Apartment buyers in New South Wales are set to gain a decade of insurance-backed protection against major building defects, after the NSW Parliament passed the Fair Trading and Building Legislation Amendment Bill 2026.&nbsp;

The Bill establishes decennial defect insurance, known in the market as Latent Defects Insurance (LDI), as an alternative to the existing two-year strata building bond. It cleared the Legislative Council with amendments on Tuesday evening (August 4, 2026), with the Legislative Assembly agreeing to those amendments shortly after.

Under the reform, eligible developers can satisfy their statutory bond obligation by taking out an approved decennial-style policy that gives owners 10 years of cover for major structural defects from completion, claimable directly, without first having to pursue developers or builders through costly legal action.&nbsp;

The change forms the final tranche of amendments arising from the 2021 statutory review of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 and related legislation.

Resilience Insurance, which originated the cover in Australia and has delivered it in NSW since 2022, welcomed the passage and credited the NSW Government for delivering it.

“This is protection apartment buyers have needed for a long time, and the credit for delivering it belongs to the NSW Government,”&nbsp;said Corey Nugent, CEO of Resilience Insurance.

“Minister Chanthivong and his team have shown real leadership in replacing an outdated two-year bond with cover that matches the lifespan of the buildings people are buying into. Reform like this is what good, evidence-based regulation looks like.”

Resilience has delivered LDI in NSW since 2022, protecting thousands of apartments, giving the State, and now the country, real-world evidence of how decade-long, no-fault protection works in practice.

The reform also places NSW within a wider national shift.

NSW is the third jurisdiction to put decennial cover into law. The ACT legislated for it in 2024, with the scheme taking effect in late 2025, and Victoria passed its own framework on 17 June. Between them, the three cover the majority of Australia's apartment market.

The reform commences once the legislation is proclaimed, which is expected in the coming weeks. From that point, developers of Class 2 residential apartment buildings can meet their statutory obligation with an approved decennial policy in place of the bond.

Buyers who purchased into projects that took out the cover early are among the first in the country to take keys to apartments carrying decade-long structural protection.

“With the legislation passed, the focus now turns to making it work for buyers,”&nbsp;Nugent said.

“There are already thousands of apartments in NSW covered by this insurance, bought by developers who moved early. The question every buyer should be asking in a display suite is a simple one: does this building come with 10-year defect cover, and who stands behind it?&nbsp;

“We look forward to working with the Government and the Building Commission in coming weeks as the framework moves to implementation, and to sharing what we have learned over the past four years so the protection reaches owners as smoothly and quickly as possible.”

Other states are working through their own reform programs. Western Australia has indicated that decennial cover is within consideration a later stage of its reform sequence, and Queensland has been examining the settings as it looks at the development pipeline ahead of the 2032 Olympics.

Resilience Insurance acknowledges the NSW Government’s continued focus on strengthening consumer protection while supporting housing delivery across the State.

Fast Facts: What the reform means

<ul style="color:#222222; font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:small; font-style:normal; font-variant-ligatures:normal; font-weight:400; text-align:start; white-space:normal; background-color:#ffffff; text-decoration-thickness:initial; text-decoration-style:initial; text-decoration-color:initial">
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Proven at scale:&nbsp;Decennial cover has operated in NSW since 2022, protecting thousand of apartments.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">10 years of cover:&nbsp;Protection for major structural defects runs for a decade from completion, claimable directly and with no legal action required.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">An alternative to the bond:&nbsp;Eligible developers can meet their statutory obligation with an approved decennial-style policy in place of the 2% strata building bond.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Part of a national shift:&nbsp;The ACT has had decennial provisions in force since 2025 and Victoria passed its framework in June. NSW now joins them.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">No-fault, first resort:&nbsp;Owners corporations claim directly from the insurer without first having to establish who is liable for the defect.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Cost-competitive:&nbsp;At approximately 1.8% of build cost, LDI is typically priced below the 2% bond while offering broader, longer protection.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Market position:&nbsp;Resilience originated LDI in Australia and has delivered it in NSW since 2022.</li>
</ul>

Fast Facts: What is Resilience LDI?

<ul style="color:#222222; font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:small; font-style:normal; font-variant-ligatures:normal; font-weight:400; text-align:start; white-space:normal; background-color:#ffffff; text-decoration-thickness:initial; text-decoration-style:initial; text-decoration-color:initial">
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Resilience Latent Defects Insurance (LDI):&nbsp;Covers major structural defects for 10 years from completion.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Consumer-first:&nbsp;Direct claim access, no need for lengthy legal action.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Cost advantage:&nbsp;At approximately 1.8% of build cost, LDI is typically priced below the traditional 2% Strata Bond while offering broader protection.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Market leader:&nbsp;&nbsp;Resilience Insurance originated LDI in Australia and is the national market leader.</li>
</ul>

Joel Robinson

NSW parliament passes 10-year defect insurance laws for new apartment buyers

Builder-developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/mcnab-developments">McNab</a> has wasted little time reshaping one of South Brisbane's most significant undeveloped apartment sites after acquiring the property earlier this year.&nbsp;

McNab has lodged plans to scrap an existing approval for two 30-storey towers and instead deliver a single 28-storey residential building, preserving part of the site for a future development opportunity.

The proposal, lodged over <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/64-peel-street-south-brisbane-qld-4101">64 Peel Street and 9 Cordelia Street</a>, is for a residential-led mixed-use development comprising 124 apartments above a landscaped podium, alongside a boundary realignment that preserves part of the land for a future residential project.

<img alt="First look: McNab resets decade-old South Brisbane approval with 124-apartment tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="743bf564-3f8f-45fc-b8d3-bbf18f5b628f" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/mcnab%20Peel%20st%20podium.png?VersionId=EhCxGrVn_VFH3qTbKnI4WppGwaMnOn0t" />

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/hayball">Hayball</a>, the development will deliver 119 two-bedroom and five three-bedroom apartments across 23 residential levels. A five-level podium will accommodate 135 car spaces, while the ground floor will include a 66 sqm commercial tenancy, an activated residential lobby with work-from-home spaces, and a publicly accessible landscaped plaza linking Cordelia and Peel streets.&nbsp;

Communal amenities will span Level 6 and the rooftop, including indoor and outdoor recreation spaces, a swimming pool, barbecue facilities, kitchen and dining areas, lawn space, sauna, steam room and yoga facilities.

The application also proposes a boundary realignment to create a standalone 1,290 sqm development lot while retaining an adjacent parcel for future redevelopment, allowing the balance of the site to contribute additional housing over time.

Hayball said the architecture has been shaped by the site's elevated corner position at the intersection of Peel and Cordelia streets and Brisbane's subtropical climate.

The design incorporates generous landscaped setbacks, a masonry podium wrapped with planting, large north-facing balconies, and a slender tower profile intended to maximise natural light, cross ventilation and long-range views. The rooftop has been conceived as a wellness-focused retreat overlooking Brisbane, with amenities positioned to capture views towards Mount Coot-tha and the CBD.

<img alt="First look: McNab resets decade-old South Brisbane approval with 124-apartment tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="c5f99e84-6ad8-4a87-82d1-869685b754d2" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/mcnab%20tower%20perspective.png?VersionId=Gw0IuJaSAlk.tvGBxInhZOcQAdIB..2b" />

The planning submission positions the proposal as a response to both changing market conditions and Brisbane's Kurilpa Sustainable Growth Precinct planning reforms.

McNab acquired the site after the previous approval was granted, with the existing scheme no longer reflecting current residential market demands, economic conditions, construction challenges, construction efficiencies or the quality of development outcome now being pursued, the planning report noted.

McNab continues to expand its residential development pipeline across Brisbane and the Gold Coast. The developer recently launched The Tannery in West End, securing more than 60 per cent of apartments before the project's public release. It is also delivering Elements Budds Beach in Surfers Paradise and Lucia Highgate Hill, an eight-apartment boutique development overlooking the Brisbane River.

McNab resets decade-old South Brisbane approval with 124-apartment tower

A steeply sloping Bellevue Hill site is set to accommodate a new mid-rise apartment development, with plans lodged for 20 homes that respond to the site's dramatic topography.

The proposal for the consolidated land at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/138a-140-bellevue-road-bellevue-hill-nsw-2023">138A-140 Bellevue Road</a> has been designed by Sydney architecture practice Common Office, which has used the site’s substantial fall to distribute the building’s scale and unlock 20 apartments without presenting the full height to the street.&nbsp;

“The unique design strategy leverages the site’s substantial topographical fall to facilitate increased density, presenting a seven-storey profile to Bellevue Road while rising to 10 storeys at the rear,” Common Office said in its architectural design report.

The apartment mix spans one, two, three- and four-bedroom residences. Four two-bedroom apartments are designated as affordable housing, while the plans also include two adaptable dwellings. The mix is majority three-beds, with the typical three-bed apartment offering around 144 sqm internally, with balconies of around 15 sqm.

The affordable housing component represents 15 per cent of the residential floor area and allows the project to access additional height and floor space under the NSW Government’s in-fill affordable housing provisions. The site also falls within the inner area of the Low and Mid-Rise Housing Policy because it is within 400 metres walking distance of Double Bay Town Centre.

<img alt="First Look: Plans lodged for topography-led affordable housing project in Bellevue Hill" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b1230d0f-3bfa-4a11-abaf-0928c66ef345" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Bellevue%20da.png?VersionId=dZeMK3P.OutGjN8ycjsxm8uNsj_QFWQv" />

Common Office has arranged the building around a masonry podium and a lighter upper volume, drawing on two recurring elements of Bellevue Hill’s established architecture: sandstone bases and the vertical proportions of local Inter-war Art Deco apartment buildings.

“The proposal is governed by a holistic design language that reconciles the solid horizontal masonry of the neighbourhood’s podiums with the elegant verticality of its Art Deco heritage,” the architect said.

“The building maintains a consistent rhythmic logic utilising deep recesses and a sophisticated material transition to break down the 10-storey scale into a series of articulated, human-scale volumes.”

<img alt="First Look: Plans lodged for topography-led affordable housing project in Bellevue Hill" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="0147f503-1af1-4d51-97fb-c2f1cba63a9d" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Bellevue%20bldg.png?VersionId=GoW7q3NlK67OpnePXhk7zvklrlKb72Qc" />

Large-format sandstone tiles will define the lower levels, establishing a robust base that negotiates the change in elevation from Bellevue Road. Above, red-tinted precast concrete frames, recessed balconies, anodised aluminium screens and expanded metal details will create a more vertically expressed façade. Integrated planter beds will introduce greenery across balcony edges and recessed sections of the building.

The elongated northern façade has been divided into three recessed vertical masses to reduce its perceived length. Triangular window elements and metal privacy screens reference the geometry of nearby Art Deco buildings while controlling overlooking toward surrounding homes. The southern elevation will incorporate further privacy screening, landscaped edges and deep balconies to maintain light and ventilation.

<img alt="First Look: Plans lodged for topography-led affordable housing project in Bellevue Hill" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="e8679cf1-18bc-4447-8a0f-0052b94ab83c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Bellevue%20da%20rooftop.png?VersionId=5SQqQqRFf76rvE2p1TbxJSweMN70AIbc" />

Private and communal landscaping is distributed throughout the development. A landscaped garden apartment is positioned within the lower portion of the site, while a communal terrace on Level 5 will include a central timber deck, barbecue facilities, resident planting plots and areas for outdoor dining and informal gatherings.

Common Office described the terrace as an elevated sanctuary designed to capture district views and sunlight. Its planting strategy incorporates endemic species associated with the Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub, extending the landscape vertically through the building and providing habitat for local flora and fauna.

A second communal outdoor area is proposed at roof level, with built-in seating, paved gathering areas and perimeter planting.

Bellevue Hill is enjoying renewed momentum in the new apartment market, with several boutique developments recently launched and currently under construction. Positive Investment Enterprise is delivering the 16-apartment Kew Palm House on Birriga Road, while Chanine Developments is also under construction at Florian, a 36-apartment project on Banksia Road.

&nbsp;

Bellevue Hill is enjoying renewed momentum in the new apartment market, with several boutique developments recently launched and currently under construction.

First Look: Apartment development pitched for Bellevue Hill, Double Bay fringe

South Brisbane's apartment pipeline continues to build momentum, with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/trk-property-group">TRK Property Group</a> lodging plans for a 161-apartment tower on Montague Road as developers accelerate investment across the Kurilpa Sustainable Growth Precinct.

The proposal for 176–186 Montague Road would replace an existing office building with a 20-storey residential tower designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cox-architecture">COX Architecture</a>, adding to a growing pipeline of high-density projects reshaping one of Brisbane's fastest-evolving inner-city precincts.

The project has been conceived as a "living building", featuring a flowing tower form, extensive vertical landscaping, and generous communal spaces that respond to the evolving Kurilpa Sustainable Growth Precinct.

TRK Property Group Development Director Matt Kan said the project reflected the confidence developers have in South Brisbane's long-term future.

"South Brisbane is entering an incredibly exciting period, and we see Montague Road sitting right at the heart of that evolution," Kan said.

"With the former Visy site directly opposite us and significant investment planned throughout the broader Kurilpa precinct, there is a real sense of momentum around this part of the city and what it will become over the coming years.

"For TRK, this is an opportunity to be part of that next chapter and deliver a project that responds to where the precinct is heading, while contributing to the continued evolution of Brisbane's river edge."

<img alt="First look: TRK Property joins South Brisbane apartment surge with Montague Road tower plans" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="590fe1ad-f892-4446-a679-80e33a16d029" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/TRK%20tower%20facade.png?VersionId=uOJStrcKpyHFcPE1w6_9SMAFzVMCcZll" />

The scheme includes a mix of one, two, three and four-bedroom apartments, incorporating multi-purpose rooms in selected residences to provide additional flexibility for home offices or expanded living areas. The proposed mix comprises 15 one-bedroom, 13 one-bedroom plus MPR, 73 two-bedroom, 26 two-bedroom plus MPR, 30 three-bedroom, and four four-bedroom apartments.

Rather than adopting a conventional rectilinear tower, COX Architecture has developed a sculpted form inspired by the movement of the Brisbane River.

"The proposal has been designed by COX Architecture as a 'living building' that responds to the site's riverine setting, floodplain history and evolving urban context within the Kurilpa Sustainable Growth Precinct," the planning report states.

"The architectural form draws from the fluid nature of the Brisbane River, with a curved and undulating tower form that creates a varied architectural edge and avoids a conventional rectilinear tower expression."

The podium has also been designed as an architectural feature rather than a conventional parking structure, with cascading planting, screening and natural-toned materials softening its appearance. Resident parking is elevated above ground level to address the site's flood constraints, while habitable apartments sit above flood planning levels. Upper-level communal facilities are designed to accommodate shelter-in-place arrangements during major flood events.

<img alt="First look: TRK Property joins South Brisbane apartment surge with Montague Road tower plans" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="01fa15d0-90df-46c7-9555-7941fc45373c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/TRK%20podium.png?VersionId=mHyua.w1pHGBt9qEdWzrlsv.leztUCwO" />

Communal amenity is a major focus of the proposal. Around 1,815 sqm of shared resident space is proposed across the ground floor, level 19 and the rooftop, including co-working areas, indoor and outdoor recreation spaces, wellness facilities, dining and gathering areas, lawn spaces, a rooftop pool and spa, and extensive landscaping. At street level, a landscaped forecourt and approximately 345 sqm of publicly accessible open space along Montague Road are intended to improve the pedestrian experience while activating the building's frontage.

The development will provide 163 car spaces, including 152 resident bays and 11 visitor spaces, together with 144 bicycle spaces incorporating resident storage, visitor parking, bicycle maintenance facilities and e-mobility charging infrastructure.

The site sits within one of Brisbane's fastest-changing inner-city precincts, less than two kilometres from the CBD and within easy reach of South Bank, West End, the Queensland Cultural Centre and extensive public transport connections. The Kurilpa Sustainable Growth Precinct planning framework is encouraging higher-density residential development to help meet Brisbane's housing supply targets while supporting walkable, transit-oriented neighbourhoods.

TRK Property joins South Brisbane apartment surge with Montague Road tower plans

Article summary

<ul data-end="785" data-start="311">
	<li data-end="459" data-section-id="5hbcyr" data-start="311">Pikos Group has released the five-penthouse collection at Skye Kangaroo Point, headlined by a two-storey sky home spanning more than 1,000 sqm.</li>
	<li data-end="561" data-section-id="1p7lq8n" data-start="460">Early buyer interest suggests the residences could set a new Queensland apartment price record.</li>
	<li data-end="667" data-section-id="1y70z0l" data-start="562">The collection includes four move-in ready penthouses and the highly customised Skye One residence.</li>
	<li data-end="785" data-section-id="yvm0y1" data-start="668">The release caps one of Bri​sbane's most ambitious luxury apartment developments overlooking the Brisbane River.</li>
</ul>

<hr data-end="790" data-start="787" />
Pikos Group has released the five-penthouse collection at its <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/buildings/skye-residences-by-pikos-kangaroo-point-8-river-terrace-kangaroo-point-qld-4169">Skye by Pikos</a> development in Kangaroo Point, with early buyer interest indicating the flagship residences could eclipse every apartment sale previously recorded in Queensland.

The collection crowns the luxury riverfront development with five residences, including four completed penthouses and Skye One, a two-level sky home spanning more than 1,000 sqm that will be tailored to its eventual owner.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=90059 project_image_fid=374075]

Wanting to offer a fully customisable home, Pikos is offering Skye One as a blank canvas, allowing the buyer to work alongside the developer's design team to customise the home's layout, finishes and internal spaces.

The residence will feature a 247 sqm private rooftop terrace with its own swimming pool, sauna, steam room, outdoor kitchen and multiple entertaining areas overlooking the Brisbane River and CBD skyline.

The remaining four penthouses have been completed and are ready for immediate occupation, each offering four bedrooms, expansive open-plan living areas, soaring ceilings and private lift access.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=90059 project_image_fid=374059]

One of the defining features throughout the project is its use of Roman Classic Travertine, with more than 20,000 sqm of the natural stone imported from Italy after being personally selected by Pikos Group Founder and Executive Director Pedro Pikos, interior designer Julie Williamson and third-generation stone specialist Mario Caucci.

Pikos said the penthouse collection represented the culmination of the company's long-term vision for Skye.

"True legacy isn't measured by what we build today, but by what endures tomorrow," Pikos said.

"Our ambition is to create places that become more valuable with time, enrich the lives of generations, and stand as timeless landmarks long after we've stepped away."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=90059 project_image_fid=374060]

Williamson said the interiors were inspired by the natural character of Kangaroo Point and the Brisbane River rather than international design trends.

"Materiality tells the story of a place," Williamson said.

"We looked to the movement of the Brisbane River, the texture of the cliff face and the warmth of the surrounding landscape to create interiors that feel understated, enduring and unmistakably Brisbane."

Positioned above the Kangaroo Point cliffs, Skye places residents within walking distance of Howard Smith Wharves, South Bank and James Street while offering uninterrupted river and city views.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=90059]

Brisbane's next apartment price record? Pikos unveils Skye's exclusive penthouse collection

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>

Want to find out more? <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@UrbanAustralia?utm_source=YouTube&amp;utm_medium=Video&amp;utm_campaign=Subscribe&amp;utm_id=Subscribe">Subscribe to our YouTube channel</a> for more property videos.

Ellen Walker

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

Prominent New Zealand apartment and hotel operator, <a href="/developers/safari-group">Safari Group</a>, is offering up a prime investment opportunity for Australians to purchase off the plan in one of the world’s most popular ski destinations.

They recently took to market Mountain Oak Queenstown Apartments, in the growing precinct of Remarkables Park in Frankton, near the airport and at the foot of The Remarkables - the mountain range the locals like to call “The Remarks”.&nbsp;

Sydney investors have shown interest in the one, two and three-bedroom apartments that secure high-season occupancy six months over the year, primarily over summer and winter months.

They average 90 per cent occupancy across their portfolio over January, February, March, August, November and December, while shoulder season months of April, July, September and October are still occupied 70 per cent of the time, with the growing appeal of Queenstown becoming not just a hotspot for the snow, but a lifestyle destination.

Even in the low seasons of May and June, occupancy levels reach around 40 per cent.

<img alt="Safari Group’s Mountain Oak Apartments brings new investment potential to Queenstown" data-entity-type="" data-entity-uuid="" src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/f_auto,c_limit,w_1440,q_auto/https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/field/image/Ext_Cam15_Sunny.jpg?VersionId=SJAROUM_1s.Tr5ciMk4EEj5oAt_Vewmv" />

Safari’s Safari Hotels arm can also manage the holiday letting for an investor, from the listing on holiday accommodation websites such as Airbnb and Booking.com to the cleaning and maintenance of the investment. They’ve been in the short stay management business for 15 years and offer 24/7 support for investors, an important convenience benefit for any overseas investor

Another major drawcard for Australians is that New Zealand doesn’t have a stamp duty policy - so the entry price of NZ$639,000 (AU$586,000), is all that is payable on completion.

<img alt="Safari Group’s Mountain Oak Apartments brings new investment potential to Queenstown" data-entity-type="" data-entity-uuid="" src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,dpr_2.0,q_auto:good/https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/313_Livingv2_WEB.jpg?VersionId=nV229fM0ZeYpoxOrX372HyGjfwY_LR8c" />

Safari is starting construction of the 141 apartments in Q2 this year, with a two-year build estimated to complete in mid-to-late 2027.<img alt="" data-entity-type="" data-entity-uuid="" height="15" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXczFpFAb7WuA6f4f9TtKWcqXyNwR8qqtakWv352ERkpqNlP3KwIo8YKxw67jZNHfpjEGIZGv5MQTbnvLZwNt8iu9IVdOrswOjCvBZ4zhSoOOLrpt6etVEZTN1gkBho0r_R72zdHNA?key=yq3daOanqHSb88QFd8jGYKdb" title="Click and drag to move" width="15" />​

The apartments will feature modern amenities and contemporary designs with expansive windows capturing sweeping views of The Remarkables mountain range.&nbsp;

Interiors are equipped with modern finishes, premium appliances, and secure electronic key-locked doors, ensuring a comfortable living experience for residents and guests alike.

With its strategic location near Coronet Peak and Cardrona Alpine Resort, as well as key retail and dining precincts such as Market Street, Five Mile Shopping Centre, and Remarkables Market, Mountain Oak offers a strong proposition for investors seeking high rental yields and capital appreciation in one of New Zealand’s most sought-after locations.&nbsp;

Queenstown’s sustained demand for visitor accommodation and rental properties is underpinned by a shortage of housing options, attracting both local and international buyers.

Safari Group offers low-touch investment proposition in Queenstown’s popular ski fields district

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Woolworths is continuing with its preparations to offload up to 70 shopping centres its own worth around $1.5 billion.
The group is believed to be favouring setting up an independent listed property fund (A-REIT) that would hold the assets, according to a report in the Australian Financial Review.
Woolworths is being advised by Citi with plans to raise more than $400 million for the fund, which would also allow Woolworths to make strategic property acquisitions into the fund in the future.
The proposal has the backing of analysts and fund managers.
Commonwealth Bank analyst Andrew McLennan said that the “rising amount of property on Woolworths’ balance sheet was constraining cashflows that could otherwise go to capital management”.
McLennan added that he expected Woolworths to come up with structures that ensure the spin-off went smoothly.
Brett McNeill, investment manager at Antares Equities, said if the fund had good governance practices and was structured well, there was no reason why it couldn’t trade well.
According to the AFR, there is excitement among some fund managers about the idea of a Woolworths property fund, which would be seen as one of the “first high-quality offers for some years after some smaller industrial and office plays”.
Woolworths has already sold off some of its shopping centres in recent times.
In July last year, eight neighbourhood and sub-regional retail shopping centres were sold to  a 50/50 joint venture entity owned by Charter Hall Retail REIT and Telstra Super for $266 million.
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lschlesinger-FZcF9M3vE6

Woolworths considering spinning off property holdings into A-REIT

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From my direct involvement with many projects taken offshore, a well-established sales path is required for success; otherwise if the exercise is poorly managed or the resources underestimated it can be a costly mistake.
However, well-managed and resourced offshore marketing campaigns do provide a unique avenue to bolster sales in particular off-the-plan sales, usually ahead of general open market release. And in laying the ground work we should firstly look at some of the particular attributes to fuel a successful exhibition or campaign.
When looking at Asian markets in particular there is a proven appetite among buyers looking for early participation in new projects. They like to be among the first, if not the first buyers offered a product.
However this does not always mean that an entire project has to be held off-market ahead of any offshore release, because it is possible to sell simultaneously with the right platforms to manage multi-channel sales or take a preferred selection of apartments, with such apartments having been selected to meet the preferences of the individual off-shore target markets.
This is also in part achieved by the discreet use of buyer database targeting so that an environment is created through which it is possible to fine-tune the offer that is being made at, for example, invitation-only exhibitions. This depth of knowledge further underlines the role and importance of local partners.
 
<hr class="system-pagebreak">
 
These offshore exhibitions are also better planned to be project or location specific with the aim of attracting potential buyers who are already somewhat pre-qualified. A mix of different locations and varied product offerings can be difficult to promote.
Offshore exhibitions can also be built around an information or educational seminar format, driven by country- or project-specific research – possibly held ahead of the release any actual projects for sale. This can be a very productive format. Experience demonstrates very small details, if not understood, can discourage offshore buyers away from investing in foreign property markets. So what better way to overcome this hurdle than by educating and gaining a better understanding buyer concerns?
If market circumstances warrant, then participation in larger-scale general exhibitions can be justified, but I feel that there should be a clear need, as cost is can be a big issue. This includes not only the promoter’s fees but also the other direct expenses, which can make the event a very expensive exercise.
For Australian projects there is a greater acceptance of property exhibitions on a smaller scale in Asian markets, and they can be of great value. Many of the international real estate agency groups, including Colliers International, have well-established expertise in these areas. Even in buoyant times, a one–off venture into these markets would be difficult.
It is also important to keep in mind that in most external markets there can be a culture that expects that this will be “first bite” of any to these areas cannot be the best investment – due diligence is important!
There are a clear set of important steps that are required to successfully take projects offshore and to achieve a critical volume sales, each point needs to meticulously addressed.
Peter Chittenden is managing director for residential of <a href="https://www.colliers.com.au/Colliers%20Corporate/Residential.aspx" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Colliers International.</a>
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pchittenden-eLqUUC8TWW

What is required to market residential developments to offshore buyers

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Like thousands of others, I’m an avid watcher of the UK top-rating program Grand Designs. The projects inspire such a passionate drive for the progress of new and inventive property development, there’s a distinct feeling each individual designer has a “higher” sense of purpose in their creation.
Rarely – if ever – is it focused on investment potential or capital appreciation.  Rental returns, “property clocks” and speculative bubbles are never mentioned. Instead, each home is to be a “haven of shelter” for the occupants, and the common denominator in the features valued most should form the basis of a detailed study for developers and town planners, employed with creating the modern landscape of each state capital’s 2030 expansion plan.
The series has taken us on an adventurous journey, visiting and re-visiting the projects to test their viability and sustainability for the purpose of each individual design.  The commonalities that form the needs of each participant involved in the program are relatively simple. They broadly focus on developing a space where family and guests can enjoy a sense of community with their surrounds, with great emphasis placed on designing an environmentally sustainable habitat.
Although money facilitates the design, profiting from the development is not the end focus.  For the families involved, the concentration remains firmly on lifestyle.
No one can deny that financial independence is a fundamental requirement in how we perceive an individual’s level of wellbeing – but even without a change in financial status, an upgrade in living standards provided primarily through wise and well thought-out development is enough to bring lasting happiness to the occupants involved regardless of personal income. This is something the series proves with its weekly case studies.
It’s a somewhat obvious assumption – however it’s one that has needed to be proven in various housing studies across the globe.  For example,  in the mid-1990s, the U.S Department of Housing and Urban development in Boston commissioned a 10-year research project entitled “Moving to Opportunity for Fair Housing” (MTO). The social experiment was designed to analyse how a change in living standards would affect people in poverty outside of any change in status to their financial circumstance.
You could argue that results emanating from any improvement in living standards would be easy to predict.   However, as with all government departments, money spent on “Captain Obvious” studies tend to burn a hole through common sense.  This aside, the survey produced some interesting results that should form a motivation for social policy reforms across our geographical borders.
The survey addressed whether living in a “poor” neighbourhood would have a flow-on effect in education standards, crime statistics, wellbeing, and general lower levels of achievement. To do this, public housing residents were split into three groups with the help of a random lottery.
Each group received a set of vouchers. One set enabled residents to subsidise the rent they paid, enabling an “upgrade” into private rental accommodation in an area where poverty was defined as being less than 10%.  A second group received vouchers entitling them to move wherever they wanted.  And the third group unfortunately had to stay put.
Despite the move, the financial status of each group remained predominately the same.  Salaries didn’t increase and jobs weren’t changed.  However, the 15-year study proved without doubt those who were entitled to upgrade their environment experienced a substantial reduction in obesity, diabetes, mental illness, bullying, harassment, and an overall general improvement in their family’s wellbeing.
 
<hr class="system-pagebreak">
According to the findings, the subsequent “happiness” effect a change of lifestyle had on the recipients of the vouchers was equal to a $13,000 a year salary increase – and all that had altered to produce this effect, was the provision of better housing within a well-facilitated, established community.
In case you’re reading this and making the assumption that the above “happiness effect” can only be achieved by calling on more taxpayer dollars, the next experiment will hopefully put this concern to rest because Kevin McCloud, the British presenter of Grand Designs, conducted his own experiment into the effects of our living environment. Whether he did it consciously or not, he took the two commonalities I outlined above and wove them into a project called the “Big Town Plan”.
The concept involved a 42-house community development, primarily for families confined to social housing. He wanted to prove that through intelligent design, a housing estate could be established to enable an active community environment, as well as substantially lowering the environmental footprint and subsequent energy costs of each home. In doing so, he set about to prove the development would cost no more than any other – but the effect would advantage the families and their children in such a way it would enable the opportunity to get a leg up – if only in wellbeing, rather than wealth.
The project picked social housing residents who felt their current accommodation was having a compounding effect on their ability to provide a good environment in which their children could flourish. The atmosphere created by the current council housing estate in which they resided isolated a disadvantaged section of society in such a way, it resulted in a compounding, depressive and visionless environment, which expressed itself in higher rates of violence and crime.
There was no higher purpose in the development to foster a sense of community that would enable the residents to join together and improve their immediate surrounds. It was developed with cost as the sole dictator and as a consequence, children were not encouraged to venture outside to play, and neighbours did not socialise.
McCloud’s design would put the same emphasis on cost, but couple it with purpose-driven design. The houses were to be built in a triangular shape around a mini park and community garden.  This would enable residents to socialise while at the same time provide a safe area for children to play that  was visible from their parent’s homes.
The houses are designed with features to diminish their carbon footprint and keep energy bills low. Natural light was important and although there were faults along the way, the unique design of each property maximised a sense of “space and tranquillity”, which had one couple describing the feeling akin to being in a holiday home in “sunny Spain”.
When McCloud returned to his experiment a year down the line, he found the community flourishing.  Children were happily playing, neighbours were socialising – there was no isolation, and each family knew the others.
Households previously cut off through fear of their environment were experiencing an atmosphere in which their children could benefit. Pride and vision had been returned on a personal level, and the effect fed into individual aspiration.
It had nothing to do with the redistribution of wealth but everything to do with providing an atmosphere in which individuals can endeavour to improve. The houses weathered well over the period monitored – with residents expressing how they enjoyed the feeling of coming home.  All in all it was a resounding success.
McCloud may not have provided the grandeur of individual designs featured on his program, but he had at least provided the essential qualities all these homes had in common – principally an atmosphere to enhance the social and physical connection to the surrounding environment.
 
<hr class="system-pagebreak">
It was therefore with interest I watched Four Corners last week, which focused on the community of Claymore – situated roughly 54 kilometres south-west of Sydney.
The housing estate featured was designed and funded by the Housing Commission of New South Wales and initially built to provide housing for blue-collar factory workers.  When employment didn’t follow, the suburb became a social housing estate and the people living there were thrown together from a range of backgrounds – low-income workers, discharges from psychiatric hospitals, single parents, Samoan refugees, and so forth.  Currently, the suburb has a median age of 20 and median income – when last measured – of just $237 per week.
The project was a social disaster.  The support services desperately needed never followed.  Employment opportunities were scarce to nonexistent.  The community was isolated in terms of facilities and essential infrastructure. Public transport was lacking, and the design of the estate had no clear community objective.
Throughout the years various volunteer groups and educators have made inroads in their attempts to create a social purpose within the estate – but as the producers of Four Corners witnessed, there is a huge amount of work yet to be done.
If we’re to take the studies above in any seriousness, the high rates of domestic violence, crime, teen pregnancy and so forth are not necessarily the fault of the social mix, but the result of isolating a group of people in a poorly designed and facilitated suburb.  This is a feature of many newly created fringe suburbs that are popping up in the state of Victoria prior to the development of any essential infrastructure such as public transport, schools, parks, medical facilities, and so forth.
Some of these fringe locations have attracted substantial population growth in recent years because the house-and-land packages offered are the answer to affordable accommodation for many of the residents. However, a majority suffer from higher rates of crime and social issues than the inner-suburban towns, which I theorise to be principally related to failings in their initial design.
It is a far more cost-effective venture to provide suitable well-facilitated suburbs than it is to provide a patchwork of support organisations to service long-term welfare commitments. But in order to do so, town planners and government heavyweights must move from behind their desks and involve, listen, and most importantly adhere to, the voices of local community.
Perhaps the answer lay in a plan, compiling of a vision similar to the UK’s “Big Town Plan”. A policy reform that aims to place more power into community hands and empower problem-solving from the ground up, rather than the top down.  Whatever the answer, we’d be a poorer society if we didn’t all agree: there must be a better way.
Catherine Cashmore is a market analyst with extensive experience in all aspects relating to property acquisition.
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catherinecashmore-6LXia3pPQj

Why Kevin McCloud's Big Town Plan succeeded while Claymore is a social disaster

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<table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="459"><tbody>
<tr>
<td width="83">
Suburb
</td>
<td width="104">
Median price
</td>
<td width="111">
Median weekly rent
</td>
<td width="161">
Median rental yield
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="83">
<a href="/news">BLACKETT</a>
</td>
<td width="104">
$229,500
</td>
<td width="111">
$310
</td>
<td width="161">
7%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="83">
<a href="/news">WILLMOT</a>
</td>
<td width="104">
$224,250
</td>
<td width="111">
$300
</td>
<td width="161">
7%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="83">
<a href="/news">TREGEAR</a>
</td>
<td width="104">
$227,000
</td>
<td width="111">
$303
</td>
<td width="161">
6.9%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="83">
<a href="/news">LETHBRIDGE PARK</a>
</td>
<td width="104">
$229,500
</td>
<td width="111">
$300
</td>
<td width="161">
6.8%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="83">
<a href="/news">EMERTON</a>
</td>
<td width="104">
$251,500
</td>
<td width="111">
$328
</td>
<td width="161">
6.8%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="83">
<a href="/news">WHALAN</a>
</td>
<td width="104">
$247,250
</td>
<td width="111">
$320
</td>
<td width="161">
6.7%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="83">
<a href="/news">BIDWILL</a>
</td>
<td width="104">
$250,000
</td>
<td width="111">
$310
</td>
<td width="161">
6.4%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="bottom" width="83" nowrap>
<a href="/news">HEBERSHAM</a>
</td>
<td valign="bottom" width="104" nowrap>
$270,000
</td>
<td width="111">
$330
</td>
<td valign="bottom" width="161" nowrap>
6.4%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="bottom" width="83" nowrap>
<a href="/news">SHALVEY</a>
</td>
<td valign="bottom" width="104" nowrap>
$257,974
</td>
<td valign="bottom" width="111" nowrap>
$320
</td>
<td valign="bottom" width="161" nowrap>
6.3%
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="bottom" width="83" nowrap>
<a href="/news">DHARRUK</a>
</td>
<td valign="bottom" width="104" nowrap>
$293,426
</td>
<td valign="bottom" width="111" nowrap>
$340
</td>
<td valign="bottom" width="161" nowrap>
6.2%
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
Source: <a href="https://www.myrp.com.au/" target="_blank">RP Data</a>
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awalsh-7Ub9EypybQ

The 10 suburbs with the highest house rental yields in Sydney: RP Data

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Quest Serviced Apartments has opened its $11 million complex in Whyalla despite the backdrop of the mining boom slowdown.
Quest Whyalla will have 56 studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom self-contained apartments.
Quest chairman Paul Constantinou says the Whyalla opening comes as direct response to the region’s “tenacious” growth.
“Whyalla is thriving, fuelled by long-term development of the resource industry, which has, in turn, brought significant investment in local infrastructure.
"This growth is continuing to stimulate demand for functional and flexible corporate accommodation – a demand that we make it our business to respond to,” Constantinou says.
Franchisee Jennifer McDonnell says there has been an increasing demand for self-contained accommodation in Whyalla.
The 4.5-star property is one of eight new Quest Serviced Apartment properties opening in the 2012-13 financial year.
Quest, which is also set to open at Sydney Olympic Park next month, has 140 complexes across Australia, Fiji and New Zealand, spread across central business districts, suburban and regional areas with proximity to head offices, business centres and key tourist destinations.
Sydney Olympic Park complex is set amid offices and business parks. Elsewhere is NSW, there is also a site at Shellharbour judged to be set to benefit from the growth in Wollongong as well as the new Stockland development at Shellharbour.
In Melbourne Quest have targeted country regions such as Bendigo along with Docklands aimed at visitors who don't want to pay the high five-star-hotel prices.
To find out what the mining boom will mean for property investors and where the investment hotspots are likely to be, sign up for <a href="/news">Property Observer’s free webinar with hotspotting.com.au’s Terry Ryder on Tuesday, October 2 at 12.30pm</a>
 
<hr class="system-pagebreak">
 
Founded in 1988 by Paul Constantinou with one hotel in Fitzroy, the group offers apartments for short or longer stays, complete with kitchens and laundries.
Investors can buy strata units with building management run by franchisees, who must adhere to Quest management standards.
The Wyyalla town recently attracted attention after federal opposition leader Tony Abbott suggested the carbon tax would destroy the town, which triggered a comical response from Labor hovernment minister <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1pEt7bgY2U" target="_blank">Craig Emerson.</a>
Although BHP’s expansion plans are on hold, mining company Arrium has reopened its Iron Baron Mine, in a move that state Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Tom Koutsantonis says is a sign of the rejuvenation of South Australia.
Closed in the early 1990s, the mine near Whyalla was officially reopened on September 18 this year.
The reopening is due to create about 100 jobs and to support businesses in the area.
Arrium Mining chief executive Greg Waters says Iron Baron is just one part of its larger South Australian investment program, which includes its Middleback Ranges projects, Southern Iron operations near Coober Pedy, and its ongoing Whyalla port expansion.
The Federal Minister for Regional Australia, Simon Crean, South Australian Manufacturing and Trade Minister Tom Koutsantonis and president of the Local Government Association Kym McHugh recently signed an agreement to work together on promotion of the upper Spencer Gulf region to mining companies.
Whyalla is the leading South Australia area where it’s <a href="/news">cheaper to buy than rent</a>.
Rents in Whyalla had grown 10.7% to $310 per week in the five years to May 2012. Median rents are now at $350, according to RP Data.
To find out what the mining boom will mean for property investors and where the investment hotspots are likely to be, sign up for <a href="/news">Property Observer’s free webinar with hotspotting.com.au’s Terry Ryder on Tuesday, October 2 at 12.30pm</a>
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Expansionary Quest triggers new $11 million Whyalla apartment complex

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"A good job, like where you get like heaps of money. I’d be like a decent mum, like a husband with no violence and everything, so it could be a happy family, you know, but like that would never happen…"
Jessica, a 12-year-old from Claymore in Sydney’s south west, is not optimistic about her future. Monday’s Four Corners documentary <a target="_blank" href="https://www.abc.net.au/4corners/stories/2012/09/20/3594298.htm">Growing Up Poor in Modern Australia</a> asked why more wasn’t being done to break the cycle of disadvantage for the children of Australia’s most disadvantaged suburbs. The report focused on five families from Claymore, in south-west Sydney.
A suburb of 3,300 residents, Claymore was built as a public housing estate by Housing NSW in the 1970s. By 2011, it was <a href="https://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/census_services/getproduct/census/2011/quickstat/SSC10536?opendocument&amp;navpos=220">one of Australia’s poorest suburbs</a>, with a median household income of $588 per week, around half the national average. It was also one of the youngest, with 40% of residents aged under 15, compared to 19% for Australia. But Claymore is not unique. <a href="https://www.sprc.unsw.edu.au/media/File/Report12_07_Deprivation_and_exclusion_in_Australia.pdf">Concentrations of inter-generational disadvantage</a> have developed in public housing estates in all of Australia’s capital cities.
<h2>Where does disadvantage come from?</h2>
Australia’s public housing has not always been associated with disadvantage.
The Commonwealth established a Housing Commission in 1943, recommending a national target of 80,000 publicly built dwellings per year. The aspiration was to provide workers’ housing to support Australia’s industrial development.
Most of this housing was initially built in large estates on the edge of our cities. In NSW, large estates were built in the 1960s, such as Mount Druitt, with 32,000 people in 8,000 properties. This golden era of mass public housing had come to an end when Claymore was completed in the 1970s.
By 1978, the Commonwealth had greatly reduced the amount of funding for building and maintaining public housing. The result of dwindling funds was a shift in the role of public housing, from a mainstream option to marginal sector with a highly disadvantaged tenant base. By 2006, around 90% of tenants were either on welfare benefits or experiencing some other form of social deprivation.
<h2>A market solution?</h2>
Faced with ageing housing stock, disadvantaged tenants, and growing waiting lists, Australia’s government housing agencies have turned to the private market.
By offering housing vouchers in the form of Commonwealth rent assistance, they have looked to private landlords to house many of Australia’s poorest people. And they have looked to private property developers to fund the renewal of their housing estates through policies branded as “social mix”.
Social mix solutions have been pursued since the 1980s in Australia. They can be achieved by selling public housing dwellings to tenants or on the private market, or by building new privately-owned dwellings in the neighbourhood in partnership with a property developer.
The latter strategy has been the most popular. As the Four Corners documentary showed, such a project was underway in Claymore, with almost all of the existing public dwellings earmarked for demolition. These would be replaced with 1,300 new dwellings. About 70% of them would be sold to private buyers with the remainder returned to public housing tenants.
 
<hr class="system-pagebreak">
 
<h2>Who benefits, at whose cost?</h2>
The <a href="https://eprints.gla.ac.uk/37384/">benefits of these social mix policies</a> – by reducing concentrations of public housing – are said to be wide ranging, delivering improvements in the economy, social welfare and health. These include a more vibrant local economy, reduced anti-social behaviour and less stigma. However, the evidence for these claimed benefits is less than convincing.
The economic benefits for government receive less attention, but are arguably much more significant. By getting private property developers to partially fund the redevelopment of their decaying housing stock, housing agencies can get a return on their only real asset – land – and address an overwhelming maintenance backlog.
At Bonnyrigg in Sydney for example, the $733 million redevelopment of the public housing estate by Becton (a private developer) and Housing NSW has replaced 833 public housing dwellings with 2,330 new dwellings. Only 699 of the new dwellings have been retained as public housing. The development has been rebranded as “<a target="_blank" href="https://newleafbonnyrigg.com.au/">Newleaf</a>”.
Social mix solutions, while attractive to government, impose costs on the tenants of public housing. In Claymore, only 99 houses have been demolished to date and the project is has now stalled after a change of state government. As reported on Four Corners, “residents now say maintenance on their homes has almost ceased and there are houses all over the suburb boarded up and empty”.
Research has also pointed to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0811114022000005898">unintended negative consequences</a> of social mix policy. Moving residents temporarily or permanently out of their neighbourhood during redevelopment can be disruptive to social networks and children’s schooling. Reducing public housing supply at a time where public housing waiting lists are at record levels (56,000 in NSW and 37,000 in VIC) also comes at a large social cost, with high-needs households pushed into the under-regulated private rental market.
<h2>A non-market solution</h2>
The stagnation of public housing funding has led to concentrations of some of our most vulnerable people in Australia’s outer-suburbs, as illustrated by the children of Claymore. Social mix policies that break up these concentrations of housing may only relocate this disadvantage, rather than address it.
A non-market alternative is to inject funds into the ailing public housing sector. If public housing numbers were increased through significant investment, the selection criteria could be broadened to allow a much wider base of tenants. This would start to “normalise” public housing, returning it to its original intent as a mainstream affordable option for Australians.
For governments struggling to just maintain existing levels of public housing stock however, harvesting land value by allowing private market development of their assets seems to be the only solution – whatever the cost.
Lucy Groenhart is a research fellow in urban policy at <a href="https://www.rmit.edu.au/" target="_blank">RMIT</a>.
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How public housing became associated with social disadvantage

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MPTV market wrap October 1

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Australia’s baby boomers, many of whom are just entering into retirement, could place strain on the efficient operation of the housing market if they don’t downsize into smaller properties, warns Real Estate Institute of Australia research officer Evgeniya Hawthorne.
Many of the oldest baby boomers (the generation dates from those born between 1946 and 1964) have just entered retirement (65 and older) and appear intent on holding on to their bigger houses and spare bedrooms.
ABS 2011 data showing that 91.4% of older Australian households have one or more spare bedrooms.
The figures also show that while the average number of persons per household declined from 3.1 in 1976 to 2.6 in 2011, the average number of bedrooms per dwelling increased from 2.8 to 3.1 over the same period.
The problem is being compounded by Australia undergoing a rise in longevity, with the population of those 65 and older increasing by 27.1% in the last 10 years to over 3 million, with the median age in Australia increasing from 35 in 2001 to 37 in 2011.
“The reluctance to move in later life impacts on the efficient utilisation of Australia’s housing stock," says Hawthorne.
“Compared to younger households, older households are more likely to have spare bedrooms in their homes."
Hawthorne says retirees need to downsize in order to make room for younger families.
“Encouraging downsizing among the older population may be considered as one of the key tools in avoiding overcrowding and meeting occupancy standards by other groups such as younger families with children. “
She says it is crucial that homes are appropriate for the housing needs of the older generation.
Hawthorne says there are barriers to downsizing that make older Australians stay put for longer.
“Strong emotional attachment to a family home may be one of the main factors, and moving house is a stressful and costly event. Stamp duty is the largest cost impediment to downsizing,” she says.
“Appropriate policy needs to be developed to encourage more efficient allocation and utilisation of the nation’s housing stock."
She also notes a social trends report compiled by the ABS in December 2010 looking at why older Australians move home found that less than a quarter (22.5%) gave as a reason wanting to downsize to a smaller house.
Other popular reasons for moving include family reasons (22.3%) or a lifestyle change (19.7%), with 7% saying they wanted to move to a bigger house.
Reasons for most recent move for older households without children 
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" border="1" style="width: 470px;"><tbody>
<tr>
<td width="228" valign="top">
Reason 
</td>
<td width="228" valign="top">
Proportion of responses 
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="228" valign="top">
Housing reasons, including 
</td>
<td width="228" valign="top">
48.9 
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="228" valign="top">
Wanted bigger / better house
</td>
<td width="228" valign="top">
7.0
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="228" valign="top">
Wanted smaller house / downsize
</td>
<td width="228" valign="top">
22.5
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="228" valign="top">
Purchased own dwelling
</td>
<td width="228" valign="top">
3.5
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="228" valign="top">
Employment 
</td>
<td width="228" valign="top">
1.6 
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="228" valign="top">
Family reasons 
</td>
<td width="228" valign="top">
22.3 
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="228" valign="top">
Get married / live with partner
</td>
<td width="228" valign="top">
2.7
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="228" valign="top">
Breakdown of marriage / relationship
</td>
<td width="228" valign="top">
0.9
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="228" valign="top">
Lifestyle change 
</td>
<td width="228" valign="top">
19.7 
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="228" valign="top">
Other (neighbourhood, health, accessibility and other reasons) 
</td>
<td width="228" valign="top">
23.0 
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
Source:  Moving House, ABS Australian Social Trends 4102.0 December 2010
Rocking chair photo courtesy of <a href="https://www.flickr.com/" target="_blank">Flickr</a>.
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Reluctance of baby boomers to downsize creating inefficient housing market: REIA’s Evgeniya Hawthorne

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I may have been deeply buried (surprise, surprise) when the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) reported online advertising for the 2011-12 financial year had reached $3.14 billion, eclipsing the previous record by more than $549 million. The 21% jump also included $47.4 million in mobile advertising, which the IAB reported for the first time. <a title="Online ad spend jumps to $3bn" href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/media/monday-section/online-ad-spend-jumps-to-3bn/story-fna1k39o-1226448698058" target="_blank">Online ad spend jumps to $3 billion</a> – other predictions are that online advertising will surpass television spending within 12 months, and print (the largest sector) will be eclipsed in 2014. Just five years ago, the breakdown in print to online spends was approximately 75% (print) and 25% (online).
<a title="Online advertising industry breaks through the $3b barrier with growth across all categories" href="https://www.iabaustralia.com.au/index.php?/news/story/online_advertising_industry_breaks_through_all_categories02" target="_blank">Online advertising industry breaks through the $3 billion barrier with growth across all categories</a>, which is an amazing achievement that demonstrates how quickly online is now dominating our markets. This month Google celebrated its 14th birthday which is all the more amazing given the role it plays in our day-to-day lives. I believed it was important to drill down to find the accelerant that ignited this online tsunami which I believe started on April 3, 2010, when Apple Inc released its brilliant tablet computer, otherwise known as the first generation iPad.
It is interesting to note that Apple Inc sold 3.27 million iPads in the third quarter of 2010, 4.19 million in the fourth quarter of 2010, 7.33 million in the first quarter of 2011, 4.69 million in the second quarter of 2011, 9.25 million in the third quarter of 2011, 11.12 million in quarter four 2011, 15.3 million in quareter one 2012, 11.80 million in the second quarter of 2012 and 17 million in the third quarter of 2012. This is phenomenal growth and also led the army of consumers to move from dumb phones to smartphones. In a nutshell, this translates into how our economies have now embraced technologies, which in turn will result in newspapers moving sooner rather than later into digital formats only.
Steve Maraboli said “As a business leader you have to ask yourself, am I creating a consumer environment that is conducive to loyalty? If the answer is no, FIX IT!”
It has been a while, although it was always going to happen. <a title="house prices to surge 15% by late 2013 as rates fall 100 basis points: Australian Financial Reviews David Bassanese" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/residential/house-prices-to-surge-15-by-late-2013-as-rates-fall-100-basis-points-australian-financial-reviews-david-bassanese/2012092456754" target="_blank">House prices are set to surge 15% by late 2013 as rates fall 100 basis points, says the Australian Financial Review's David Bassanese</a>, which is a pretty fair assumption given <a title="Australian House prices surge in September." href="https://afr.com/f/free/blogs/christopher_joye/australian_house_prices_surge_in_vXMdu05e75yB7GJcaDWkcO" target="_blank">Australian house prices surged in September.</a>
Click to enlarge
<a title="Click to enlarge" rel="shadowbox" href="/images/stories/2012/09/joyesept26.gif"><img src="/images/stories/2012/09/joyesept26thumb.gif"></a>
 
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Australia (on the global property stage) has witnessed <a target="_blank" href="https://www.smh.com.au/business/banking-and-finance/borrowers-in-a-hurry-to-pay-off-mortgages-20120925-26ilm" title="borrowers in a hurry to pay off mortgages ">borrowers in a hurry to pay off mortgages, </a>the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has found. Around half of all borrowers are ahead on mortgage payments. In total, the RBA estimated mortgage prepayment buffers in Australia were equivalent to around one and a half years ahead of scheduled repayments based on current interest rates. I don’t believe the RBA will cut the cash rate when it meets this week, although it was interesting to read <a target="_blank" href="/news" title="South – west Sydney mortgage borrowers lead RBA’s 15 most vulnerable localities.">South-west Sydney mortgage borrowers lead the RBA’s 15 most vulnerable localities.</a> <img src="/images/stories/2012/09/rbasept25.gif">
As we predicted the number of properties available is starting to subside, and this will continue until mid-October, when the market embarks on the final run to Christmas. Yes, Christmas.
Robert Simeon is a director of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.rwm.com.au/" title="RWM">Richardson  Wrench Mosman and Neutral Bay </a>and has been selling residential real estate in Sydney since 1985. He has also been writing real estate blog <a target="_blank" href="https://www.rwm.com.au/news/" title="Virtual Realty News">Virtual Realty News</a> since 2000. The RWM real estate model has sold in excess of $1 billion in database sales globally.
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Aussie borrowers in a hurry to pay off mortgages, and number of properties on the market subsides

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A Campbellfield brothel has passed in on a bid of $2.8 million today.
Owner Donna Murdoch had been hoping to sell the unique property for more than $3 million.
<img src="/images/stories/2012/09/brothel.jpg" width="470">
The Hot Spot strip club and 5 of Hearts brothel in Truck City Drive is being marketed by John Castran from John H Castran Pty Ltd.
<img src="/images/stories/2012/09/brothel3.jpg" width="470">
Castran was in the middle of negotiations when he spoke to Property Observer, and he expects to sell the property very soon.
True to his word, he invited dancing girls to the auction.
The bids came from two buyers.
<img src="/images/stories/2012/09/brothel2.jpg" width="470">
It opened at $2.6 million then the second bidder raised it to $2.7 million before the original bidder took it $2.8 million.
Interest came from an unnamed Melbourne group.
<img src="/images/stories/2012/09/brothel5.jpg" width="470">
The three-in-one venue includes a bar, a strip club and a brothel.
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