<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.

&nbsp;

[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.

&nbsp;

[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.

&nbsp;

[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.

&nbsp;

[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.

<img alt="MAYD" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="d1bcbb05-e659-4b47-8bd4-1e595315e2ad" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-27%20at%202.05.03%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=jj0XEud1X1DuLt7_KyElhjMdZGOXmLHP" />

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.

&nbsp;

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=152737]

<h3 data-end="3697" data-section-id="q3n5ak" data-start="3672">&nbsp;</h3>
</main>

Nova Rêve arrives as Reve Group bets on Castle Hill's next growth phase

Sydney’s property market is known for high prices, competitive bidding, and mounting pressure on first home buyers. But change is on the horizon.

From late 2025, eligible first home buyers in New South Wales will have access to a new federal government initiative aimed at addressing affordability: the Help to Buy Scheme.&nbsp;

<h2>What is the Help to Buy Scheme?</h2>

The program introduces a shared equity model intended to reduce the upfront cost of entering the property market, particularly in high-demand urban areas such as Sydney.

The scheme operates under a shared ownership structure in which the federal government takes an equity stake of up to 40 per cent for new homes, or 30 per cent for existing dwellings. This arrangement allows eligible buyers to significantly reduce their loan size and avoid the added cost of Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI).

Under this model, purchasers can enter the property market with as little as a two per cent deposit, well below the traditional 10 to 20 per cent usually required. The government’s contribution is not a loan but a co-ownership stake in the property. As such, there is no interest or rent charged on its portion.

Because the government’s equity combined with the buyer’s deposit typically meets or exceeds the 20 per cent threshold, LMI does not apply. The remaining balance, generally between 60 and 70 per cent of the property’s value, is financed through a standard home loan with a participating lender.

The government's equity in the property remains in place until the buyer chooses to repay it voluntarily or until the property is sold. Buyers can buy back the government’s share over time, in increments of at least five per cent, depending on their financial situation.

There is no fixed repayment timeline, but the amount to be repaid will be based on the property's market value at the time of repayment, not the original purchase price.

<h2>How do you qualify for the&nbsp;Help to Buy Scheme?</h2>

To qualify for the Help to Buy Scheme, applicants must meet the following conditions:

<ul>
	<li>Be an Australian citizen at least 18 years of age.</li>
	<li>Be a first-home buyer who does not currently own property.</li>
	<li>Intend to live in the property as their primary residence.</li>
	<li>Earn less than $100,000 per year for individuals, or $160,000 for couples.</li>
	<li>Purchase a property within the regional price caps, currently $950,000 in Sydney, though this is expected to rise to approximately $1.3 million ahead of the program’s launch.</li>
</ul>

While the Help to Buy Scheme does not solve affordability challenges across the board, it does offer a more accessible pathway for a defined segment of the market, particularly younger buyers with moderate incomes who have been priced out of traditional lending routes.

The scheme is expected to commence in NSW in late 2025, as part of a national rollout.

Under the new model, purchasers can enter the property market with as little as a two per cent deposit, well below the traditional 10 to 20 per cent usually required

Help to Buy Scheme: What first home buyers in NSW need to know

The First Home Owners Grant (FHOG) is a government initiative designed to help eligible first-time home buyers by offering financial assistance towards the purchase or construction of a new home.

While the FHOG is a nationwide program, it is administered separately by each state and territory, meaning the eligibility criteria, grant amounts, and property requirements can vary depending on your location. This means that the amount available and the conditions attached to the grant will differ, so it is important to check the specific guidelines for your state or territory.

It’s important to note that the FHOG is just one of several incentives available to first home buyers. In most states and territories, the grant is not linked to stamp duty exemptions or concessions, with the exception of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The FHOG is typically a one-off payment, reducing the overall cost of purchasing or building a new home before any stamp duty concessions are applied.

Below, we provide a breakdown of the First Home Owner Grants available across Australia, outlining the specific details for each state and territory.

<h2>New South Wales First Home Owner Grant</h2>

First Home Owner Grant: Offers a $10,000 grant for new homes valued up to $600,000. For land purchases and owner-builders, the threshold extends to $750,000.

Stamp Duty Benefits: Provides full stamp duty exemption for homes valued up to $800,000, with concessions available for properties up to $1 million.

<h2>Victoria South Wales First Home Owner Grant</h2>

First Home Owner Grant: Provides a $10,000 grant for first-home buyers purchasing or building new homes valued up to $750,000.

Stamp Duty Benefits: Offers full stamp duty exemption for properties up to $600,000, with concessions available up to $750,000.

<h2>Queensland First Home Owner Grant</h2>

First Home Owner Grant: Offers $30,000 for contracts signed between 20 November 2023 and 30 June 2025. The FHOG applies to new homes valued up to $750,000.

Stamp Duty Concessions: Provides additional concessions for properties valued up to $800,000.

<h2>Western Australia First Home Owner Grant</h2>

&nbsp;

First Home Owner Grant: Offers a $10,000 grant for new homes valued up to $750,000 in the southern regions and up to $1 million in the northern regions.

Stamp Duty Concessions: Available for homes valued up to $600,000 for transactions entered into on or after 9 May 2024.

<h2>Australian Capital Territory First Home Owner Grant</h2>

First Home Owner Grant: Replaced by the Home Buyer Concession Scheme, offering full stamp duty concessions for eligible buyers.

<h2>South Australia First Home Owner Grant</h2>

First Home Owner Grant: Provides up to $15,000 for new homes, including houses, apartments, and townhouses. As of 6 June 2024, there is no property value cap for eligibility.

Stamp Duty Relief: Available for new homes and vacant land purchases.

<h2>Tasmania First Home Owner Grant</h2>

First Home Owner Grant: Offers a $10,000 grant for new homes and off the plan purchases.

Stamp Duty Exemption: Between 18 February 2024 and 30 June 2026, first home buyers of established homes valued up to $750,000 receive a full exemption on property transfer duty.

<h2>Northern Territory First Home Owner Grant</h2>

First Home Owner Grant: The Northern Territory provides a $10,000 grant for new homes only. Additional government grants and concessions are available for first home buyers.

Stamp Duty Exemption: The only stamp duty exemption available to property buyers is the House and Land Package Exemption (HLPE).

Eligibility criteria and application processes differ across states. Prospective buyers should refer to their respective state revenue offices for full details on grant availability, conditions, and additional concessions.

Every First Home Owner Grant for new property by state

In the ever-evolving landscape of sustainable architecture and environmentally conscious design, systems and ratings in place can help determine the energy efficiency of residential buildings in Australia.

Australia has multiple building rating systems that evaluate energy efficiency and sustainability in existing and new building designs.

Some systems assess individual building components, while others provide an overall rating for the entire structure.

A rating system ensures that homes are comfortable and energy-efficient, whether you are buying, renovating, or building.

NatHERS (Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme) is a common way for new homes to meet energy efficiency requirements.

As new developments continue to shape the urban environment, understanding NatHERS ratings becomes essential for developers and homeowners. This article delves into the concept of NatHERS ratings, their significance, and how they contribute to creating energy-efficient homes.

<h2>What is NatHERS?</h2>

NatHERS is a national initiative implemented by the Australian government to promote energy efficiency in residential buildings. The scheme aims to provide a standardised method for assessing the thermal performance of homes, considering factors such as insulation, orientation, ventilation, and building materials.&nbsp;

NatHERS ratings are the most common way new homes meet the National Construction Code's (NCC's) minimum energy efficiency requirements.&nbsp;

NatHERS assessments provide thermal and whole-home ratings for new homes, townhouses, and apartments.

The rating helps evaluate the energy performance of buildings, guides homeowners and developers to make informed decisions about the energy efficiency of their properties, and encourages the construction of more sustainable, comfortable, and cost-effective homes.

<h2>How NatHERS Ratings Work</h2>

NatHERS ratings are determined through four accredited software tools (AccuRate, BERS Pro, FirstRate5, HERO) using a calculation engine CSIRO developed to predict building temperature based on various factors.

The tools can model complex effects of building mass, insulation, window size, and other elements.

The outcome is a star rating that reflects the building's overall thermal efficiency, indicating how well it can maintain a comfortable indoor temperature without excessive reliance on heating or cooling systems.

The star rating scale ranges from 0 to 10, with a 6-star rating being the minimum requirement for compliance with the National Construction Code (NCC).&nbsp;

Achieving a higher star rating demonstrates a commitment to energy efficiency and sustainability, as the building is better equipped to minimise its environmental impact and reduce long-term energy costs.

Anyone can use NatHERS tools, but accredited assessors can provide certified ratings and professional advice.

<h2>Benefits of Higher NatHERS Ratings</h2>

Energy Efficiency: Buildings with higher NatHERS ratings are more energy-efficient, requiring less heating and cooling energy. This reduces the structure's carbon footprint and lowers occupants' energy bills.

Cost Savings: Homes with higher NatHERS ratings are generally more energy-efficient, resulting in reduced energy consumption for heating and cooling. This translates to lower energy bills for homeowners, making sustainable living environmentally friendly and economically viable in the long run.

Environmental Impact: Lower energy consumption directly translates to a reduced environmental impact. Buildings with higher NatHERS ratings contribute to the overall goal of mitigating climate change by lowering greenhouse gas emissions associated with heating and cooling systems.

Improved Comfort: Buildings with high NatHERS ratings offer better thermal comfort to occupants. Proper insulation, well-designed ventilation, and optimal orientation maintain a consistent and comfortable indoor temperature, providing occupants with a more enjoyable and healthier space.

Market Value and Desirability: Higher NatHERS ratings can enhance the market value of a property. As energy efficiency becomes a more significant consideration for homebuyers, a well-rated building may attract a premium price and stand out in the real estate market.

Compliance with Building Codes: NatHERS ratings are a vital component of the National Construction Code (NCC), and compliance with these ratings is often a mandatory requirement for new developments. Local councils and planning authorities may set minimum energy efficiency standards that must be met to obtain development approval.

The Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS) is a crucial initiative shaping the future of energy-efficient, resilient, and cost-effective homes. With its recent upgrades, NatHERS has evolved into a world-leading tool for the building sector, supporting the global commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.

Staff Writer

What is a NatHERS rating in new off the plan apartment developments?

Mixed-use developments have gained significant popularity across Australia in recent years due to their unique blend of residential, commercial, and recreational spaces.

Unlike traditional single-purpose developments, mixed-use projects offer a harmonious integration of various functions within a single locale.

Residential units seamlessly coexist with commercial establishments, retail outlets, dining venues, entertainment hubs, and recreational facilities, with the combination not only enhances convenience but also fosters a vibrant lifestyle and a sense of community.

<h3>Convenience and accessibility</h3>

Mixed-use developments are designed with convenience in mind. They often integrate residential units with commercial spaces, retail outlets, restaurants, and recreational facilities, creating a self-contained community.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=114215 project_image_fid=204874]

The proximity allows residents to enjoy the convenience of having essential amenities and services within walking distance. Whether it's grabbing a cup of coffee, going grocery shopping, or accessing healthcare services, everything is conveniently located, saving residents time and effort.

<h3>Vibrant lifestyle and community</h3>

One of the major advantages of mixed-use developments is the vibrant lifestyle they offer. With a diverse range of amenities and communal spaces, residents have ample opportunities to interact, socialise, and build a sense of community.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=107714 project_image_fid=214122]

The presence of parks, community centres, and shared spaces fosters a lively atmosphere, encouraging residents to engage in various activities and events. The vibrant lifestyle within these developments creates a unique sense of belonging and camaraderie among the residents.

<h3>Potential for higher rental yields and property value appreciation</h3>

Mixed-use developments tend to attract a broad range of tenants and buyers due to their versatile nature. This high demand can result in higher rental yields for investors and potentially lead to property value appreciation over time.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=139989 project_image_fid=212887]

The integration of commercial and retail spaces attracts businesses, which can provide a stable rental income stream. Additionally, the popularity of mixed-use developments often drives up property values, making them a potentially lucrative investment in the long term.

<h3>Enhanced security and maintenance</h3>

Mixed-use developments typically have comprehensive security measures in place. With controlled access points, CCTV surveillance, and professional security staff, residents can enjoy enhanced safety and peace of mind.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=108019 project_image_fid=212658]

Additionally, these developments often have dedicated maintenance teams responsible for the upkeep of common areas, landscaping, and infrastructure. This ensures that the overall appearance and functionality of the development are well-maintained, creating a pleasant living environment for residents.

<h3>Live-work-play balance</h3>

One of the key attractions of mixed-use developments is the ability to achieve a desirable live-work-play balance. The integration of residential and commercial spaces allows residents to live closer to their workplaces, reducing commuting time and improving work-life balance.

The proximity to various amenities and recreational facilities encourages an active and healthy lifestyle. Residents can easily access fitness centres, parks, restaurants, and entertainment options, all within the same development, leading to a more fulfilling and convenient way of life.

alisonwarters@gmail.com

The top five reasons to buy in a mixed-use development

When buying a property, everyone needs to be aware of the additional costs that come as part of the buying process.

Often the largest outlay, after the deposit which goes to the bank, is stamp duty.

<h2 style="line-height: 1.38;">What is Stamp Duty?</h2>

Stamp duty is an extra tax to pay the government when you buy land, a property, and other certain assets.

It happens when the legal ownership is transferred. It can also be known as property transfer duty or transfer duty.

<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="415" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/C32BWkB5--c" title="YouTube video player" width="660"></iframe>

<h2>Who pays Stamp Duty?</h2>

In some circumstances, you may get an exemption. For some states, you won’t have to pay for stamp duty if you are a first home buyer or a pensioner for houses under a particular price. There are also stamp duty concessions, where you may be entitled to a discount.

<h2>How much does Stamp Duty cost?</h2>

Each state has different rules which affect how much you need to pay. These rules can affect the rate you pay, and the timeframe you will need to pay in. Before you buy land or a property, make sure you check the up-to-date information for your state’s stamp duty.

You can use a free stamp duty calculator online to see approximately how much you’ll need to pay. Find out if you’re eligible for an exemption by enquiring on a project via Urban!

Overall, the stamp duty you need to pay will depend on:

<ul>
	<li aria-level="1">How much your land/property is worth</li>
	<li aria-level="1">Where your land/property is located</li>
	<li aria-level="1">What type of land/property it is</li>
</ul>

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Ellen Walker

Off-the-plan property explained: What is stamp duty?

For most Australians, buying an apartment is one of the biggest financial decisions they'll ever make

The location, floorplan and price are often the first considerations, but in recent years another question has become increasingly important: who is actually delivering the project?

A series of high-profile builder collapses, construction delays and defect concerns have fundamentally changed how many Victorians approach buying off the plan. The collapse of Porter Davis in 2023, which reportedly left around 1,700 homes unfinished, became one of the most visible examples of the risks that can emerge when a construction company fails. <a href="https://www.equifax.com.au/sites/default/files/lpassets/pdf/Final-Business-Market-Pulse-June-Sector-Deep-Dive-Report-2.pdf">Similar challenges across the broader construction sector</a> have left buyers asking more questions before signing a contract.

As Victoria continues encouraging higher-density housing to address supply shortages, transparency is becoming just as important as location or price.

One tool increasingly entering the conversation is the <a href="https://icirt.com/">Independent Construction Industry Rating Tool (iCIRT)</a>, an independent assessment framework designed to help buyers better understand the developer or builder behind a project. Originally developed by Equifax in consultation with government and industry as part of NSW's Construct NSW reforms, the system has since expanded nationally.

<h2 data-end="1519" data-section-id="7nmx3" data-start="1492">What is an iCIRT rating?</h2>

Most Australians are familiar with independent ratings in everyday life.

We compare ANCAP safety ratings before buying a car. We look at Health Star Ratings in supermarkets. Banks rely on credit assessments when lending money.

Until recently, however, there has been very little independent information available to help apartment buyers assess the business responsible for delivering a residential project.

That gap is what iCIRT was designed to address.

Builders, developers and other construction professionals with an iCIRT rating have demonstrated high-trust characteristics through an independent, evidence-based assessment across six criteria: Character, Capability, Conduct, Capacity, Capital and Counterparties. This involves a rigorous review of financial health, past project track record, and ethical conduct. Crucially, an iCIRT rating could help provide property buyers with confidence that they are working with a professional who has demonstrated the capability, capacity, and willingness to return and rectify issues.

<img alt="iCIRT" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="dcbb59af-3d5a-43aa-b28e-a66e55a83568" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Announcement.png?VersionId=6OD8r.v.oucEF01BWxR85urzoD9seQ9e" />

Importantly, iCIRT is not a recommendation to purchase a particular property, nor is it a traditional credit rating. It is an independent assessment framework designed to provide objective information about a construction business using a <a href="https://icirt.com/sites/default/files/2025-08/iCIRT-Methodology-Issue1-May-2021.pdf">published methodology</a>.

The system has been widely adopted in New South Wales, where more than one-third of medium and large residential builders and developers now hold an iCIRT rating, representing over two-thirds of the state's residential building market by value as of 2025/26.

<h2 data-end="3126" data-section-id="h6ohtj" data-start="3084">Why buyers are doing more due diligence</h2>

For many buyers, particularly those purchasing off the plan, the biggest risk isn't whether they'll like the kitchen finishes.

It's whether the project will be delivered on time, to the expected quality, and by a company capable of completing the development.

<a href="https://icirt.com/sites/default/files/2026-07/iCIRT%202025%20Consumer%20Survey%20Report%20v05.pdf">Consumer research commissioned by iCIRT</a> found more than half of respondents believed current protections do not adequately safeguard buyers from builder insolvencies or defective projects. Other research found 88 per cent of prospective buyers would seek independent ratings or due diligence before purchasing, while 90 per cent said trust in construction professionals is essential.

That doesn't mean buyers should rely on a single rating alone.

Independent legal advice, understanding the contract, and seeking financial advice all remain important parts of the due diligence process.

However, an independent assessment can provide another source of information alongside those traditional checks.

<h2 data-end="4138" data-section-id="pquzxc" data-start="4094">Trust is becoming a competitive advantage</h2>

The conversation isn't only changing for buyers.

Developers are also recognising that trust has become an increasingly important part of the sales process.

<img alt="mirvac" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="1c11c691-e8cd-46c3-88fd-6c8d614e8357" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/mirvac.png?VersionId=ZqDqNL36WJOOCmNMmmO93Q2GTrFOBomz" />Mirvac is a 5 Gold Star iCIRT rated developer, the highest possible rating a developer can get: Harbourside by Mirvac

Five years ago, purchasers typically asked about floorplans, finishes and settlement dates.

Today, sales teams are increasingly being asked about the developer's experience, financial stability, previous projects and construction partners.

For companies with strong governance and established delivery records, an independent iCIRT rating provides another way to demonstrate those credentials before buyers even visit a display suite.

According to Equifax, the assessment can also help businesses drive sales and <a href="https://icirt.com/resources-for-business/icirt-rating-helps-scion-secure-high-value-projects">secure high-value projects</a>, as well as identify operational improvements and <a href="https://icirt.com/resources-for-business/mirvac-reinforces-brand-trust-and-quality-independent-icirt-rating">attract top talent</a>.

<h2 data-end="4962" data-section-id="1j54ng5" data-start="4912">Beyond buyers: lenders are paying attention too</h2>

The influence of independent construction ratings is also extending beyond consumers.

According to Stamford Capital's Real Estate Debt Capital Markets Survey, an increasing number of lenders now incorporate iCIRT ratings into their due diligence processes when assessing residential development finance applications.

The survey found lender adoption has continued to rise, with many respondents saying independent assessments provide additional insight into governance, counterparties and delivery capability beyond traditional financial analysis. Some lenders also reported declining funding applications where businesses had poor or no ratings.

As construction costs remain elevated and access to development finance becomes more selective, demonstrating credibility is becoming increasingly valuable.

<h2 data-end="5801" data-section-id="1qazuxs" data-start="5772">What it means for Victoria</h2>

Victoria's apartment market is entering a new phase.

The state is seeking to accelerate higher-density housing while simultaneously introducing reforms aimed at improving confidence in residential construction.

For buyers, that means there are more tools available than ever before to research the businesses behind a project.

For developers, it signals that transparency is becoming another point of differentiation in an increasingly competitive market.

Buyers are asking more questions than ever before and increasingly expecting independent information, not just marketing material, before making one of the biggest financial commitments of their lives.

<img alt="iCIRT" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="958e1497-8151-4689-aadc-baf59f6e6122" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/iCIRT-Infographic-Assessment-Process-Final.png?VersionId=7KyVcwSo4vCLXBYBdq382e3Si.R.9PWQ" />

<hr data-end="6469" data-start="6466" />
The information contained in this article is general in nature and does not constitute personal, financial, legal or tax advice. It does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. Therefore, you should consider whether the information is appropriate to your circumstances before acting on it and, where appropriate, seek independent professional advice.

This article contains links to third-party websites. These links are provided for convenience only. Equifax Australia does not control and is not responsible for the content, accuracy or privacy practices of external sites.

Copyright © 2026 Equifax Australia Information Services and Solutions Pty Ltd. All rights reserved.

Buying off-the-plan in Melbourne? How independent iCIRT ratings are set to change Victorian property

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A few weeks ago, I attended an auction in a popular suburb of Melbourne’s inner east.  
The home was an attractive four-bedroom townhouse on roughly 260 square metres of land, and initially quoted at $700,000 ‘plus’ - very typical of the type of accommodation featured in the area.  
As is commonly the case in Melbourne, the quote was ‘stepped up’ in the final week of the campaign to ‘$750,000 ‘plus’ – albeit, the listing agent informed me more than once he had $800,000 “covered”.  A mere blink at recent comparable sales indicated a price well in excess of $850,000, or even $900,000, considering the level of demand and lack of comparable listings being marketed.  
This was confirmed during the auction, when a neighbour I’d casually interacted with leaned over and in little more than a whisper told me: “I know the vendor – she wants $1 million”. Considering the property didn’t reach its reserve until $900,000, I suspect she was correct.  
With competition from nine bidders, the property sold in front of a crowd of 100 or so for $1,011,000, and the agent, delighted with the result, wasted no time swooping in on the ones who missed out, to share information of ‘similar’ listings currently for sale.  
Needless to say, it’s a story that drives many Australians irate, with the focus inevitably aimed at the misleading way in which it was quoted. However, this isn’t what should drive our sense of injustice to kick into gear.  
The undeserving poor  
Debate is currently rife in Australia surrounding the relentless costs of our welfare system, with Social Services Minister <a target="_blank" href="https://www.crikey.com.au/2014/01/24/kevin-andrews-dont-pick-on-the-disabled-and-those-on-the-dole/">Kevin Andrews heralding it ‘unsustainable’</a>, whilst looking for ways the government can cut entitlements to the undeserving poor.  
The review has concentrated primarily on disability payments, and Newstart job seekers allowance, which keeps the ‘income-less’ in relative poverty.  
“Work is the best form of welfare!” was the statement Andrews used. Considering the uptick in unemployment, with industries such as Ford, Alcoa, Qantas, SPC, Sensis, Telstra, Shell and Toyota moving jobs and business offshore, a fall in the participation rate – due in part, to an asset rich, income poor retiring population – and a rise in part time and casual positions over full time positions, concerns are warranted.  
In the 2013-14 federal budget, the government correctly stated that “Australians value a fair society” and underlined its commitment to a tax system that provides a strong and stable funding stream for important public services, such as “health, education and disability care”, while “rewarding innovation and productivity” for economic growth.  On an international scale, our tax-transfer system is perceived as comparatively generous.  
According to the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.oecd.org/">OECD</a>, Australia’s ‘Robin Hood’ economy redistributes more to the poorest 5% of the population than any other member country, whilst the much-criticised policies of middle class welfare are seemingly the lowest.  
We’re deemed to have the most 'unique' and 'target efficient' social security benefits in the OECD, apparently yielding 'significant gains' to both the economy and society. And when compared to the USA, which has the highest income inequality among the ‘rich’ nations by some significant degree, we look comparatively healthy.  
Yet, despite its many reforms, and varying degrees of success, shaped in part by demographic changes (more women entering the labour force, for example) and a small reduction in high end salaries during the GFC, widening disparities between incomes have continued unabated since the mid-1990s. As the labour market struggles, there’s nothing to suggest the trend will stop.  
Mind the gap  
There are all sorts of reasons to narrow the gap between the rich and poor and prevent an ever-widening chasm -one of which is the way that income is invested into the economy and the roll over effect to society.  
Income inequality and economic growth can only work hand in hand when individuals are enabled to strive for greater heights from a foundation of equal opportunity – the basis of which is education.  
As economist and inequality expert Andrew Leigh commented late last <a target="_blank" href="https://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2013/s3793059.htm">year</a>:  
“Education is the greatest force that we've developed, not only for boosting productivity, but also for making Australia more equal,” ensuring “the circumstances in which you're born don't determine the circumstances in which you die.”  
Yet our schooling system is becoming increasingly segregated. The correlation between poor performance and social disadvantage is stronger here than <a target="_blank" href="https://crawford.anu.edu.au/public_policy_community/content/doc/Australia_Inequality-and-Prosperity_final-15-March-13.pdf">any other</a> comparable Western nation.  If our tax and transfer system were meant to offset this, you’d have to assess its been an abject failure.  
Why?  
Australia has enjoyed a period of economic prosperity, which over the last 23 years has been nothing short of remarkable.  According to Credit Suisse’s Annual Global Wealth Report, we’re the “richest people in the world,” with a median wealth each of US$219,500.  
Over the past year alone, Australia added an estimated 21,000 millionaires to the population. Yet, contrary to what the textbook version of economic theory would have you believe, household savings reaped from an economy surfing the wave of a commodity boom have not flowed into business investment, or nurtured productivity and education standards in the young.  
As noted in the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.credit-suisse.com/ch/en/news-and-expertise/research/credit-suisse-research-institute/publications">Credit Suisse assessment</a>, our riches are "heavily skewed towards real assets” a manifestation of “high urban real estate prices”, acquired and generated through the destructive cyclical impacts of a property market. As I emphasised <a target="_blank" href="https://www.macrobusiness.com.au/2014/02/housing-and-the-inequality-divide/">last week</a>, the gains from income growth and investment flow directly back to the land.  
Both homeowner and speculator  
Home ownership is seen as one of the great pillars of our collective culture.  It’s assessed to improve health and school performance in children, activate social engagement as well as reduce local crime.  
However, the way we go about promoting ownership is to nurture a system that teaches rising land values – outside of any productive activity such as renovation or effective utilisation of the resource – is due reward for having saved hard and got onto the ‘ladder’ in the first place.  
Our tax system is skewed toward ownership, with policies, that according to last year’s <a target="_blank" href="https://grattan.edu.au/publications/reports/post/renovating-housing-policy/">Grattan report</a>, provides potential benefits to home owners worth $36 billion a year, or $6,100 on average per household through items such as capital gains and pensioner eligibility test exemptions. Investors (or those choosing to rent and invest) reap $7 billion a year, or $4,500 on average each, by way of negative gearing rules and the capital gains discount introduced in 1999. Whilst renters, one in four households, see no gain - unless their income is low enough to require welfare assistance.  
In effect, we’re an economy that relies on ever-rising values of irreplaceable fixed assets to fund the individual wealth of its nation – and this is only achievable if policies are in place to ensure values remain high and climbing, and debt levels ‘affordable’.  
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Capital growth  
Speculation and investment are two sides of the same coin. When we assess a good business model for example, we speculate that the productive activity that flows from that investment, will build on a growing base of demand, and through competition and diversity, go onto produce a profit.  
Yet the capital growth in land values does not occur by way of some abject force of nature. Everything that makes our cities liveable comes from the collective investment of our taxpayer dollars to provide the social amenities needed to form the base from which we can all progress.  
This would include: community services such as, transport, parks, roads, trains, trams, medical facilities, and most importantly, schools.  
Yet, it is also these facilities that produce the needed demand for real estate that pushes values upwards.  Not through the efforts of the individual home owner, but the productive efforts of the taxpayer – renter, home owner and investor alike.  
Housing on its own is worth nothing without the infrastructure that surrounds it and rising land values are ‘reward’ for nothing other than unwontedly buying into a system that – under the current structure - promotes inequality and forces <a target="_blank" href="https://www.ahuri.edu.au/housing_information/review/evrev035">social polarisation</a>.  
Unlike our business model above, we can’t ‘make’ more land in a particular location to fulfil the demand produced from the facilities our tax system both funds and maintains.  Therefore effective utilisation of the resource is vital.  
However, the speculative process alone, along with the added impact of a tax system that impedes turnover by way of stamp duty at one end, and capital gains at the other, simply feeds a process of hording.  
This is because most advantage best from investment into housing through the process of “buy and hold” – leveraging the equity to produce needed funds, rather than selling. This is a system that drives underutilisation and ‘land banking’.  
But land is fixed in location; therefore we must always hop over it to find the next predicted hotspot to raise our families, until this too becomes out of reach through the process described above - like a cruel game of musical chairs.  
Back to the beginning  
Let’s go back to the case study I cited at the start of this article.  The reason the four bedroom townhouse attracted such strong demand in the first place, is because it’s located in a top government school zone.  
Only high-income earners can afford to live in this zone and no doubt they feel – through their income tax contributions alone – they pay their fair share toward facilitating the opportunity for their children to obtain that higher education. As the OECD said, our tax and transfer system is high progressive – the “rich” pay more.  Or do they?  
Allowing for stamp duty, the new owner who purchased the townhouse would have paid $1,066,605 yet despite two years of effectively stagnant growth in 2011/2012, the median price in the suburb has escalated close to 60% from $850,000 in December 2009, to $1,355,000, therefore they probably assess it a worthy investment.  
As for those who arrived early in the process, to paraphrase what one home owner relayed to me some time back, she has earned more from the capital growth of her home over the past 10 years or so, than she has in earnings.  
Outside of a market crash or the demise of the education facilities provided, there is nothing to suggest prices in this school zone will drop. From the tight zoning regulations alone and rising population of immigrants and local buyers looking to advance their children’s education, the very ingredients to attract a constant source of buyer demand are set in place – and rents will rise accordingly.  
The taxpayer continues to subsidise the school, whilst the gains are capitalised in rising land values, which flow directly to the individual home owner not the school or community, keeping values high and placing further pressure on the public purse to fund additional services. Meanwhile, underfunded schools in the over populated fringe suburbs, start to produce an English style education class divide.  
Under such a system, we are not subsidising the poor, we are paying the wealthy.  Yet, it’s clear, if we’re to navigate the structural changes ahead and keep unemployment low, whilst at the same time, reduce the projected burden on the ‘welfare state’, our economy is reliant on maintaining a highly skilled work force. For this to occur, an elevated level of tertiary education and business investment is vital.  
A better model of welfare  
Notwithstanding, the correct way to fund local schools would be via broad based and effectively administered <a target="_blank" href="https://www.macrobusiness.com.au/2013/11/land-tax-must-kill-negative-gearing-stamp-duty/">land value taxation</a>. In its purest form, as advocated by the classical economist, Henry George, it would result in a single tax on the unimproved value of land to replace all other taxes which hamper productivity, the most significant being income tax.  
George’s ideas won favour amongst many, including the great economist and author of Capitalism and Freedom, Milton Friedman as well as other influential figures including Winston Churchill, Adam Smith, and more recently chief economics commentator at the Financial Times, Martin Wolf, and author and economist Fred Harrison. Notwithstanding, a single tax would be unlikely to hold water in current political circles.  
The Henry Tax Review commissioned by the government under Kevin Rudd in 2008 concluded that “economic growth would be higher if governments raised more revenue from land and less revenue from other tax bases”, proposing that stamp duty (which is an inconsistent and unequitable source of revenue) be replaced by a broad based land tax, levied on a per-square-metre and per land holding basis, rather than retaining present land tax arrangements.  
Whilst arguments over school funding will likely continue, centred in the political battle over funding of the suggested <a target="_blank" href="https://www.igiveagonski.com.au/">Gonski</a> reforms. Unless we narrow the gap in education, we’ll never narrow the broadening gap in income and consequently, the growing burden on our welfare state.  
Therefore – when times comes that the chatter around affordability finally evolves into real action, a broad based LVT should form an important part of both the debate, and the solution.  
Catherine Cashmore is a market analyst with extensive experience in all aspects relating to property acquisition.
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catherinecashmore-6LXia3pPQj

The tale of one auction – what it really says about Australia's welfare state

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The original Great Southern in Melbourne’s south-east was built 125 years ago, and a new development on the site is seeking to pay homage to its predecessor.
The clifftop Great Southern Hotel was opened by property developers in 1889 to provide a seaside resort for thousands of Melbournians who travelled by horse-drawn tram to the hotel. In the 1920s, it was renamed the Beaumaris Hotel.
The elaborate building burned down in the Beaumaris bushfires of 1944, and rebuilt in 1950 as The Beaumaris.
{yoogallery src=[images/stories/2014/02/24/bea2]}
Now, the site has been converted into 58 apartments. About 60% of the original building has been restored, including its eye catching verandahs. The apartments are selling through Bert Geraerts &amp; Tony Stuart of Kay and Burton, who have put together <a target="_blank" href="https://player.vimeo.com/external/81972562.hd.mp4?s=0ef40ca79e2bb04f747cce2df087f05b">a video on the site’s history</a>.
The development, by Cieran Kayes and designed by Ten32, comes after a <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/news/historic-beaumaris-hotel-conversion-gets-green-light/2013111266312." target="_blank">three year planning battle</a> with the local council.
Prices range from $450,000 for a one bedroom, one bathroom apartment to $2.3 million for a penthouse in the new development.
<a target="_blank" href="mailto:jrichardson@propertyobserver.com.au">jrichardson@propertyobserver.com.au</a>
            
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jrichardson-uRX5hFdKfN

New Beaumaris Hotel conversion pays homage to site's storied history

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I know a lot of commentators are complaining about the amount of airtime that Harry Dent gets for his forecasts. But since his publicist kindly gave me some signed copies of his books (and since I am also a voracious reader), let's take a look at what he has to say on Australia's public and private debt.
"Australia is my favourite overall developed country in the world for vacation and for living."
Good-oh. True! We have low unemployment and our cities are amongst the most liveable in the world. Australians are also the wealthiest people in the entire world. 
How's about that? Of all the 200 or so countries you could be living in - which the news reminds us every night includes some countries in desperate strife - you're in the most prosperous of the whole lot. An arresting fact. Australia is also one of the most law-abiding and safer places in which to live.
"Australia has the lowest total debt for English-speaking countries outside Canada at 276%. Australia's government debt is unbelievably low at 21%. Hence, Australia's government will have more room to cushion its banking crisis ahead."
True again. Yes, this is the case. An a resources-exporting nation, Australia really ought not to have high government debt, and nor do we. Should there be an economic downturn, there is scope for government spending on infrastructure to be ramped up, interest rates to be cut, stimulus packages to be hurled at consumers, and so on.
It's becoming increasingly clear from ASX releases that the scaling back in mining capex is now right upon us with a large number of major construction projects now completed. A little later than expected, but we're into the downturn.
As Dent notes, the Australian government has some fuel in the tank if it's needed. The Reserve Bank forecasts Australia's GDP growth to increase to around 4% over the next few years, so at this juncture, stimulatory government spending does not appear to be what is required.
I also note that we don't have a "banking crisis" at this point in time, with the major banks recording another year of earth-scorching results. Dent is forecasting here that an eventual fall in dwelling prices will result in a crisis for the banks. We'll have to wait and see on that, but banks have been steadily building equity in recent times, albeit with material exposure via their residential home loan books.
Events of the last half decade in other developed countries have shown that banks have endured some large write-downs on non-performing loans. Fortunately, the average Australian is miles <a href="https://petewargent.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/will-our-banks-equity-be-wiped-out-by" target="_blank">ahead on their mortgage repayments</a> (at record levels) at this point in time, and non-performing loans have remained very low to date.
Simply leaving mortgage repayments at 2008 levels (the official cash rate in March 2008 was 7.25%) has allowed many of us to open up a huge buffer on required loan repayments. The cash rate of just 2.50% has delivered a colossal affordability dividend to Australian home owners. The mortgage repayment statistics (and, for that matter, retail sales galloping along at a 6.5% annualised growth pace) clearly show that Aussies are enjoying a time of very easily affordable living. Not in line with what you read in the press? That's mainly because modern lifestyle expectations have shifted dramatically over the past generation.
Read what the <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mediareleasesbytitle/2E33320E030F1DEACA25696E007FDE66?OpenDocument" target="_blank">actual statistics are saying</a>. For example, more Aussies than ever before have funds in hand for overseas travel, recording a blistering 8.4 million overseas trips in 2012-13 - comfortably the highest level of overseas trips ever recorded in Australia.
<img src="https://dev.propertyupdate.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/graph-1.16.gif" width="470" height="505">
One of the key factors for this chart going forward will be the rate of unemployment.
"Australia's consumer debt at 105% is higher than that of the US and most other developed countries as it has the highest average real estate valuations among Western countries. All of its major countries are on the coast with very limited land for development as most of the land is very arid."
True. This is an accurate geographical lesson. I learned this at junior school actually - "Australia is mainly just a large desert" - the text-books told us exactly that. Memorably, we also learned that Australia also had "very large bananas". It's funny the things, you remember. In fact, it was only when Neighbours and Home and Away came to the UK in the 1980s that Poms like me realised that Australia might be quite a nice place to live.
In truth, national comparisons of consumer debt are next to useless. It's very cheap to live in Memphis, but not at all so in Manhattan (or, indeed Mayfair). Similarly, <a href="/news">Dubbo</a> or <a href="/news">Dandenong</a> may be quite cheap on a national basis, but that's not necessarily much use if you earn lower than average wages, or for that matter, if you want to live in Darwin or <a href="/news">Dover Heights</a> or <a href="/news">Double Bay</a>. I don't think we learn much from that.
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You can only really assess how owners are coping with affordability on a localised basis. Broadly speaking, Aussies are enjoying ultra-cheap mortgage repayments, but new buyers are finding deposits harder to save. At this stage of the cycle, lending standards appear to be easing. 
<img src="https://www.rba.gov.au/speeches/2013/images/sp-so-230413-graph11.gif" width="394" height="400" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;">
 
The land for development is far greater in cities like Adelaide and in regional centres, of course. Sydney is hemmed in on all sides, which is creating a huge upwards pressure on land values.
"Australia went through the first crash without a subprime or banking crisis."
True again. Harry might have chosen to add 'contrary to my predictions of a 50-55% crash by 2014', but we'll let that one slide. Australia will eventually get a correction, but it won't be of that magnitude in the major capital cities. In fact, Dent has downgraded his crash prediction to less than half of his earlier call from three years ago.
"Housing prices didn't fall much then went a bit higher. Now they're starting to crack on the high end will finally fall in the years ahead."
False. In inflation-adjusted terms, all Australian cities except for Sydney are below their 2010 peaks. And here's a sale from this week - $1.325 million over reserve. Prices are not cracking at the top end at this point in time. The years ahead, of course, are uncertain, as always.
"No normal worker I've talked to in Sydney could afford to own an apartment in the downtown area. It's mostly international buyers and foreigners buying upscale households, as in London, Vancouver and New York".
Hmm, maybe - it depends who he spoke to and what you define as a "normal worker". I own "downtown" property and consider it very easily affordable to me - but then, I'm from a dual income household. 
I also have a large number of friends, none of whom are foreigners, who own "downtown" properties on Pitt Street, Market Street and so on. Being of that ilk, however, most of my city-based friends work in mining or are finance professionals, which is probably not how you would choose to define a normal worker.
Of course, as is the case in most maturing city markets, one wouldn't expect that your average manual labourer could afford to live "downtown", but then this kind of misses the point since most Aussies don't want to live in the city anyway. Most of us seem to want to live in lifestyle suburbs close to the cities, industrial zones tend to be located further out, and so on and so forth.
Where I live, a couple of minutes walk to Darling Harbour and the city, most people seem to be dual income apartment dwellers in the 25-35 age bracket. They generally work in the CBD and most seem to be living the dream at the moment, since interest rates are as low as most have ever seen. The trendy bars, restaurants, coffee houses and takeaway parlours around here are absolutely packed to the rafters seven days a week.
I'm sure life won't be quite so easy when they try to trade up to a house in the suburbs, though, particularly if borrowing rates revert higher. Personally, my best assessment is that Sydney will get a period of strong price growth in 2014, followed by an eventual cooling when interest rates eventually revert higher towards a neutral setting, whenever that may be.
"Australia should weather the coming crisis better than any country in the developed world, but it won't avoid a crash next time around like it did this time. That said, if I have a choice of anywhere to live in the next ten years in this kind of winter season and financial crisis - especially in the next two years from 2014 to 2015 Australia would be my first choice."
A bit of a contradiction? Australia "won't avoid a crash" but it will be the best place to be of "anywhere" to live in the entire world over the next decade. I tend to agree on the latter point. Australia has favourable demographics, and a bright future. That's why a lot of us choose to live here.
As for the crash, well, Dent was completely wrong last time, but time will tell, I guess! He's often said that Australia will lead the boom to follow the crash, so I suppose that I should tell you that any investment decision - be it in equities or real estate - ought to be a long-term gig.
A couple of people have emailed me and asked why I don't appear to take his predictions too seriously. Well, the truthful answer is that I did learn a few things from reading the books, but as for the predictions, no, of course not - his track record has been wildly inaccurate.
In any case, a lot of it is just textbook snake oil salesman content. Quote:
"What could sunspot cycles have to do with stocks? The solar radiation we receive from the sun is higher when there are more sunpots...and that radiation is enough to interfere with satellite and communications infrastructures. The magnetic pole of the sun reverses with this cycle...it might affect human energy and emotions..."
And so it goes on. Cue the obligatory chart which proves that sunspots cause recessions. You might just as well plot a chart of Scottish witchcraft convictions from 1560-1630 or use a pack of tarot cards.
Absolutely textbook stuff.
There is also a large amount of classic technical analysis snake oil thrown in for good measure.
In truly exemplary fashion, there are also the charts of Gouda bulb/tulip mania and the South Seas (sic) bubble, with a few numbers randomly interspersed at various points denoting the <a href="https://stockcharts.com/school/doku.php?id=chart_school:market_analysis:elliott_wave_theory" target="_blank">Elliott Wave</a>, i.e. this proves that all bubbles behave in precisely the same manner in five predictable waves.
The Elliott Wave is then routinely applied to any and every chart.
Having worked for some years in the copper mining industry and been responsible for preparing projections and variance analyses reliant on copper spot price movements, I was particularly interested to read Dent's outlook for the copper price.
I know some people believe you can read charts with no consideration of fundamentals, but if any commodity price should be based on fundamentals as much as technical analysis, it should be Dr. Copper. Nevertheless:
"...a clear fifth-wave peak in copper around $460/lb in April 2011 followed by an A-wave crash to $300 in late 2011. The B-wave peaked near $400 and has fallen just below $300 in mid-2013. The C-wave crash will continue again if copper breaks below $295 and then will probably take copper to around $125 by early 2015, a 73% decline from the peak."
There then follows a chart, apparently sourced from Bloomberg, showing copper's run-up from below $100/lb to $450/lb.
All sounds very impressive and technical until you apply the common sense test. Basic intuition should tell you that copper has never been worth more than a few dollars per pound. If it was actually selling at $325/lb we'd have retired as super-wealthy magnates years ago. Either that or we'd probably be out scavenging for copper materials on building sites somewhere.
Unfortunately, the 'analysis' has been applied to a bogus chart, with some major decimal point issues going on (Bloomberg, unlike other sites quotes copper in USd/lb).
Of course, it's a load of old bunkum designed to sell books, and the same approach is applied to real estate, stocks, wages, bond prices, spending cycles and so on. A good read for a laugh, but no, I wouldn't take it all too seriously.
Pete Wargent is the co-founder of <a href="https://allenwargent.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">AllenWargent</a> property buyers (London, Sydney) and a best-selling author and <a href="https://petewargent.blogspot.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">blogger</a>.
His new book '<a href="https://www.bigskypublishing.com.au/Books/General-Interest/Four-Green-Houses--and-a-Red-Hotel/1015/productview.aspx" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Four Green Houses and a Red Hotel</a>' is out now.
                    
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pwargent-M4siyDbqQY

Should we really believe Harry Dent on Australia's public and private debt?

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If you are just starting out in property development and haven’t yet found a builder, a good way to get a pretty good idea of what your construction costs may be is to engage a quantity surveyor (QS) to work with you in the early design stages of your project.
A QS can estimate the building cost of your development by using a trade based cost plan.
Provide your QS with architecture plans, including the engineer designs for stormwater and slabs. Your QS can then calculate all areas of your dwellings including floor, wall and roof areas.
There are literally hundreds of calculations made from the plans in order to complete the report.  The report contains a number of breakdowns so you can see for instance what the plumbing costs of the build will be.  The report contains calculations for the length of sewer drainage pipes and all the plumbing materials that will be required to connect the dwelling to the street’s service, installation of fittings and the internal pipework and stormwater drainage.
Once measurements are completed they are all combined to give a total cost of materials and labour for the project.
The QS will also break down the project into the different trades that will be needed to complete your project and apply costs to those trades.
I spoke to Bob Macansh from <a href="https://quanto.com.au/" target="_blank">Quanto Pty Limited</a> about the degree of accuracy between a builder’s quote and a cost plan.
“We receive requests for a cost plan from mum and dads wanting to build their own house right up to architects designing high density unit projects," Macansh said.
"Interesting enough, we have found that no matter the size of the project, our cost reports generally come in within 10% of the actual builder’s contract.
"We recommend our clients use the cost plan as a working tool with their builder, rather than a tool to try and prove them wrong or catch them out.  At the end of the day, you need your builder on your side as a property developer and the report gives both parties the opportunity to review cost areas to see if there are opportunities to trim build costs."
The cost report can be an important tool if you are having more than one builder quoting on your project. You can supply the report (less the costs) and ask the builders to quote on each section. This way you will be able to accurately compare quotes.
In my experience, builders prepare and present their quotes or tenders in different ways so having a template for them to provide costs on can give you the edge as a developer and determine the areas the builders are more cost effective in.
Glenn Cartwright of Quanto Pty Ltd says: "Too many times you hear of developers running out of funds before the development is completed. By having a trade based cost plan prepared by a quantity surveyor, developers can see not only how much the overall project will cost, but exactly where the costs are going. They can then alter the design as they see fit to meet their budget. It is easier to plan a realistic budget prior to commencement rather than seeking extra funds towards the completion of a construction project."
Jo Chivers is director of <a style="font-size: 14px;" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://www.propertybloom.com.au/" title="Property Bloom">Property Bloom</a>, which manages property development.
     
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jochivers-wq5Bp59R5a

How to accurately calculate the cost of your development project

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The remainder of the 200-lot Gabriel’s Run release at the Hermitage community development in Sydney’s south west have now been sold. The sale of the final 37 lots at Gabriel’s Run marks a total of $150 million in sales for the development.
The Hermitage is to be the first Australian masterplanned community by Japanese developer and builder Sekisui House. Located in Gledswood Hills, the development is being marketed towards young families and first home buyers, with its open green spaces offered as a major drawcard.
According to Craig Barnes, estate sales and customer relations manager at The Hermitage, word of mouth has been a big driver in demand for the estate.
“More than 60% of sales are from referrals, which is certainly impressive,” Barnes said.
“The demand for land at the Hermitage has been so strong with previous releases that people had been camping outside the sales office for days. To avoid this, we asked people to first register interest and then offered them priority numbers and a personalised approach, making the weekend a lot smoother but still completely – if not more – fair.”
Buyers from the development’s Chilsolm’s Corner and Hardy’s Rise releases have now moved in. Lots in the development have averaged $275,000.
Lots in the Gabriel’s Rise release ranged from 400 square metres to 625 square metres, and were priced from $243,000.
When completed, the Hermitage will be a 312 hectare community which will include a 10 kilometre cycling path and the regenerated South Creek. The development will also include a “hilltop village”, with boutique shops, cafes, restaurants and community facilities.
The Hermitage's next release will be a new precinct, planned for Easter. 
<a target="_blank" href="mailto:jrichardson@propertyobserver.com.au">jrichardson@propertyobserver.com.au</a>
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Gabriel’s Run release sold out at The Hermitage with a total of $150 million in sales

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Every second new home built today is attached – either a townhouse, villa, ‘plex’, flat or apartment.
Just 56% of the new dwellings approved during 2013 were detached houses.  It was 73% just five years ago.
One in four new dwellings approved are now in mid to highrise apartment towers.
Is this a fundamental shift?
<img alt="matusik_feb_13_one" height="627" width="470" src="/images/stories/2014/02/13/matusik_feb_13_one.png">
What the stats say
The graphic shows that there has been a rapid drop in new detached housing approvals in recent years.  In contrast, there has been a big lift in the number and proportion of mid-to-highrise apartments approved across the country.  There has been little real change in the level of new townhouses or low-rise unit construction.
Australia’s new housing market is now quite polarised between detached homes and apartment towers.
The cost to actually supply a new detached house (excluding land, taxes/charges etc.) is now similar to the cost to supply a new apartment.  It is considerably cheaper to supply a new townhouse or walk-up flat.
Of course, the size of a new house is much larger than a new apartment, with the average cost to build a new project home somewhere around the $1,000 per sqaure metre mark.  The cost to build new mid-to-high-rise stock sits at somewhere between $2,500 and $3,000 per square metre (as a ballpark figure).  It costs about $1,500 per square metre to build a new townhouse or basic walk-up flat.
Most new townhouses are three bed, two and a half bath, with two cars.  Many of the new walk-up flats are in two bed/two bath (with car parking) arrangements.  Many of the new mid-to-high-rise apartments are under 85 square metres and increasingly, one bedroom product.  New detached houses, by and large, remain three or four bedroom affairs.
Current demographic trends strongly suggest the need for more two and three-bedroom attached product.
<ul></ul>
My opinion
We seem to be stuck in the house versus apartment tower mindset.  This is especially the case in Queensland.
The recent changes to the Brisbane Town Plan further push this building form, i.e. traditional suburbia versus mid- to highrise density around select urban nodes.
What is missing – from an affordability and liveability viewpoint – is new housing product in-between.  We need more townhouses, ‘plexes’, terrace homes, granny flats, small lot homes and flexible dwellings.  These need to be supplied across much of the Australian fabric and especially in our middle-ring suburbs.
For mine, we also need one set of rules when it comes to new housing form.  This should apply across an entire state or territory.  Maybe it should even apply across the country, allowing of course for climatic differences.  It is all well and good that Ipswich City Council now permits granny flats.  But why not Brisbane?  Why does Adelaide – yes Adelaide - permit a much finer grain of new housing choice than Brisbane?
Our experience is that many residents want to ’age in place’.  Most don’t want to live in a highrise apartment complex.  They would like to downsize, stay local and have some nexus to the ground. But in the absence of affordable choice, they stay put, often as a couple in large detached homes.
This ‘in-between’ housing would also suit many first home buyers.
There is a real lack of new housing choice in the Australian market.  This is stopping first home buyers.  It is stopping empty-nesters from downsizing.  It is, by default, oversupplying the new high-rise apartment market and stalling detached housing supply.
Public policy is not allowing private enterprise (developers and builders) to supply what the market wants.
Is this a fundamental shift?
Yes.
But the role of the developers and builders is to respond to opportunities and work within planning frameworks (as dysfunctional as they might be) to deliver a product that sells.
The opportunity is that Australians, by and large, want more compact housing.  They are trading ’space’ for ‘place’.
The trouble is that this demand is largely being forced into one new product type – high density apartments.
Many buying this product anticipate strong capital gains and high rental returns.  On paper everything looks rosy. In reality, investment outcomes will be determined largely by supply.
For mine, we are now in danger of oversupplying the mid to highrise apartment market.
And sadly, within this mid to highrise space, apartment choice is increasingly limited.  It’s a race to the bottom – the smaller the better (read cheaper); or as the spin goes, “cheap and cheerful”.
Opportunity to supply a range of new housing types would reduce this propensity to overproduce, reducing the severity of the property cycle.
Michael Matusik is the founder of <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://www.matusik.com.au/" style="font-size: 14px;">Matusik Property Insights</a>, which has helped over 550 new residential projects come to fruition.
Read <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://www.matusikmissive.com.au/">Michael’s Blog</a> or follow him on <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://www.facebook.com/ThinkMatusik?fref=ts">Facebook</a> and <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://www.twitter.com/michaelmatusik">Twitter</a> or connect via <a rel="nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelmatusik">LinkedIn</a>.
 
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michaelmatusik-49YzLvdmNv

Rush to produce high density apartments is a race to the bottom, and we're risking oversupply

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Back in 2004, when Crown Group began showing interest in Parramatta, there were a number of naysayers about this growing city. However, the vision behind what is now the most recognisable and central hub for the western Sydney suburbs is being born out through the council, keen developers and buyers who are jumping onto what they see as an opportunity for growth.
The new $309 million V by Crown development will be the tallest in Sydney's <a target="_blank" href="/news">Parramatta</a>, at 29-storeys, just beating the B1 building that is 28-storeys high.
However, Property Observer has heard suggestions that it may soon face competition for this title, a comment that may be unsurprising for those who have seen the heavy presence of cranes in the skyline.
Today, the slabs will be set for Crown's residential tower – 30 metres wide, 50 metres long and one metre thick for those who haven’t yet grasped the size of the soon to be realised building.
{yoogallery src=[images/stories/2014/02/18/par2]}
Photographs taken on site by Property Observer
The letter ‘V’ from the name 'V by Crown' is prominent – it stands for vertical, but also for ‘vision’, which Parramatta Lord Mayor, John Chedid, put particular emphasis on. It appears to align with his vision of Parramatta as well.
<img width="470" height="481" alt="parramatta-feb-18-one" src="/images/stories/2014/02/18/parramatta-feb-18-one.jpg">
Parramatta Lord Mayor John Chedid, left, Crown Group CEO, Iwan Sunito, right. Photograph taken by Property Observer
“[The city of Parramatta is] delighted to have a company like Crown investing,” Chedid said on site yesterday, behind him the massive excavation site.
Chedid said the development sends a strong message of Crown’s commitment and belief in the future of Parramatta, the “economic hub of Western Sydney”.
The CEO of Crown Group, Iwan Sunito, appeared to agree. He said that back in 2004, when Crown Group started building and developing in Parramatta, he was regularly told that the plans were too ambitious for this area.
He was building one of the largest buildings at the time with more than 90 apartments, all of which has sold on completion in 2009.
This is his next important milestone, and he repeated his oft-quoted mantra: “Build it, and they will come.”
{yoogallery src=[images/stories/2014/01/23/par]}
And it seems they have already started pouring in for this development before it has been built. Of the 519 apartments at V, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/developments/v-by-crown-development-reaches-%24150-million-in-sales/2014012367334">there have already been $150 million worth of sales</a>, a total of more than 270 apartments since the 2012 launch.
It was officially <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/developments/stamp-duty-handout-expiry-helps-sell-out-first-stage-of-v-development-in-parramatta/2012061855159">launched in Singapore in April 2012</a>, presumably attracting a significant amount of offshore interest.
Prices start from $428,000 and on offer are studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments with a variety of floor plans, including some with studies.
The median unit price in Parramatta, according to RP Data, currently sits at $450,000.
Inside, it appears as though it will be everything a new development should be. Neutral palettes, modern amenities, space-maximising designs and careful consideration around the placement of rooms in the floor plan. This comes from the skills of Allen Jack + Cottier architects, along with the renowned architect Koichi Takada – arguably one of the most influential in Sydney.
{yoogallery src=[images/stories/2014/02/18/par1]}
Photographs taken on site by Property Observer
The current popularity that has led to the significant number of sales may be to do with the location, sitting on Macquarie Street and a very easy walk from Parramatta station. It may also be the promised facilities – a pool, gym, sauna, conference facilities, a music room, a theatrette and a library - amenities that were previously laughable for this area.
Discussing the area of Parramatta after the presentations with those attended, it appears that most are surprised with how quickly the city has emerged. It’s not, however, surprising that many buyers in the area are also first timers considering purchasing investments in the "second CBD" of Sydney. Sales manager for this project, Anthony Falas, previously provided us his thoughts on what will make these apartments a solid addition to an investors’ portfolio.
<img src="/images/stories/2014/01/23/v-by-crown-jan-23-breakout.jpg" alt="v-by-crown-jan-23-breakout" height="264" width="470">
It seems Crown Group is confident this will pave the way for the longevity of the area. With two three-storey ‘V’ shaped steel columns that peer over the entire site, it’s uncertain if they will ever be moved. In fact, Property Observer is told that roads needed to be closed to bring in the cement with which to fill them up.
V is set for completion in 2016 and it’s not clear yet where Crown Group will look for its next project.
When Property Observer asked, Sunito laughed. He said he’s just looking to get through this project first, but he hopes for a lot more to come for what he describes as the city of culture, connectivity, commerce and vision.
jduke@propertyobserver.com.au
For the latest development listings, brought to you by Property Observer and partners, see our <a rel="nofollow" href="https://showcase.propertyobserver.com.au/">Investor Showcase</a>.
 
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jduke-EHk3XBmHkn

Slab to be set on highest residential tower in Parramatta, V by Crown, today

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Real estate agents and financial planners often encourage purchasers to undertake ‘due diligence’ when purchasing a home or investment, but have you ever wondered what due diligence large-scale developers undertake when searching for potential new development sites?
With so many factors at play such as location, access to amenity and financial viability - then looking at how these factors affect the commercial success of each project - there are many due diligence tips that developers employ which can assist individual investors when assessing the potential of their property portfolio.
For us at ICD Property, undertaking a rigorous due diligence process is vital to ensure we only purchase prime development sites that lead to commercially successful apartment projects which we know will perform well once launched to the public.
We have a strict list of attributes that we look for and if the site in question doesn’t tick all the boxes, we move on.
To give you an example as a general rule our checklist includes things like:
<ul>
<li>
Site location within walking or short driving distance of at least one of the following public transport services: trams, trains and buses
</li>
<li>
Site location within walking or short driving distance of a grocery store and supermarket
</li>
<li>
Site location within short driving distance of restaurants and cafés
</li>
<li>
Site location within a short driving distance of existing medical facilities and commercial precincts
</li>
<li>
Site location within a short driving distance of at least one university
</li>
<li>
The ability to easily access major roads or freeways for the commercial commute.
</li>
</ul>
As a case in point, our new project in Hawthorn sits within 10 metres of tram and bus facilities, 15 metres from a major supermarket, 10 metres from a local shopping strip, one kilometre from a university and 4.5 kilometres from the CBD.
Basically our sites must provide accessibility to each of these elements and if they don’t we simply don’t see the commercial viability of purchasing the site as there is no sense in delivering residents to areas where there isn’t sufficient amenity to support the growth of a suburb.
While of course we are talking in commercial terms, these factors provide great insight into the psyche of the owner occupiers who purchase within our projects in terms of what they deem to be an acceptable level of ‘liveability’.
Now to apply this thinking to mum-and-dad investors and everyday buyers…
For many first-time investors or owner-occupiers, choosing the right property in the right location and the right mix of amenity can be a daunting experience and there’s so much research on the market it can almost feel overwhelming.
It may be reassuring for these home-hunters to know that developers go through a similar process when securing development sites for apartment projects and that these developers hand-pick their sites with the strictest protocols in mind.
Knowing that a particular apartment project has already been through the rigours of a developer’s due diligence can help put investors’ minds at ease knowing the apartment they purchase has been thoroughly vetted and assessed by the developer.
It’s food for thought as there is much to be learnt about the due diligence protocols of large-scale professional developers.
Michael Mai is managing director of <a href="https://www.icdproperty.com.au/" target="_blank">ICD Property</a>. ICD Property is currently marketing YOU AND I in Collingwood and in 2014 it will launch two other new projects.
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mmai-AThrZTppWY

Due diligence the key to securing sites for successful apartment projects

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Often the only way to figure out what’s really happening in real estate is to find a quiet room, shut out all the hype and media static, and spend a few hours looking at the cold hard numbers.
If you haven’t done that, you can be forgiven for thinking Melbourne had a rampant boom last year. The reality is that the Victorian capital had a solid but moderate year overall.
Three major research sources agree that the median house price rose 7% or 8%. They include the Australian Bureau of Statistics, which records a rise of 7.9% in 2013.
Keeping in mind that the three previous years were negative ones, the overall picture is one in which prices have done very little since 2009.
So there’s plenty of room for further price growth this year and indeed many precincts around the metropolitan area are emitting growth signals.
Most of them are middle-market or bottom-end areas, where a combination of affordability, solid infrastructure and good transport links make them attractive to all kinds of buyers.
An outstanding feature of metropolitan Melbourne is how widespread the growth regions are. Municipalities scattered around the city region have markets ranging from solid through steady to strong. But for the greatest concentration of future hotspots, head south-east from the CBD.
And, no, I don’t mean the millionaire suburbs of the inner south-east. I’m referring to more distant municipalities where affordable areas have rising markets. These include the municipalities of Dandenong, Casey, Kingston and Mornington Peninsula.
The City of Casey is the individual star, with seven suburbs with growing sales activity. Leading suburbs are <a href="/news">Cranbourne East</a>, <a href="/news">Cranbourne North</a>, Fairfield, <a href="/news">Hallam</a> and <a href="/news">Berwick</a>. Most are locations with the median house prices in the $300,000s.
The nearby City of Dandenong is another affordable area with a number of growth markets, including <a href="/news">Dandenong</a>, <a href="/news">Noble Park</a>, <a href="/news">Springvale</a>, <a href="/news">Keysborough</a> and <a href="/news">Dandenong North</a>.
Elsewhere in Melbourne, the outstanding regions are the municipalities of Brimbank in the west and Whittlesea in the north. In Brimbank I’ve identified nine suburbs with growth markets. This area has great growth prospects because of its range of affordable locations, good transport links and major spending on new infrastructure, including an $800 million transport hub.
The City of Whittlesea, a cluster of affordable growth suburbs in the north of the Melbourne metropolitan area, has seven growth suburbs. This is another area with strong infrastructure, good transport links and proximity to jobs nodes.
Affordability, infrastructure and jobs: it’s one of real estate’s power combinations.
The major risk hanging over the Melbourne market is the inner-city oversupply, but you already know that. If you don’t, you’re obviously living in China, which is where Melbourne developers will be trying to sell all those surplus apartments.
Terry Ryder is the founder of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.hotspotting.com.au/" rel="nofollow">hotspotting.com.au</a>.
You can contact Terry via <a href="https://mailto:%20ryder@hotspotting.com.au" target="_blank">email</a> or on <a href="https://twitter.com/hotspotting" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a>.
 
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terryryder-YECXbqmri2

Good signals and plenty of room for growth in Melbourne suburbs

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Anybody who follows the property market in <country-region>Australia</country-region> is familiar with Steve Keen, an economist who made a daring prediction that our property prices will fall as much as 40% sometime before 2023. How this prediction came about is subject to various interpretations, nevertheless, the “40% drop” forecast has been repeated so many times over the years, and by so many, that it has almost become a part of Australian folklore.
I have to admit that when I first came across Steve Keen’s prediction I treated it with a fair dose of scepticism since I could not find corroborating evidence for such a substantial fall in prices using indicators from my own analytical toolkit.
I had a particular issue with the somewhat overly simplistic assumption that 'whatever happened in the <country-region>US</country-region> has to happen here because we are no different'. I had an alternative perspective on this as, a decade or so earlier, I had undertaken some analysis of the 1980s housing crisis in the <country-region>US</country-region> and clearly, the events played out quite differently in <country-region>Australia</country-region>.
However, there was one bit of theory that underpinned Keen’s conclusions which attracted my further interest. In particular, at the core of Keen’s argument is a concept that “aggregate demand equals GDP plus the change in debt” (emphasis mine).
Since debt is equivalent to cash in your pocket and 'money makes the world go round', it therefore seems a logical proposition to look into changes in debt levels as a way of gauging what is happening in a wider economy.
Keen devised an indicator called the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.debtdeflation.com/blogs/2011/08/28/updated-credit-accelerators/">Credit Accelerator</a> to forecast the effect of changes in debt levels on GDP. It is conceptually similar to Credit Impulse proposed by Biggs, Myer, Pick in <a target="_blank" href="https://www.banccentraldecatalunya.ch/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2013/Biblioteca_ERC/2013Oktober/11102013/BankOfNetherlands-Working%20paper%20218_tcm46-220409.pdf">their analytical paper</a> published in July 2009.
Briefly on Credit Impulse, as it is important for the interpretation of the graph presented below: the original theory was the result of an attempt to find a possible explanation for credit-less recoveries where GDP starts to grow with no growth in stock of credit. The authors found the evidence that a mere slowdown in the speed of debt reduction (i.e. in deleveraging) had a positive effect on the overall economy.
In simple terms, when the Credit Impulse indicator starts to point upwards while in negative territory, it is a positive sign that things are improving. The opposite should also hold true; that is, when it starts to point down while in positive territory - it is a negative sign meaning things are deteriorating.
So by substituting total debt with just housing debt, one can potentially gain insight specifically into the property market.
However, it is debatable whether Credit Impulse/ Credit Accelerator are still meaningful in this context. And there are also some issues with refinancing not being able to be isolated from the total value of housing debt which potentially clouds the picture. Nevertheless, a comparison of Credit Impulse (constructed with housing debt data) to the 12-month rate of change in the established house price index indicates quite a good correlation between the two data series, as illustrated on the following chart.
<img src="/images/stories/2014/02/17/arek_feb_1_7_one.png" width="470" height="320" alt="arek_feb_1_7_one">
Source: Based on ABS and RBA data
I am using an adaptation of the Biggs, Myer, Pick version of the algorithm, hence there may be discrepancies between Keen's and my version of the graph.
It is worth noting that correlation between the two data series is particularly strong over the last five years (for those statistically inclined, correlation coefficient is 0.88 but drops to 0.64 for the entire series). That would imply there is merit in using the Credit Impulse concept for monitoring the state of the property market in <country-region>Australia</country-region>.
The potential benefit of this indicator is twofold: it offers a timely insight into the dynamics of the property market – better than quarterly established house price data from the ABS. And secondly, perhaps more importantly, it can provide an early indication of impending changes in the direction of property prices.
As the above graph demonstrates, the theory behind Steve Keen’s original prediction appears sound - although it is not entirely clear to me whether Keen had actually been using his Credit Accelerator indicator when he made his prediction or not (Biggs, Myer, Pick paper was published much later). However, let’s examine how this indicator should have been interpreted if it was in existence.
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To be frank, it would have been a frightening experience to stare at this graph in 2007 and 2008, hearing about all the financial collapses happening throughout the world and not knowing the depth it could all fall to.
Based on these factors alone, a prediction of significant declines in house prices would have been well justified back then. However, since the magnitude of the likely decline cannot be derived directly from the Credit Impulse indicator, I assume there must have been other factors that allowed Keen to make the estimate of 40% drop in prices, because otherwise it would have been just a presumption.
By the same token, when the Credit Impulse started to point upwards in March 2009, and kept rising in the following quarters, it gave an indication that things were likely to improve. However, this message was not conveyed to the wider audience. So, again, one can only assume that there must have been other compelling factors that led Keen to persist with his earlier conclusion.
The whole situation repeated again in 2010 (i.e. in June Credit Impulse indicated a possible reversal in the growth of property prices) and in 2012 (when the Credit Impulse started to point upwards again, indicating the likely end to price decreases).
By then Keen had been regularly publishing commentary on his Credit Accelerator indicator, so the experience from the earlier 2008-2009 episode should have helped with a more accurate interpretation of what was happening. However, throughout that time, Keen had insisted that there were only two likely options for property prices: a US-like scenario where prices fall rapidly, or <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/residential/house-prices-will-fall-in-a-slow-bleed-fashion-steve-keen/2013060662034">Japan-like scenario of a “slow melt”</a> over the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/residential/property-prices-to-fall-20-by-2013-year-s-end-steve-keen/2011101952000">next decade or so</a>.
Again, this call was made most likely because of other factors which, to my best knowledge, remain unspecified (that is, if we leave aside the two simplistic assumptions Steve Keen made that '<a target="_blank" href="https://www.debtdeflation.com/blogs/2012/01/28/economics-in-the-age-of-deleveraging/">Australian private debt is high and therefore it will deleverage</a>' and that 'Australia is like the US so the same has to happen here as well').
It was only much later, when a third scenario started to play out and property prices actually recorded some gains, that Steve conceded prices <a target="_blank" href="https://www.debtdeflation.com/blogs/2013/11/13/i-will-be-wrong-on-house-prices/">“may go up for a while”</a>. However, the media did not pick up on this comment with the same zeal as on the previous doom scenario. How unfortunate.
All in all, in 2008 Keen had an important message to tell and that message was broadcast to a wide audience. Media played a very important role in publicising his warning. That is how I and many others became aware of his views.
However, not many took the effort to understand what was really behind the “40% price drop” headline. The majority bought into this scenario without any further thought.
Many still hold to this view despite prices reaching new heights and despite the fact that the indicator that is at the core of the original prediction is showing that property prices will grow further. However, the positive message is not being reported by the media.
To be fair, there is a small possibility that the “40% price drop” prediction may come true in the next decade (the timeframe nominated by Steve Keen). We can only wait and see. However, if it happens, without additional evidence from Steve on what kept him convinced that the original scenario is still to play out, it will be difficult to accept that it was all <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/residential/australian-property-prices-in-2014-and-beyond-a-peek-into-the-future/2014013167457">predictable as far back as 2008</a>.
One thing is almost certain though. Based on the past performance, the Credit Impulse should give a warning when the current price trend is about to reverse. For now, let’s just enjoy the ride to the next top, however long, or short, it will be.
Arek Drozda is an independent analyst who has worked in the public and private sectors for over 20 years in business development, data analysis and in building geographic information systems.
UPDATE: In repsonse to this article Steve Keen wrote a reply, which you are able to view here: <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/economy/clarifying-my-40-drop-call-and-what-s-still-driving-housing-prices-up/2014021867863" target="_blank">Clarifying my 40% price drop call and the factors still driving housing prices up: Steve Keen</a>
 
 
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