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Retail property giants, Westfield Corporation and Scentre Group, were among the last companies to report their results in August, along with Lend Lease, Charter Hall Group and several smaller property companies. 
Westfield Corporation and Scentre Group, which each reported half-year results to June 30, 2015, hit their funds from operations forecasts and said they were in line to meet their full-year targets. 
Development works are expected to drive profits for Westfield Corporation, which owns and operates Westfield shopping centres in Europe and the USA. It plans to start $2.5bn worth of projects in the coming year with $1.6bn of redevelopments already started in the first half of 2015. 
Scentre Group, owner-operator of the Australian Westfield shopping centre assets, is also spending up on redevelopment with $825 million of works announced. Some of the costs will be covered using proceeds from the sale of four smaller shopping centres that did not fit with the group’s long-term strategy. 
Several listed property companies have noted the high prices that quality commercial assets are commanding.
“We expect quality Australian property to remain attractive to both domestic and off shore investors given the high Australian property yield spread to bond yields and that the cost of debt remains near record lows,” Charter Hall Group joint chief executive David Harrison said in announcing the fund manager’s results. 
Charter Hall Group delivered a statutory after-tax profit of $117.9 million, up 43.6%. Its operating earnings were $98.8 million, up 21.7%. 
Cromwell Property Group, which owns offices and operates property funds, said market conditions had lead it to be a net seller of assets.
“We believe some of the current sales activity represents peak of the cycle pricing for prime office assets, notably in Sydney and Melbourne,” Cromwell chief executive Paul Weightman said.
Cromwell reported statutory profit of $148.8 million, down from $182.5 million in 2014. It delivered operating earnings per security of 8.35 cents per share and distributions per security of 7.86 cents, up 3% on the previous year and in line with guidance. 
While asset prices were up, trading conditions in commercial property have been mixed.
National Storage REIT, which owns and operates self-storage centres, said weak business and consumer confidence and high levels of discounting among its competitors had created variable trading conditions for its business. 
The REIT, which listed at the end of 2013 and was admitted into the S&amp;P/ASX 200 in June 2015, reported an after-tax profit of $48.7 million and underlying earnings of 8.2 cents per security in line with guidance. 
Residential property markets are also variable across the country. 
Lend Lease, like other major residential developers, reported revenue from its residential division was up dramatically. The group reported $5.2 billion in pre-sales revenue for the year, more than double the prior year’s result. 
Sunland Group reported improving consumer sentiment in Sydney, Melbourne and south-east Queensland drove development margins higher and helped it deliver an after-tax profit of $30.1 million, 111% up on its 2014 result. 
Peet Limited reported a statutory profit of $38.5 million, up 27% on the previous year’s result as lower sales at its developments in Western Australia and the Northern Territory were partly offset by the strong performance of its projects in Victoria.
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Big property companies reporting strongly: Zoe Fielding

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Improving consumer confidence and market conditions in Melbourne, Sydney and south-east Queensland have helped residential developer Sunland Group boost profits for the 2015 financial year. 
The group reported an after-tax profit of $30.1 million, 111% up on its 2014 result. 
It said higher development margins and an increase in settlement values were partly responsible for the profit uplift, but most of the increase came from the sale of $90.1 million worth of assets in Sydney and Melbourne. 
Some of the sale proceeds were earmarked for reinvestment in south-east Queensland, including the acquisition of a 42 hectare site on the Gold Coast and the group’s first residential housing development site in Brisbane.
“Sunland has maintained a counter-cyclical approach to site acquisition and divestments, positioning the group’s development portfolio to capitalise on the improving south-east Queensland residential markets,” managing director Sahba Abedian said.
The group also used the proceeds to pay out a special 6 cent per share dividend, bringing dividends for the year to 10 cents, fully-franked. 
Sunland, which has developments along Australia’s eastern seaboard, reported sales were up 20% on the previous year to 754 lots, however settlements were down by 13% to 389.
“Whilst settlement volumes decreased as a result of [the] strategic asset sales, settlement values still increased by 7% across the balance of the portfolio,” Abedian said.
Multi-storey apartment buildings account for $2.3 billion worth of the group’s $3.7 billion portfolio, with residential housing and urban developments making up the balance. 
It has 10 projects scheduled to launch in 2016 and aims to increasingly focus on multi-storey developments over the medium-term. 
The group intends to issue profit guidance at its annual general meeting on November 20.
 
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Sunland Group boost profits for FY2015

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Caps on lending to investors and other recently introduced bank credit restrictions will temper the strength of the Australian residential property market, the head of property and construction giant Lend Lease has predicted. 
Lend Lease chief executive Steve McCann said the balance between demand and supply of new dwellings in Australia was coming into balance following a historic shortage of homes in many capital cities and this would also cool the market. 
“The Australian market remains strong although it is easy to see that we’re somewhere near the peak of the cycle,” McCann said as he announced the group’s 2015 financial results. 
“There have been a combination of factors that have fuelled this cycle including strong population growth, monetary easing driving strong investor demand, [Foreign Investment Review Board] restrictions directing increased foreign demand to apartments sold off the plan and a historic undersupply of new dwellings in many of our capital cities.”
While lending restrictions and greater supply would slow the market, Lend Lease had not yet seen any impact from those factors, McCann added. 
The group’s residential business reported a record 4262 settlements, up 24% compared with 2014. 
Residential pre-sales revenue was up 109% on the previous year to a record $5.2 billion. Some $4.7 billion of this amount was in pre-sales for apartments, which are the main focus for the group’s residential division. 
McCann said the business was looking for indicators, such as a slowing rate of pre-sales for new launches, to help it identify a turn in the market cycle. 
It has already introduced higher pre-sales thresholds for new projects, which have been lifted to 70% on some apartment developments, as well as flexible apartment designs and a mix of product pricing. 
Lend Lease, which also has significant construction and investment management businesses, reported an after-tax profit of $618.6 million. This was down considerably on the $822.9 million result the previous financial year, which had been boosted by a $485 million contribution from the sale of the Bluewater Shopping Centre in the UK.
The result represented earnings per stapled security of 106.8 cents. It paid a distribution of 27 cents per stapled security, 25% franked. 
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Credit restrictions temper property market: Lend Lease

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Retail and residential property took the headlines last week with several of the big participants in those sectors reporting their results for 2015.
Major shopping centre owners said sales conditions for their malls were improving, but still challenging, while property values were rising due to investor demand for income-producing assets.
Charter Hall Retail REIT, which owns small and neighbourhood shopping centres, lifted its statutory profit by more than 90% to $162.5 million driven by increases in the value of its shopping centre properties.
“Ongoing investor interest in this asset class has resulted in yields for high quality assets tightening sharply over the past 12 months and as such we are expecting to see growth in the value of the REIT’s portfolio over the 2016 financial year,” chief executive Scott Dundas said.
The REIT’s operating profit was up 5.2% to $110.8 million.
Federation Centres, which merged with Novion Property Group in June to form a $22 billion REIT, reported a $675.1 million statutory profit for the 2015 financial year, and underlying earnings of $683.1 million, up 6.2%.
Comparable specialty store sales were up 3.3%, an improvement on the 2.4% sales growth the previous year. Comparable net property income growth was 2.5%, up from 1.2%.
However, the REIT’s leasing results were weaker with negative 2.2% leasing spreads across the combined portfolio, worse than the negative 1.5% spreads achieved in 2014.
The relatively mature Novion Property Group assets dragged on that result, with negative 4.7% spreads. Managers of the Federation Centres properties were able to improve leasing spreads by 3.2% by changing tenant mixes.
The group recently replaced Federation’s chief executive Steven Sewell, who had been set to head the combined group, with Novion’s head Angus McNaughton.
McNaughton said the sector was slowly improving but expected consumer sentiment to fluctuate.
Shopping Centres Australiasia Property Group worked hard on its specialty store leasing through 2015, with a project targeted at improving occupancy rates. It spent $9.6 million on incentives such as assistance with fitouts for tenants.
“During FY15 we had 50 specialty tenant renewals, and an average rental uplift of 7.3% was achieved,” chief executive Anthony Mellowes said. “This is a positive start to our first rent renewal cycle which will continue through FY16 to FY20.”
Specialty stores in SCA’s centres lifted sales by 5.6%.
Stockland Property Group, which derives about 60% of its earnings from retail property, reported earnings in that division were up 4.2%.
Its shopping centres achieved their strongest specialty store growth in four years, rising 7%. Food catering and fast casual dining, communication technology, services, homewares and apparel were the best performing categories.
Residential
Many investors were more interested in Stockland’s residential division, with the group being one of Australia’s largest home builders.
Profits in that area were up 73.5% to $166 million.
Residential developers have used reporting season as a platform to call for discussion on topics such as the undersupply of homes in Australia and stamp duty. They have cautioned regulators not to go too far with moves to slow the housing market, which they say is varied across the country.
AV Jennings chief executive Peter Summers said stamp duty was holding up construction and adding to housing costs. That group reported before-tax profits were up 78.3% to $48.2 million, with improving housing markets lifting revenue by 26.9% to $317.9 million.
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Fluctuating consumer sentiment prompts erratic REIT retail leasing results

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Home builder AV Jennings has hit out at stamp duty, which it said was holding up construction and adding to housing costs. 
Chief executive Peter Summers made the comments in announcing the company’s $48.2 million before-tax profit for the 2015 financial year, which was up 78.3% on 2014.
The profit increase was driven by improving residential markets, which lifted revenue by 26.9% to $317.9 million. But Summers said recent activity in new housing markets followed a sustained downturn in sales and a lack of supply in many markets. 
He blamed stamp duty for contributing to housing costs and called for debate on the tax.
“The company has for many years talked about the impact of government charges and taxes and the cost of red tape causing delays that are impacting affordability,” Summers said. 
While price growth has been strong in some markets such as Sydney and Melbourne, AV Jennings noted in its annual report that price growth had been “more muted” in the markets in which it operates.
“It has been disappointing to see that much of the commentary on the housing market has focussed on extreme examples or specific micro-markets, such as parts of inner Sydney, which are then extrapolated into the rest of the Australian market,” Summers said. 
Residential markets in South Australia and Western Australia were subdued. Demand and supply were balanced in the mid-to-outer areas of Melbourne where the company has developments, and prices were firming in Brisbane, Noosa, Caloundra and Coomera in Queensland the company noted. 
AV Jennings sells most of the homes it develops to domestic buyers and owner occupiers. It settled 1538 lots in the 2015 financial year, up 22.6% on the previous year. It said it expected to end the 2016 financial year with contracts signed for 1800 to 2100 lots.
It paid dividends of 4 cents per share, fully franked, for the full year and said in future it would pay out 40-50% of after-tax net profit. 
The picture above is taken from the AV Jennings The Mill Apartments development at Eastwood, Lot 404/8 Avondale Way.
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AV Jennings hits out at stamp duty

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Australia’s biggest residential developer, Stockland Property Group, expects the property cycle to continue for several years as it believes all of Australia’s metropolitan markets are suffering from an undersupply of homes.
Stockland chief executive Mark Steinert made the prediction in announcing the group’s $903 million statutory profit for the 2015 financial year. The result was up 71.4% on the previous year, due to revaluations of its commercial property assets and an $80 million gross profit from the sale of its stake in Australand.
“The typical cycle, without a severe economic disruption, normally lasts seven to eight years. This one started in January 2013 so I think it’s very premature to be calling the top,” Steinert said. 
He moderated his forecast by adding strong growth in inner Sydney and Melbourne was likely to slow given affordability challenges and recently introduced constraints to investor lending.
Sales activity was lower in Western Australia, and moderate price falls were possible during the 2016 financial year.
Queensland’s market was improving driven by a strengthening labour market and affordability relative to Sydney and Melbourne, which was expected to boost interstate migration. 
Stockland focuses on the affordable end of the residential market. It sells 75% its homes to owner occupiers, with 42% of total sales to first home buyers.
The group reported a 73.5% increase in profit in its residential business to $166 million and said it had a record 3742 contracts for home sales on hand.
Operating profits in each of its commercial divisions were also up: by 6.4% in its office business; 4.2% in its retail division; and 3.1% in logistics and business parks. The retirement living business lifted its operating profit by 19.9%.
The group’s underlying profit increased 9.4% to $608 million. 
Underlying earnings per security was 25.9 cents, up 7.8%. Funds from operations was $657 million, up 14.7%.
The group paid a 24 cent distribution. 
For the 2016 financial year, it forecast earnings per share of 6-7.5% and funds from operations per security of 8.5-10%.
It lifted its target payout range for distributions for the 2016 financial year to 80-90% of underlying profit, up from 75-85%, and forecast distributions of 24.5 cents per security. 
 
The writer is a shareholder in Stockland Property Group
 
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Stockland deliver $903 million statutory profit for FY2015

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The big players in the property sector started delivering their results to the market last week, with the themes of rising valuations for prime property, tightening capitalisation rates and strengthening markets in Sydney and Melbourne offset by slower conditions in Perth and Brisbane.
The residential market was in the spotlight with diversified property company, Mirvac Group, reporting an operating profit of $454.8 million, up 4%, and a record $2 billion in pre-sales from its residential division. 
The group, which has a significant residential development business focused largely on the apartment market, said it had already secured 67% of its expected 2016 development earnings before interest and tax and 57% of its 2017 budget amid strong demand. 
However, chief executive Susan Lloyd Hurwitz said conditions in the buoyant Sydney market were reaching their peak and conditions were mixed across the country. She warned government measures to slow investor spending on property could have a detrimental effect on the housing market. 
Industrial property specialist, Goodman Group reported it had benefited from strong residential markets by selling $1.1 billion worth of non-core industrial land to residential developers for urban renewal projects.
Chief executive Greg Goodman said the group held land across Sydney that was in high demand for rezoning for residential uses. He expected urban renewal activities to become a significant source of capital for the group to invest in industrial developments and selective acquisitions. 
Goodman Group reported a full-year operating profit of $653 million, up 9% on the 2014 financial year. 
“This equates to over 7% growth in earnings per security, largely driven by growing development volumes, which has seen our work book increase to over $3 billion, and robust activity across our stabilised portfolio, with net property income growth of 2.5% and occupancy maintained at 96%,” Goodman said in a statement to the Australian Securities Exchange.
The group, which owns and develops industrial and logistics properties in several countries, forecast operating earnings per security would increase in fiscal 2016 by 6% to 39.4 cents. It forecast it would pay out distributions of 23.8 cents per security. 
Dexus Property Group agreed the outlook for industrial property was solid. It reported one-year returns of 11.3% in its industrial portfolio, up from 9% in 2014, although it noted that performance across sub-sectors was varied. 
Dexus, which is concentrates on the prime office property market, reported an increase of 9.3% in Funds from Operations on a per security basis in 2015 compared with the 2014 financial year. 
The group was upbeat about the outlook for the Brisbane office market, and reported Sydney and Melbourne’s markets had come back into balance. 
Vacancy levels in Sydney were expected to rise in 2016 to peak around 9.7% as new supply at Barangaroo came to market, but then fall sharply in 2017 and 2018 to around 6.5% due to a lack of new supply, significant withdrawals, and continuing improvement in demand. 
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Big property players deliver financial results

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Demand for high quality office space and improvements in occupancy levels helped Dexus Property Group lift its Funds from Operations and distributions in the 2015 financial year. 
The group, which has Australia’s largest prime office portfolio and a $9.6 billion funds management business, reported FFO increased to $544.5 million from $446.6 million a year earlier. This represented a per security increase of 9.3% to 59.5 cents. 
Distribution per security also increased 9.3% to 41.04 cents, in line with the group’s upgraded guidance provided in February. 
Chief executive Darren Steinberg said the business was in “great shape”. 
“Income from our property portfolio is underpinned by high occupancy and fixed rental increases and we expect to see strong valuation uplift across our portfolio with tightening of a further 25 to 50 basis points of [capitalisation] rates over the next 12 months as a result of recent transactional activity,” Steinberg said.
Occupancy rates across the portfolio rose to 95.3% and leasing incentives fell. 
Dexus reported stabilising markets in Sydney, where half of the office buildings it owns are located, and in Melbourne. However, vacancy rates remained well above historical averages in Brisbane and Perth. 
Despite the high vacancy rates, the group was attracted to the long-term growth prospects of Brisbane and Queensland more broadly. 
Executive general manager Ross Du Vernet said the group was excited about its acquisition of Waterfront Place in Brisbane, which it bought for $635 million, representing a 6.9% capitalisation rate. The sale settles in October 2015. 
“Brisbane office represents good relative value when we compare it to office markets nationally. Foreign capital is less active and we do think the 100 basis point discount applied to prime average capitalisation rates does overstate the risk in that market,” Du Vernet said.
Dexus issued guidance for FFO per security growth of 5.5 to 6% for the 2016 financial year with FFO from the underlying business expected to grow by 3 to 3.5%. 
It forecast distribution per security growth of 5.5 to 6%. 
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Office space demand drives Dexus Property Group results

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Property prices in Sydney are reaching their peak and sales activity in the city will drop by around 15% over the next year or two, Mirvac Group’s chief executive Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz has forecast.
Lloyd-Hurwitz made the predictions in announcing the group’s 2015 financial results, which included a record $2 billion worth of residential pre-sales, up 67% on the previous fiscal year.
“It does seem that the Sydney market is close to the point at which the strong upwards trajectory will end … We expect price growth to moderate away from the high double digit growth rate that it has been experiencing,” Lloyd-Hurwitz said.
Strong underlying demand for homes in Sydney was expected to prevent price falls. 
Lloyd-Hurwitz said the mix of buyers would more likely shift in favour of owner occupiers, away from investors who have recently been dominating the market.
Investors now account for about 40% of Mirvac’s residential sales, while owner occupiers and first home buyers made up 30% each. In the 2014 financial year, only 20% of the group’s sales were to first home buyers.
The group – which owns retail, office and industrial assets in addition to its residential development business – reported a statutory profit after tax of $609.9 million, up 36%.
Its financial results were at the top end of its guidance range, with an after-tax operating profit of $454.8 million, representing 12.3 cents per stapled security. It paid out distributions of 9.4 cents per stapled security.
Mirvac is in discussions to buy the $9 billion Investa office operation from Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing. Lloyd-Hurwitz could not comment further on the deal aside from to say it was “a highly strategic opportunity” that was “uncertain and incomplete”.
The group forecast earnings per share for fiscal 2016 would be between 12.7 and 13 cents per stapled security and distributions would be from 9.7 to 9.9 cents per stapled security.
What Mirvac Group chief executive Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz said about other markets around the country:
<ul>
<li>“Conditions in the residential market are quite variable across the country.”</li>
<li>“In Melbourne, strong population growth will continue to support the demand with the deepest demand in the middle and outer rings.”</li>
<li>“In Brisbane, demand is steady with relatively attractive investment yields which is seeing Sydney-based investors investing into Brisbane. There hasn’t been a lot of supply in the land business so we’re seeing moderate price growth there.”</li>
<li>“In Perth, subdued economic conditions are certainly impacting the market. The affordable end of the market is supported by policy incentives.”</li>
</ul>
 
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Sydney property activity to drop by 15%: Mirvac

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Reporting season is off to a strong start for property companies listed on the Australian Securities Exchange with BWP Trust and ALE Property Trust delivering solid results and home builder AV Jennings, which reports later in the month, upgrading its profit guidance through the week. 
Listed companies included in the Australian-Real Estate Investment Trust index outperformed those in the broader market in 2015. In the year to July 31, 2015, the S&amp;P/ASX 200 A-REIT gained 21.08% while the S&amp;P/ASX 200 added 5.68%. 
BWP Trust, which owns retail properties mainly tenanted by Bunnings, was one of the first property companies to report its results this August. It reported a 13.7% increase in income, a $108.5 million increase in the valuation of its portfolio and a 9.5% increase in distributable profit. 
The trust’s managing director Michael Wedgwood said the trust was comfortable with its portfolio although admitted that competition for quality retail properties would be difficult to grow through acquisitions while the low inflation rate was keeping a lid on rental growth. 
Morningstar analysts were concerned about the outlook for BWP and said the trust looked overvalued at its recent share price of around $3.30. 
“While BWP Trust is a good-quality Australian REIT with secure earnings and a strong balance sheet, we believe the market is underestimating the drag to earnings from lower CPI, lower growth from market rent reviews and rising vacancies,” Morningstar analysts said in a note. 
Pub-owner ALE Property Trust, which also reported through the week, surprised the market by increasing its forecast distribution for 2016 to at least 20 cents. It paid out 16.85 cents a security in the 2015 financial year. 
ALE’s net profit after tax jumped to $99.4 million, from $37.2 million in 2014, due to increases in property valuations. Distributable profit fell slightly to $29.1 million from $31.2 million.
In further good news from the sector, home builder AV Jennings upgraded its guidance, alerting the market that its full-year profit before tax was likely to be “$47 million or higher”, up from its previous forecast of above $40 million. 
AV Jennings was able to complete a number of stages of projects in June, which were not previously expected to complete before the year end when adverse weather in NSW was disrupting development. 
The directors said they “remain confident of strong residential market conditions continuing”. The company expects to issue its full year results around August 20 and the directors will give further commentary on their expectations for the market then. 
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Listed property companies delivering strong results 

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/broadbeach-qld-4218">Broadbeach</a> offers plenty of reasons to live vertically, but moving from a substantial family home into an apartment can expose the compromises of high-density living. Privacy, room for guests and usable living space tend to matter more when an apartment is intended as a permanent home rather than an occasional coastal base.

A typical residential floor at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-eveleigh-broadbeach-7-9-surf-parade-broadbeach-qld-4218">The Eveleigh</a>, on Surf Parade,&nbsp;contains just four apartments. The 94-residence development by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/hirsch-faigen">Hirsch &amp; Faigen</a> is predominantly made up of expansive three-bedroom homes, with a limited collection of half-floor penthouses above.

Across the apartment floors, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/rothelowman">Rothelowman</a> has used the relatively limited number of residences to give each home greater access to natural light and outlook. Living spaces extend towards full-height glazing, while a series of bay windows frame selected views across the Pacific Ocean, city and hinterland rather than treating the building edge as a continuous wall of glass.

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[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360965]

“The apartment floors deliver a collection of homes that embrace controlled outlook via a series of bay windows deliberately framing moments of view,” Rothelowman Director Kim Lowman said.

From outside, those projecting forms contribute to the tower’s faceted profile. Strong horizontal and vertical elements establish its proportions, while the changing position of the sun alters the light, shadow and reflection across the façade throughout the day.

The same attention moves inside the apartments, where the material palette combines warm timber, natural stone, metallic detailing and softer curved forms. Kitchens sit within the main living zone, with stone island benches, integrated joinery and European appliances, before the living areas extend towards the glazing and the outlook.

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[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360981]

Three genuine bedrooms provide room to accommodate family and guests, while two secure car spaces and storage address some of the practical considerations that can become more noticeable when moving from a larger home. Feedback from the display suite has centred on the warmth and restraint of the interiors, with buyers commenting that the residences feel like homes rather than conventional coastal apartments.

A limited collection of half-floor penthouses occupies the upper levels, increasing the scale of the living spaces and adding private balconies and elevated finishes. From this position, the outlook extends between the ocean and hinterland.

Outside the private residences, The Eveleigh separates its shared spaces between the podium and rooftop. The podium is centred on wellness, with subtropical landscaping surrounding a swimming pool and pool terrace, yoga garden, private gymnasium, sauna and hot and cold plunge facilities. Landscaped retreats and pavilions provide additional places to sit away from the main recreation areas.

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[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360966]

Higher in the building, a rooftop pavilion and private dining suite sit alongside resident lounge, barbecue and outdoor dining areas, opening towards panoramic views across the ocean, city and hinterland.

“Buyers are no longer just looking for an apartment, but a lifestyle where they can relax, reset, and enjoy a balanced way of living,” Hirsch &amp; Faigen Director of Sales Matt George said.

Interest to date has come from established owner-occupiers and interstate lifestyle purchasers, including buyers planning a future move to the Gold Coast. Many are coming from larger homes and want to reduce ongoing maintenance without giving up space for family and guests, privacy, two car spaces or the ability to entertain at home.

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[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360969]

Much of that daily life can also take place beyond the building without requiring a drive. Kurrawa Beach and Pratten Park are an easy walk from Surf Parade, while Pacific Fair, Oracle Boulevard, The Oasis, restaurants, cafés, entertainment and public transport are also within walking distance.

The Eveleigh is Hirsch &amp; Faigen's fourth Gold Coast development since entering the market in 2021, following The Hemingway at Palm Beach, The Emerson at Kirra and Yves at Mermaid Beach. Each of the preceding projects sold out before completion.

“Broadbeach had been on our radar throughout our time operating on the Gold Coast,” the developer said. “Following our projects in Palm Beach, Kirra and Mermaid Beach, Broadbeach represented the natural next step for the business.”

The Surf Parade site brought together proximity to the beach, protected coastal outlooks and walkability to dining, shopping and recreation. Hirsch &amp; Faigen also identified the street as an emerging premium residential address, with enough separation from Broadbeach's busier destinations to retain a quieter environment at home.

The Eveleigh is now under construction by Maxcon, with completion forecast for mid-2028. Three-bedroom residences are currently available from $2.87 million.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=149670]

Joel Robinson

The Eveleigh brings house-like apartments to Broadbeach

A long-stalled Campbelltown development site is back in play, with new plans for 139 apartments set to supersede a mixed-use scheme approved almost a decade ago but never built.

The new proposal for 28 Cordeaux Street would deliver 116 market and 23 affordable apartments in a part 14-storey building, bringing a substantial new project into a Campbelltown market where new apartment supply remains limited.

Plans have been filed over the 3,092 sqm corner site at Moore-Oxley Street, around 600 metres from Campbelltown Railway Station and the city-centre retail core.

The site already carries a mixed-use residential approval dating to 2016. Doroch Architects has now been engaged on a larger replacement scheme, which is progressing as a State Significant Development Application following a Housing Delivery Authority determination in August 2025.

The apartment mix comprises 39 one-bedroom, 72 two-bedroom and 28 three-bedroom residences. Two-bedroom apartments make up just over half of the project, while three-bedroom homes account for 20 per cent.

<img alt="First look: New 139-apartment plans revive long-stalled Campbelltown city centre site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="136dd5b9-3791-4da6-9e31-76f533f5b4de" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Campbelltown%20da2.png?VersionId=LgOSy9nwf5u.MGswBBwaGGxuX8QpHSl_" />

Of the 139 apartments, 23 will be delivered as affordable housing under the in-fill affordable housing provisions of the Housing SEPP. The affordable component represents 15 per cent of the residential gross floor area and will be managed by a registered Community Housing Provider.

Doroch has sought to break the scale of the building into two distinct elements, with a masonry podium of around four storeys establishing the street edge before the residential tower steps back above.

The corner position has shaped that approach. Cordeaux Street faces toward the commercial and civic centre, while Moore-Oxley Street leads into the lower-scale residential neighbourhood to the south, and the design verification report describes the site as "bridging the commercial core to the north and established residential areas to the south."

The podium will be expressed predominantly in face brick, while the upper levels shift to brushed and grooved concrete cladding with darker metal detailing. Recessed sections, deep balcony edges and landscaping break down the upper form, with an approximately 11.8-metre setback to the northern boundary addressing the adjoining St Peters Anglican School.

<img alt="First look: New 139-apartment plans revive long-stalled Campbelltown city centre site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="c8b3d2d3-c561-4bfc-a5d9-a68c0c10dac1" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Campbelltown%20da1.png?VersionId=AeAEyJU02Gk2k5noUj2StziCvdQ7fW4B" />

Campbelltown has been starved of new residential developments in the last decade.

The only other notable development set to come to market this year is ALAND's Queen Square, a mixed-use precinct on over two hectares that will comprise apartments above a vibrant ground-level retail and hospitality dining precinct.

First look: New 139-apartment plans revive long-stalled Campbelltown city centre site

First Look: Sherlock Construction pitches apartments for low-rise Deception Bay

Queensland builder-developer MAYD has revealed the first look at its major North Kirra beachfront development, lodging amended plans that reduce the number of apartments and increase the proportion of larger residences.

The project is planned across a substantial 4,742 sqm amalgamated site spanning seven lots at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/2-6-pacific-parade-bilinga-qld-4225">2-6 Pacific Parade</a> and 27-33 Golden Four Drive in Bilin​ga, directly opposite Nor​th Kirra Beach.

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/mayd-group">MAYD</a> secured the site for $32.5 million in 2025, in what was one of the Gold Coast's largest property transactions of the year.

The development will be delivered across two stages, with the first stage carrying an estimated gross realisation value of around $360 million.

The latest amendments seek to reduce the overall apartment count and shift the project further toward the owner-occupier market, with larger residences designed for buyers wanting considerably more space than traditionally offered in a beachfront apartment.

The residential mix will include townhomes, oversized two-bedroom apartments, substantial three-bedroom residences and four-bedroom homes.

MAYD has appointed Cera Stribley to lead the architecture and interiors, with the Melbourne-based design practice drawing on the beachfront setting through a series of ocean-facing terraces and heavily landscaped balconies.

Strong horizontal forms and curved balconies will define the exterior, with subtropical landscaping integrated throughout the building to soften the built form and increase the connection between the residences and the beachfront.

The project will also include an extensive collection of resident wellness and lifestyle facilities, continuing the broader shift across the Gold Coast's luxury apartment market toward larger homes supported by resort-style amenity.

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MAYD Founder Todd Mould said North Kirra was increasingly appealing to buyers attracted to the more established, lower-density character of the southern Gold Coast.

"North Kirra presents one of the most compelling luxury residential opportunities currently emerging in Australia, combining absolute beachfront with the character and authenticity that buyers are increasingly seeking, and the same sense of tight-knit community that defined Burleigh and Currumbin perhaps 10 or 15 years ago," Mould said.

"With Gold Coast Airport on its doorstep, it also offers a level of accessibility that broadens its appeal across almost every market demographic."

The project comes as the southern Gold Coast continues to attract an increasing share of high-end apartment development and buyer activity.

Kirra in particular has emerged as one of the region's more tightly held beachfront markets, with its relatively low-density character, established surf and hospitality scene and proximity to Gold Coast Airport differentiating it from the higher-density markets further north.

Mould said those characteristics had informed the approach MAYD and Cera Stribley had taken to the project.

"We've worked closely with Cera Stribley to create a vision that is deeply connected to its surroundings," he said.

"Inspired by the coastline itself, the architecture has been shaped around space, privacy and resort-style living, creating a collection of homes that reflects the next generation of luxury on the southern Gold Coast."

MOTIV Managing Director Carly Cottam, who has been appointed to market the project, said buyer attention had continued to move south along the Gold Coast.

"Purchasers who may once have defaulted to Broadbeach, Main Beach or Surfers Paradise are increasingly recognising the value of a genuine beachfront location that offers lower density, strong amenity and a more established sense of community," Cottam said.

"Kirra has a powerful combination of growing demand and genuine scarcity. Beachfront supply is inherently constrained, the area remains relatively low density, and buyers are increasingly placing a premium on locations that feel established, uncrowded and authentic rather than heavily developed."

Cottam said the proximity to Gold Coast Airport was also proving increasingly important for interstate and second-home buyers.

"Being minutes from Gold Coast Airport makes it particularly compelling for interstate buyers, frequent travellers and second-home purchasers who can access an authentic coastal lifestyle almost immediately after stepping off a flight."

The acquisition takes MAYD's active development portfolio to more than $500 million, with the North Kirra project representing one of its largest undertakings to date.

MAYD is targeting an early 2027 launch.

First look at MAYD's North Kirra mixed-use precinct

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Castle Hill, the longtime hub of the Hills District, has been one of the major beneficiaries of Sydney's Metro expansion, with improved connectivity helping drive continued population growth, development and buyer demand across the Hills District.

But despite that growth, the suburb has seen relatively few major new apartment projects brought to market over the past 18 months.

Hills District developer Reve Group is looking to fill that gap with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/nova-r-ve-castle-hill-2-garthowen-crescent-castle-hill-nsw-2154">Nova Rêve</a>, a major new mixed-use precinct on the corner of Garthowen Crescent and Old Castle Hill Road, a short walk from Castle Hill Metro Station and Castle Towers.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377679]

The project will comprise three residential towers alongside a hotel, restaurants, cafes and a skybar, more than 1,600 sqm of ground-floor retail and almost an acre of landscaped gardens.

It represents the largest project undertaken by Reve Group, the development arm of the Kassis family, which has been building across the Hills District for more than 30 years through Kassis Homes.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377675]

Nova Rêve also represents a significant step up from the family's first apartment development, Grand Rêve, which was delivered nearby on Garthowen Crescent.

Grand Rêve introduced larger, house-like apartment layouts and premium inclusions including Wolf and Sub-Zero appliances to the Castle Hill market.

Nova Rêve takes that approach to a precinct scale, combining the residential component with hospitality, retail and substantial public and resident landscaping.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377685]

Reve Group Managing Director Sam Kassis said the project reflected the family's three decades of building in the Hills, which has evolved from trophy homes on quarter-acre blocks to larger-scale apartment development.

"Grand Rêve was our first apartment project here and it showed us what this pocket of Castle Hill could be. Nova Rêve is the refinement of that idea: not just apartments, but a place the whole suburb can use," Kassis said.

A key part of that approach is the hotel, which has been designed to operate as an amenity for the wider Castle Hill community rather than solely hotel guests.

It will include restaurants, cafes, skybars and all-day dining, alongside conference and event facilities catering to business functions, community groups and private events.

At ground level, more than 1,600 sqm of shops and cafes will open onto the surrounding streets and landscaped areas.

Almost an acre of gardens designed by Land and Form Studios will run through the precinct, incorporating pathways, seating, barbecue areas and children's play spaces.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377680]

Reve Group's Romio Georges said creating an active ground plane had been central to the planning of Nova Rêve.

"There are gardens with pathways, barbecues, seating and play areas, shops and cafes opening onto the street, and a hotel with restaurants and a skybar that anyone in Castle Hill can walk into," Georges said.

The project's elevated position on one of Sydney's highest ridgelines will also provide apartments with outlooks toward the Sydney skyline, surrounding parkland and the Blue Mountains.

More than 80 per cent of the apartments will occupy corner positions, with Turner responsible for both the architecture and interiors.

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[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=152737]

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Zoe Fielding

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