have, to a great extent, replaced the dedicated secretarial staff that briefly flourished with the rise of the typewriter. At one time all copies were made with manual scribes, carefully duplicating what they read. Then we had carbon paper. Then photocopiers. Then printers. Then the requirement for physical copy reduced.
An entire stream of labour appeared and disappeared as technology advanced. We freed ourselves of one kind of work; we just replaced it with another.
The rise of robotics has heralded a new model for labour: one where humans can be removed from the entirety of a task, beyond supervision or programming. But we know that we may not always want to do this. In India, Nitin Gadkari, the minister for road transport, highways and shipping, said: "We won’t allow driverless cars in India. … I am very clear on this. We won’t allow any technology that takes away jobs."
India has 400 million workers, 12.5 million of them identified in transport, storage and communication industries. Putting millions of people out of work is at odds with India’s plans to increase the numbers in the workforce.
So we have two reasons emerging for why we haven’t seen the promised labour reductions. The first is our perceptions of working hours as proxy value of an employee. The second is that few governments want to cause widespread unemployment as this is then linked to social and economic issues.
But this is at odds with what we know about work: too much of it is bad for us and the job itself.
Working out the post-work economy
Until now, these answers have been enough because we didn’t really have machines that could replace us. But that has changed in many areas. Planes can land themselves. Cars can drive themselves. Computer-controlled trains run in many subways and airports of the world.
In terms of transport, then, humans are rapidly becoming superfluous, except as passengers. And transport is only one example. We can now say “let someone else do it” and have that someone not be human.
We finally have the means to sensibly replace human labour, without forcing that work on to someone else. But this does not mean we can simply do that. We need to work out how to support people in a post-work economy.
We need to accurately identify which jobs machines can’t do. We need to identify how we will be social without the accidental socialisation caused by the necessity of work.
We now live in the age predicted by science fiction. It’s up to us whether we choose to give ourselves the leisure, or not.
Nick Falkner is associate professor and director of the Australian Smart Cities Consortium at University of Adelaide.
This article was originally published on <a href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-happened-to-our-promised-leisure-time-and-will-we-find-it-in-the-smart-city-83570" target="_blank">original article</a>.
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Will smart cities lead us to our promised leisure time?: Nick Falkner

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GUEST OBSERVER
Increasing urbanisation, denser city living, more expensive apartment prices and higher rents are reshaping our access to and use of urban space. Room-sharing websites are one sign that the cost of city living is driving people to consider sharing rooms with strangers out of necessity. Those flats are not homes anymore.
If people can’t spend time in their flat – because it is too crowded, too noisy or not safe enough – they end up spending more time in public spaces like libraries or quasi-public spaces like gaming arcades or shopping malls. Dutch Prizker Prize-winning architect Rem Koolhaas calls this Junkspace. Or they are spending time in the street, plazas and parks.
How does the city cater for people in these places? Imagine a home furnished with the kind of furniture we typically see on the street. Would it feel comfy?
Generally the design of this kind of public furniture has a strictly defined scope. It has to be vandal-resistant, easy to install, require little to no maintenance, not encourage littering, tie in with the style of the precinct, etc.
Public furniture also has an established typology – benches and seats mainly. This restricts what we can do in public (sit down with a straight back, we can’t lounge). These are part of the design considerations to provide a bench for people to sit on.
What if we want to do more than just sit?
The spacing, positioning and location of furniture in public space play a big part in deciding what I can look at, with whom, for how long and how I’ll feel while sitting there.
But what if I want to do more then just sit there? Where, for instance, do I plug in my phone or laptop to recharge?
It is also not easy to wash my hands in a public space. For example, I’ve sat down and eaten an orange on a bench, my hands are sticky and I’d like to wash them. Perhaps I’ve also taken off my coat while sitting there. What now?
I’ve got to seek out the nearest public toilet and use the hand basin, but where to put all my other belongings while doing that? On the toilet floor?
A basic human right is access to water and utility services. We need to provide this access in the public sphere, and not just in commercial environments like coffee shops.
Filling up a water bottle is not easy, buying water is – if you can afford it. This is not an equitable solution. It adds to the already significant financial burden of paying high rents and city living.
Think about how design can expand our options
While we have furniture for the street, the street, parks and plazas lack other services. Design embeds a narrow social script in the current range of street furniture. The design of new public furnishings needs to adapt and offer citizens a wider, more diverse range of options for being in the city.
For example, people should have access to facilities to carry out basic healthy living practices, such as washing hands. They also need access to power – perhaps even a facility to heat up food, like a home-made lunch, or a pre-prepared meal from the supermarket.
Furnishing a public space with such new public appliances could transform it, soften it, bring familiarity, comfort and a sense of domesticity to it; a public backyard. The opportunities for a smart city are not just large-scale infrastructure, public transport and traffic monitoring, but also exist at a finer-grained level.
These new kind of street furnishings can be made available to users via a contemporary, digital version of the old city gate. It can require them to log in or authorise them to use equipment via a unique identifier. We already practise this on e-commerce and sharing economy websites.
This new kind of public street furniture can have sensors embedded that monitor and respond in real time to their use. Interactive furniture can be part of a larger dedicated data system. It can inform relevant authorities if the power point is drawing excessive power, or if the noise level at this power point is too loud for the time of day and, in response, turn off the lights and the power.
Parameters can be tested and the calibration of use and user patterns can be explored in line with neighbourhood expectations. The system can then autonomously react to the data gathered.
Street furniture can be reconceived as connected and interactive appliances. These would then provide a gateway that gives people access to everyday utilities. And, by doing so, these new facilities could provide quasi-domestic-style amenity in the public realm, making the city a more equitable and welcoming place for all.
Christian Tietz is senior lecturer in industrial design at UNSW.
This article was originally published on <a href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/people-friendly-furniture-in-public-places-matters-more-than-ever-in-todays-city-83568" target="_blank">original article</a>.
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People-friendly furniture in public places matters more than ever: Christian Tietz

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A grand manor on the Gold Coast has been listed for sale, now comes with slightly reduced asking price.
Re-built since last trading for a street record $4,025,000 in 2014, the Paradise Waters home sits at the point of the tightly held Buccaneer Court cul-de-sac overlooking the waterways.
<a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-qld-paradise+waters-126305082" target="_blank">The re-configured home at 31 Buccaneer Court</a>, which comes with plans to extend even further, has five bedrooms, six bathrooms and a separate library.
There's a hint of European chateau with a more contemporary up-state New York feel too, Ray White Broadbeach agents Sam Guo and Julia Kuo suggest.
They were looking for offers over $7 million for the three level home with internal lift, but now will accept $6.95 million.
The home is fitted with imported materials including French exterior shutters and Himalayan sandstone.
The main outdoor pavilion overlooks the heated pool with 10 person spa. A second balcony features with a custom-built outdoor gas fireplace and barbecue. 
The gardens spill on to a vast 43 metre long private white sandy beach with double boat ramp, shed and pontoon.
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Price reduced on Paradise Waters trophy home

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A 23 hectare land parcel on the eastern face of Mount Chincogan at Mullumbimby has been listed for sale by mortgagee in possession.
The parcel has been held in one ownership for decades.
It features "excellent plateau homesites" as well as massive stands of untouched mature eucalypts with all the attendant wildlife.
The location at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-other-nsw-mullumbimby-7931046" target="_blank">Lot 1 Midginbel Lan</a>e allows quick access to the Pacific Motorway, Mullumbimby or Ocean Shores shops, Brunswick Heads or New Brighton for the beach.
It is 20 minutes from Byron Bay and 40 mins to Coolangatta International Airport.
It is "without doubt a dress circle property ready for the creative touch", the marketing by Mark Cochrane at The Professionals suggests.
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Mortgagees list 23 hectare land parcel at Mt Chincogan, Mullumbimby 

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Mortgagees have secured the $572,000 sale of a five bedroom Mernda home.
Situated in a sought after pocket of Mernda, the neat home came complete with a well-appointed kitchen and open plan living design, large family and meals area.
The home was set on a 565 square metre block at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/sold/property-house-vic-mernda-126373358" target="_blank">24 Black Braes Boulevard</a>. The block had sold at $222,000 in 2015.
The home was marketed as suitable to first home and second home buyers plus investors. 
It came with $500,000 to $550,000 price guidance by Ray White South Morang.
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Mortgagees secure $572,000 Mernda sale

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Around 10 years ago, the internationally acclaimed architect Glenn Murcutt was approached to design a Palm Beach home by two expatriate Australian's living in London.
Their intention was to return to Australia wanting a house for their growing family, initially for use during weekends and holidays but later to become their main residence.
The result was <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-nsw-palm+beach-125176958" target="_blank">Donaldson House at Palm Beach</a>, a house designed with sensitivity to the landscape, climate and seasons.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/11/1/Murcutt4.jpg" alt="">
Surrounded by native bushland and with views to Pittwater, the home offers the best of a treechange and sea change within the Sydney basin.
The four bedroom home on Bynya Road was only completed in September last year. Circumstance now sees it listed for sale.
Sitting below a sandstone crop on a steep 715 sqm parcel that cost $830,000 in 2003, the home is almost invisible from the street.
The internal space measures 166 square metres with all living spaces and bedrooms configured on the north side of the house to take advantage of the northern sunlight. All its passageways are on the south side of the house.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/11/1/Murcutt3.jpg" alt="">
The master bedroom and bathroom are on the upper level, as are the kitchen, dining and living space that extend to a partially covered veranda with views to the south and west.
Three bedrooms, a bathroom and laundry are on the lower level.
The interior has been described as a calm and tranquil space with white walls, sealed concrete floors and hoop-pine lined ceilings.
The windows open to the native trees and sandstone crops.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/11/1/Murcutt2.jpg" alt="">
On one wall hangs a tapestry, Orion M.C. by Victor Vasarely, which originally hung in the public lobby of the Harry Seidler-designed Australia Square. The tapestry was sold in 2003 and an important brief for the Donaldson House was to find a place in the house where the tapestry could be well viewed.
A suspended concrete staircase descends from the top level of the two-storey house that located in a high fire-risk area.
Its design and construction specifically meets the standards and regulations, with reinforced concrete foundations, steel roof rafters and toughened glass throughout, and the exterior of the house is clad with black-weathered zinc.
The house is economical and sustainable with water storage tanks, solar panels and no air conditioning. Opal white interlayered laminate roof glazing is set over the main stairwell where it has externally mounted, electrically operated, adjustable louvers for controlling light and heat. The two tanks have a total capacity of 7500 litres to be used for the laundry, bathrooms and in case of fire.
Now Modern House agency are seeking offers with a guide price of $ 4.1 million. Palm Beach's median house for four bedders is $2.75 million, according to CoreLogic.
Murcutt is considered Australia's greatest living architect. He won the prestigious Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2002, one of the highest distinctions in architecture.
On its award Murcutt was described as being scrupulously energy conscious.
In announcing the jury’s choice, Thomas J. Pritzker, president of The Hyatt Foundation, said Murcutt was "a stark contrast to most of the highly visible architects of the day."
Pritzker said Murcutt's "works were not large scale, the materials he works with, such as corrugated iron, are quite ordinary, certainly not luxurious; and he works alone."
His modernist inspiration extends well beyond the work of Mies van der Rohe, to the Nordic tradition of Aalto and the Australian wool shed, it was suggested.
Noting an age obsessed with celebrity, the glitz of ‘starchitects,’ backed by large staffs and copious public relations support, the Pritzker Prize jury chairman, J. Carter Brown, commented Murcutt worked in a one-person office on the other side of the world from much of the architectural attention
His houses were testament that aesthetics and ecology can work together to bring harmony to man’s intrusion in the environment, the judges noted.
This article was first published in The Weekend Australian.
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Donaldson House at Palm Beach, a house designed by Glenn Murcutt still listed

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Mackay district mortgagees have listed what is being marketed as The Palace on Preston.
"It could be the most affordable home sold in Slade Point this year," the marketing by Explore Property agent Trevor Camilleri says.
The three bedroom home sits on a 607 sq m block.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/11/1/Mackay2.jpg" alt="">
It last sold at $220,000 in 2005.
"Plaster + Paint + Polish = Profit," <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-qld-slade+point-126670386" target="_blank">Camilleri suggests</a>.
It will be auctioned November 13.
The property is less than 7.5km to the CBD, and minutes to Harbour Beach and the entertainment precinct at Mackay Marina.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/11/1/Mackay3.jpg" alt="">
 
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Mackay mortgagees list the Palace of Slade Point

Eddy Haddad's <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/level-33">Level 33</a> is levelling up its approved Wollongong development, as the coastal city south of Sydney continues to prove popular in the high-density development space.

Level 33, a longtime developer in the Wollongong area, has gone through the NSW Government's Housing Delivery Authority to upsize its approved two-tower development on the corner of Crown Street and Gladstone Avenue, just 100 metres from Wollongong Station.

The developer currently has approval for 252 apartments across two buildings rising to 19 storeys. It is now seeking approval for 33 and 38-storey towers that would deliver 467 apartments, including 67 affordable homes.

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/bka-architecture">BKA Architecture</a>, the development would comprise apartments above a three-level podium with around 1,100 sqm of retail space, along with basement parking for 448 vehicles.

According to the Urban Design Report by BKA, the proposal has the capacity to "reinforce the precinct's identity by strengthening links between health, education, and transport services, while also contributing to Wollongong's ongoing evolution as a key regional centre."

Wollongong is somewhat in vogue. Between Level 33 and Urban Property Group, the two developers have several thousand apartments planned across the city.

Level 33 is currently delivering Easterly Wollongong, one of its most boutique projects to date with just 21 high-end apartments, as well as Atchison &amp; Kenny, a 329-apartment development due for completion later this year. The developer also plans to redevelop the 13,088 sqm WIN Grand megasite into a new $500 million precinct with nearly 600 apartments and has more than 900 apartments planned for the former Bunnings Warehouse site at the intersection of Gipps and Flinders streets.

Urban Property Group is also playing a major role in the city's transformation. Its five-tower Keira Place precinct will deliver more than 800 homes, and it has recently lodged plans for a further 300 apartments near Wollongong Station.

Joel Robinson

First look: Level 33 upsizes Wollongong apartment towers

Just a week after filing plans for the final stage of its major Keira Place masterplan, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/urban-property-group">Urban Property Group</a> has unveiled another significant housing proposal in Wollongong, this time targeting a prominent site opposite North Wollongong Station.

The developer has lodged a State Significant Development Application for a 38-storey mixed-use tower at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/4-4a-flinders-street-north-wollongong-nsw-2500">4-4A Flinders Street</a>, around one kilometre north of the <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/keira-place-wollongong-120-122-smith-street-wollongong-nsw-2500">Keira Place precinct</a> currently taking shape on the edge of the CBD.

<img alt="First look: Urban Property Group plans 38-storey North Wollongong tower as Keira Place expansion gathers pace" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2b6428f1-6405-4038-8476-897de440e90d" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/flinders%20podium.png?VersionId=QLqEvK0OuCEwRC47oHNftrw2B1YqaHF8" />

Designed by Studio.SC, the proposal comprises a 38-storey mixed-use development containing 303 apartments, including 45 affordable housing units, alongside 174 co-living residences. The scheme also includes ground-floor retail space, extensive landscaping and public domain improvements.

Studio.SC noted in the proposal it "outlines a vision for a landmark transit-oriented mixed-use development centred around North Wollongong Station, designed to support the city’s future growth while responding to the NSW Government’s housing and planning reforms."

The architecture firm said the proposal responds to the opportunities and constraints shaping future growth within the 400-metre catchment of the station and represents "a coordinated and future-focused approach to urban intensification, contributing to the long-term evolution of North Wollongong as a connected, walkable and high-density station precinct."

The site occupies a strategic corner bounded by Flinders Street, Station Street, Stafford Street and the Princes Highway, directly opposite North Wollongong Station.

<img alt="First look: Urban Property Group plans 38-storey North Wollongong tower as Keira Place expansion gathers pace" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="7863adad-1f71-4022-b850-f44b252738fd" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/flinders%20podium%20a.png?VersionId=WsU7av0g8_8R2tGHWxgHeFSlhu7yeY1V" />

The proposal follows Urban Property Group's recent submission for the second and final stage of Keira Place, which would deliver a further three buildings comprising 657 homes opposite Beaton Park. It builds on the first stage, which features 150 apartments across two towers and recently commenced construction.

Urban Property Group CEO Patrick Elias said breaking ground on the first stage marked a significant milestone for Wollongong and reflected the developer's long-term commitment to regional cities.

"Today's groundbreaking is about turning approvals into homes and moving quickly to deliver much-needed housing in Wollongong's city centre," Elias said.

"Keira Place will provide a diverse mix of homes close to jobs, transport and services, while setting a high benchmark for quality, durability and consumer protection."

Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/urban-property-group-unveils-trio-of-towers-for-next-stage-of-new-wollongong-precinct-keira-place">Urban Property Group unveils trio of towers for next stage of new Wollongong precinct, Keira Place</a>

First look: Urban Property Group plans next major Wollongong tower

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/arada">Arada</a> has wasted little time expanding its ambitions in Campsie, lodging plans for a second major project in the rapidly transforming town centre just months after unveiling its three-tower One Campsie proposal on Beamish Street.

The UAE-backed developer has now taken aim at one of the suburb’s most strategically positioned sites, filing a State Significant Development Application for a <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/10-north-parade-campsie-nsw-2194">33-storey mixed-use tower</a> at 10 London Street and 43 North Parade, directly opposite the future Campsie Metro Station. The proposal is currently on public exhibition and represents another significant vote of confidence in Campsie's emergence as one of Sydney’s key transit-oriented growth centres.

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/woods-bagot">Woods Bagot</a>, the development would deliver 156 apartments above a podium containing retail and commercial space, creating a new residential and commercial gateway to the town centre. The scheme also includes a four-level above-ground parking podium and a dedicated residential amenity floor featuring wellness and recreation facilities. At least 10 per cent of the apartments would be allocated as affordable housing for a period of 10 years.

The proposal occupies a 1,631 sqm site bounded by London Street, North Parade and Dispensary Lane, immediately adjoining the future Metro station precinct and just metres from Beamish Street’s retail and dining strip. According to the Urban Design Report, the project seeks to deliver "a great place that prioritises human-scaled experience and provides spatial improvements to the area."

<img alt="First look: Arada doubles down in Campsie with 33-storey Metro-front tower plans" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="175a8324-015b-4856-abe3-ce6f23199fa7" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/podium%20campsie.png?VersionId=742UGwXFhFBX4GEl6wX4PYIWREAgn6il" />

Woods Bagot describes the tower as a key marker within Campsie's next phase of growth.

"Located directly opposite the new Campsie Metro Station on North Parade, 10 London Street is a thoughtfully composed 33-storey mixed-use tower that contributes to the ongoing transformation of the town centre," the Architectural Design Report states. The report says the project is intended to provide "high-quality homes within a vibrant, connected urban environment, while helping define Campsie's future skyline."

A strong emphasis has been placed on the public realm. The ground floor incorporates over 500 sqm of retail space and active frontages along both London Street and North Parade, while the podium is wrapped by extensive landscaped planting intended to soften the building's scale and strengthen the pedestrian experience. The development would also widen surrounding footpaths and improve connections between the Metro station and the broader town centre.

Above the podium, residents would have access to more than 1,400 sqm of communal amenities, including a pool, gym and landscaped recreation spaces. A distinctive green-wall treatment extending across four podium levels forms a major architectural feature, helping differentiate the project within the emerging high-density precinct.

The tower's design is closely tied to the broader Campsie Town Centre Master Plan and the arrival of Sydney Metro. The Urban Design Report notes the proposal "directly supports the Campsie Town Centre Master Plan by delivering new homes in a location explicitly identified for growth, improved accessibility, and high-quality urban renewal." It adds that the project contributes to the master plan's vision for a strengthened town centre supported by thousands of new homes around the future Metro station.

<img alt="First look: Arada doubles down in Campsie with 33-storey Metro-front tower plans" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="bfd17654-253e-489a-bade-6278d63db412" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/base%20campsie.png?VersionId=3roJPMQGs36dazpkhvpvbDDP73Ld.Ica" />

The application follows Arada's recently lodged One Campsie project at 124–142 Beamish Street and 16–18 Ninth Avenue, where the developer is seeking approval for 346 apartments across three towers rising 24, 32 and 39 storeys. Together, the two proposals would cement Arada as one of the most influential developers shaping Campsie's future urban form.

Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-arada-files-for-trio-of-apartment-towers-in-campsie-town-centre">First Look: Arada files for trio of apartment towers in Campsie town centre</a>

Arada entered the Australian market in 2024 and has rapidly assembled a significant development pipeline across Sydney. Alongside its Campsie holdings, the developer is soon to launch <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/wattle-green-2-fishburn-crescent-castle-hill-nsw-2154">Wattle Green</a> in Castle Hill, and has expanded its local operations following its acquisition of construction firm Roberts &amp; Co.

Located around 14 kilometres south-west of the Sydney CBD, the site sits at the centre of one of Sydney's fastest-changing middle-ring precincts. The Metro conversion of Campsie Station, combined with Canterbury-Bankstown Council's master planning framework, is driving significant residential intensification around Beamish Street and North Parade, with thousands of new homes expected over coming decades.

First look: Arada doubles down in Campsie with 33-storey Metro-front tower plans

For the first time in a long time, Australia's inflation story is starting to look more like a landing than a fight.

The latest Consumer Price Index figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed annual inflation eased to four per cent in May, down from 4.2 per cent in April. On the surface, that might not seem like a major move. Inflation remains above the Reserve Bank's target range and some categories continue to record stubborn price growth.

But the significance of this result lies less in where inflation sits today and more in what it means for where interest rates are likely heading next.

The biggest takeaway is that inflation continues to move in the right direction.

Markets had been bracing for another sticky result after a period where progress appeared to stall. Instead, headline inflation came in softer than expected, helped by falling fuel prices and easing transport costs. Annual transport inflation halved from 6.6 per cent in April to 3.3 per cent in May, while automotive fuel prices fell 11.9 per cent during the month following lower oil prices and the impact of reduced fuel excise measures.

While petrol prices don't solve Australia's affordability challenges, they are one of the most visible and immediate costs for consumers. Falling fuel costs feed through the economy quickly, helping ease pressure on household budgets and business operating expenses.

The ABS data also showed headline inflation is now sitting at its lowest annual level in several months, reinforcing the broader trend that price growth is gradually moderating.

That trend is important because it aligns with what many economists and lenders have been saying for the last month.

Prior to this week's inflation data, ANZ, NAB and Commonwealth Bank had all shifted their forecasts, now believing the Reserve Bank had likely reached the peak of the interest rate cycle. Following the May inflation release, ANZ reaffirmed that view.

In its latest economic update, ANZ said it expects quarterly trimmed mean inflation to come in at 3.7 per cent for the June quarter, slightly below the Reserve Bank's forecast of 3.8 per cent. Importantly, the bank said that outcome, when combined with slowing economic activity, "supports our view that the cash rate has peaked".

The Reserve Bank has spent the better part of three years attempting to bring inflation under control through higher interest rates. If Australia's major banks are correct and rates have now peaked, the conversation shifts from how much higher rates could go to when they might begin coming down.

Westpac's caution comes from underlying inflation. The trimmed mean, the measure most closely watched by the Reserve Bank, increased from 3.4 per cent to 3.6 per cent annually. Housing inflation remains elevated at 6.5 per cent, reflecting ongoing increases in rents, electricity costs and new dwelling construction.

Electricity prices remain particularly problematic, rising 21.1 per cent over the past year following the removal of government rebates.

Housing construction costs are also showing signs of renewed pressure. ANZ noted new dwelling costs rose 0.9 per cent in May and are now running at an annualised pace of 8.6 per cent over the past three months. Builders continue to face higher labour, fuel and material costs, a reminder that inflationary pressures have not completely disappeared.

Housing affordability has deteriorated largely because of higher interest rates rather than higher property prices alone. Even modest reductions in mortgage rates would improve borrowing capacity, increase buyer confidence and reduce repayment pressure on existing homeowners.

While August is far from a certainty, the latest inflation result has strengthened the view that the next move in rates is more likely to be down than up. For borrowers, buyers and the development sector, that alone represents a significant shift from the conversation that dominated much of the past two years.

The inflation result the property market was waiting for

Commercial property group FiveX is doubling down on its move into the residential space.

The group, founded by Joshua and Marko Berger more than five decades ago, has followed up its plans for a 39-storey tower on North Sydney's Alfred Street with a proposed 61-storey tower in Chatswood.

The new tower at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/815-pacific-highway-chatswood-nsw-2067">815 Pacific Highway</a>, which would be one of the tallest proposed in Chatswood in recent years, will comprise 490 apartments, 76 of which will be dedicated affordable housing and managed by Evolve Housing for a minimum of 15 years.

The project will replace the long-standing Panorama Building, originally known as the BMA Tower, a 14-storey office building completed in 1972 and designed by Hungarian-born architect Hugo Stossel. At the time of its completion, the building was the tallest structure in Chatswood and became a local landmark due to its distinctive curved form and external glass lift.

<img alt="FiveX" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="956bd299-3864-47a0-8ea6-162b5524c5d8" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-06-24%20at%201.02.03%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=EWx7teUr7RcYrI9mgRytwppwt5AdUDtb" />

fjcstudio is behind the designs. Its Architectural Design Report argues the ageing commercial building no longer reflects Chatswood's role as one of Sydney's key strategic centres and that the site is ideally positioned to support significantly higher residential density.

"The site is located at the heart of Chatswood, within the TOD accelerated rezoning area that supports higher density development around the new Metro station," the report states.

"The site's role within a walkable 400-metre radius catchment is where housing, employment, retail and community uses are encouraged to cluster in support of transit-oriented living."

<img alt="fjc" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="8d198f5e-cc71-4175-9357-be6ec7207473" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-06-24%20at%201.18.27%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=5WUFc3IYBPvhQMBUYLCsjJhzdcVeYodE" />

The proposal has undergone two rounds of review by the NSW State Design Review Panel, with the design evolving through an extensive assessment process focused on design excellence, public realm outcomes, residential amenity and the integration of affordable housing.

fjcstudio says the residential component provides a diverse mix of apartment typologies, supporting a broad demographic and contributing to housing supply in a highly accessible location close to major transport, employment and retail infrastructure.

The application follows FiveX's plans for a 39-storey tower at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/275-alfred-street-north-north-sydney-nsw-2060">275 Alfred Street</a>, which it <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/275-alfred-street-north-north-sydney-nsw-2060">submitted through the same NSW Government pathway</a> in December. That's for 184 apartments.

Recent activity in Chatswood includes Hyecorp launching its Archer Street project, Celine, and Develotek securing approval for a 34-storey tower.

Staff reporter

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