<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Developer GURNER™ Group has revealed $1.65 billion in residential sales nationally across the 12 months to December 2025, driven largely by the continued momentum of its Docklands wellness-focused precinct, Elysium Fields.</p>

<p>The sales result was generated across seven projects in Victoria and New South Wales, headlined by Elysium Fields, GURNER™’s $2.75 billion mixed-use precinct planned for Harbour Esplanade in Docklands.</p>

<p>The project has recorded more than $500 million in sales across the first three towers, equating to around 580 apartments sold.</p>

<p>The first tower, Helios, has now sold out of its 240 private residences, with GURNER™ preparing to release a premium penthouse collection comprising 15 three-bedroom penthouses in coming weeks.</p>

<p>[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370975]</p>

<p>Elysium Fields is being developed on the long-held 20,000 sqm Docklands site at 208-226 Harbour Esplanade, which had remained undeveloped for more than two decades prior to GURNER™ taking over the project around four years ago.</p>

<p>Construction has now commenced across four towers ranging between 18 and 30 storeys, with Hamilton Marino and Maxcon appointed as builders.</p>

<p>Once complete, the precinct is expected to comprise around 1,100 residences, alongside retail, hospitality and public realm uses integrated throughout the site.</p>

<p>[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370981]</p>

<p>Designed by Fraser &amp; Partners in collaboration with GURNER™ Design House, the project has been positioned around the developer’s broader focus on wellness-led residential living.</p>

<p>“We don’t sell apartments. We create a true luxury lifestyle that simply doesn’t exist elsewhere in the market today,” Founder and Executive Chairman Tim Gurner said.</p>

<p>“To deliver that requires an extraordinary level of detail, coordination and discipline across multiple verticals, from design and hospitality through to wellness and service.”</p>

<p>“We’ve always believed that living extends far beyond the physical residence. It’s about how you feel the moment you arrive, how you live day-to-day, and the ecosystem that supports that.”<br />
[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370977]</p>

<p>The project’s design places a heavy focus on landscaping, wellness amenities and biophilic design principles.</p>

<p>Plans include around 3,700 sqm of landscaped gardens and open space throughout the precinct, alongside a retail and dining offering spanning approximately 5,000 sqm.</p>

<p>The broader public realm strategy centres around what GURNER™ describes as the “Path of Life”, an urban forest and landscaped pedestrian environment intended to connect the various buildings and wellness spaces across the precinct.</p>

<p>The apartments themselves will incorporate a range of wellness-focused inclusions, including purified air and water systems, circadian lighting, antimicrobial surfaces, and optional in-home wellness upgrades.</p>

<p>[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370980]</p>

<p>Gurner said the company’s experience through its Saint Haven wellness clubs had directly informed the residential offering now being incorporated into Elysium Fields.</p>

<p>“We’re seeing a clear global shift toward longevity, performance and proactive health,” Gurner said.</p>

<p>“Our role is to deliver that in a way that feels seamless, highly private and beautifully resolved within the environments we create.”</p>

<p>A large component of the wellness offering is planned through the resident amenity and health facilities proposed within the precinct.</p>

<p>That includes plans for bathing and recovery facilities spread throughout the towers, incorporating mineral pools, saunas, steam rooms, flotation therapy, red light therapy and wellness lounges.</p>

<p>The developer is also seeking approvals for what it describes as a “reverse ageing medical clinic” within the precinct.</p>

<p>[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370978]</p>

<p>According to project information released by the group, the proposed facility would include cryotherapy, IV infusion therapy, infrared and dry saunas, PEMF beds, MRIs, DEXA scans, brain scans and blood analysis services.</p>

<p>Within the first tower, Helios, residents will also have access to a dedicated amenity offering known as the Sky Private Club.</p>

<p>The upper 15 levels of the building will include private lounges, dining spaces, rooftop amenities and optional private wellness studios integrated within residences.</p>

<p>The Helios tower itself comprises 260 apartments ranging between 60 sqm and 300 sqm, including a collection of penthouses.</p>

<p>That includes a planned two-storey penthouse spanning around 600 sqm with uninterrupted bay views.</p>

<p>The Elysium Fields precinct is being delivered in partnership with Digital Harbour Holdings, a consortium that includes the Liberman family, which controls the development rights across the Docklands site.</p>

<p>[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370979]</p>

<p>The sales result comes as GURNER™ continues expanding its national development pipeline beyond Victoria.</p>

<p>“We have a strong pipeline across Australia and are now focused on scaling into key markets including New South Wales and Queensland, while continuing to build on our Melbourne base,” Gurner said.</p>

<p>“We currently have more than $3 billion in the market, growing to over $5 billion by October, and expect to materially outperform last year in the 2026 calendar year.”</p>

<p>The result also reflects the continued strength of the upper-end apartment market in Melbourne, particularly for owner-occupier-focused product with large-scale amenity and lifestyle offerings.</p>

<p>[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=144441]</p>


Record result anchored by the Group’s “utopian” Elysium Fields precinct – defying market headwinds in Docklands.

Joel Robinson

Elysium Fields drive Gurner to $1.65 billion in apartment sales over 2025

<p>National Australia Bank (NAB) will fund <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/palmera-residences-gold-coast-18-garfield-terrace-surfers-paradise-qld-4217">Palmera</a>, a $1 billion, 52-level luxury residential tower being developed by Central Equity in one of the Gold Coast’s most tightly held coastal locations at Northcliffe.</p>

<p>The project, launched recently by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/central-equity">Central Equity</a>, one of Victoria’s largest private residential developers, comes at a time when construction funding for large residential developments has become increasingly competitive as lenders tighten exposure to the sector.</p>

<p>Multiplex has been appointed the builder, and construction is now underway.</p>

<p>[smartcode_project:default project_id=108274 project_image_fid=365784]</p>

<p>Since its first project, Central Equity has delivered more than 85 residential developments with a combined end value exceeding $8 billion.</p>

<p>Palmera reflects Central Equity’s growing focus on the Gold Coast luxury apartment market and continues a relationship between Central Equity and NAB that dates back to the late 1980s, when the bank funded one of Melbourne’s earliest inner-city residential towers at a time when high-rise apartment living in the CBD was largely unproven.</p>

<p>“NAB’s funding of Central Equity’s $36 million CBD development in the late 1980’s to the financing of the billion-dollar tower today highlights the long-term relationship between the two organisations in delivering major residential projects” said Central Equity Founder and Chairman Eddie Kutner.</p>

<p>He said NAB’s early support was instrumental in helping establish the company’s development model.</p>

<p>“When we commenced our first residential tower in the late 1980s the concept of funding off-the-plan apartments was still largely untested in Australia,” Kutner said.</p>

<p>“NAB recognised the opportunity early and supported the project when others were uncertain. That relationship has now continued for more than 37 years across many developments.”</p>

<p>[smartcode_project:default project_id=108274 project_image_fid=365771]</p>

<p>Central Equity was established in 1987 when Melbourne’s CBD and Southbank precinct were still dominated by warehouses and commercial buildings. Fewer than 100 residents lived in Southbank at the time, and large-scale residential development in the inner city was not widely considered.</p>

<p>Recognising changing demographics and lifestyle preferences, the company began developing high-rise residential projects designed to bring permanent residents into the city centre.</p>

<p>Central Equity has provided accommodation for approximately 40,000 residents across Melbourne’s CBD and Southbank, while also incorporating supporting infrastructure including essential lifestyle facilities like retail spaces, childcare facilities and neighbourhood activity centres.</p>

<p>Central Equity has spent many years assembling the Palmera development site on the corner of Garfield Terrace and Frederick Street in Northcliffe, creating a supersite of around 3,300 sqm.</p>

<p>The developer said the Palmera apartment tower reflects its long-term view of the Gold Coast as a growing and increasingly diversified economy.</p>

<p>[smartcode_project:default project_id=108274 project_image_fid=365768]</p>

<p>Supported by infrastructure including the light rail network, major road upgrades expanded education, hospital and medical facilities and continued expansion at the Gold Coast Airport with more internation and domestic flights.</p>

<p>Positioned in the tightly held Northcliffe precinct, the 52-level tower will deliver 347 apartments, targeting buyers seeking a high-end coastal lifestyle, from downsizers to interstate investors.</p>

<p>Designed by Marchese Partners with interiors by DBI, Palmera has been conceived as a next-generation residential offering, featuring a collection of oversized apartments, with premium three-bedroom residences offering sweeping northern views stretching from Surfers Paradise through to Burleigh Heads.</p>

<p>[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=108274]</p>


NAB funds $1 billion Surfers Paradise apartment development, Palmera

<p>Two years after completing one of the newest developments in North Sydney, developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/aqualand-australia">Aqualand</a> is turning its attention to the rapidly evolving St Leonards apartment market.</p>

<p>The developer, which completed AURA by Aqualand on North Sydney's Walker Street, has lodged plans for a 5,918 sqm site at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/33-37-herbert-street-st-leonards-nsw-2065">33-37 Herbert Street, St Leonards,</a> seeking approval for a pair of residential towers rising above a shared podium opposite Royal North Shore Hospital.</p>

<p>The proposal forms part of the broader transformation underway across the St Leonards-Crows Nest precinct, where former industrial and commercial sites are increasingly being redeveloped into high-density mixed-use projects tied to major transport infrastructure.</p>

<p data-end="792" data-start="529"><img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2cc428cf-fe70-4cac-9cd5-264ad53af62c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.56%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=otKSnHtbjAvAddOnovyXQMgcAwE6DMe1" /></p>

<p data-end="1040" data-start="794">According to the planning documents, the site sits “within the St Leonards–Crows Nest Strategic Centre, identified by the NSW Government as a key area for accommodating future jobs and housing across Sydney.”</p>

<p>The proposal has been designed by fjcstudio, formerly FJMT Studio, and is being progressed through the State Significant Development pathway due to its scale and affordable housing provision.</p>

<p>The scheme would comprise 413 apartments, including 46 affordable housing units, alongside retail and commercial uses fronting Herbert Street. The project would also include communal open space, landscaping, a swimming pool, gymnasium, children’s play areas and podium-level resident amenities.</p>

<p>Planning documents show the development would consist of a part-13, part-39 storey tower form positioned above a four-storey podium.</p>

<p>“The development comprises a unified podium that activates the street interface, and two setback towers to accommodate new housing supply while maintaining an appropriate human scale at ground level,” fjcstudio noted in its Design Report.</p>

<p>The northern and southern towers have been shaped to respond to the surrounding skyline while also limiting overshadowing impacts to nearby public open space, particularly Talus Reserve.</p>

<p>The design report said the differing tower heights were intended to “contribute to a varied skyline while responding to the surrounding built form context and solar access considerations.”</p>

<p><img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="36da62dc-ff9e-41f2-a7e3-7be38373751c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.45%E2%80%AFAM_0.png?VersionId=Mo6Rp2r.XRLTzIfg_PEEpw8NepDH8UBs" /></p>

<p>The site sits directly opposite Royal North Shore Hospital and within walking distance of both St Leonards Station and the new Crows Nest Metro station.</p>

<p>While the site itself sits just outside the formal Crows Nest Transport Oriented Development boundary, the planning documents repeatedly reference its alignment with the broader TOD objectives reshaping the Lower North Shore.</p>

<p>“The site is located adjacent to St Leonards Station and in close proximity to Crows Nest Metro which is within the Crows Nest Transit Orientated Development Accelerated Precinct which has been identified by the NSW Government to support housing delivery,” the Design Verification Statement noted.</p>

<p>According to fjcstudio, the project has been designed to respond to the broader transition occurring across St Leonards, where increasing residential density is being concentrated around transport infrastructure and employment hubs.</p>

<p>“The broader precinct is undergoing significant change, with a mix of existing mid-rise buildings and newer high-density developments,” the report stated.</p>

<p>“Recent and approved projects indicate a consistent shift toward taller built form, typically organised as tower-and-podium typologies with more active ground levels.”</p>

<p>The proposal includes close to 6,000 sqm of retail and commercial space across the ground floor and podium levels, designed to create a more activated street edge along Herbert Street.</p>

<p>Aqualand’s plans would also introduce a landscaped podium shared between the two towers, with communal open space in the form of a podium rooftop designed to support resident interaction and improve urban greening outcomes. The scheme would also introduce pocket parks at the northern and southern ends of the site, including a landscaped area at the corner of Herbert and Ella streets designed to improve pedestrian amenity and soften the streetscape.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>The proposal is being progressed through the NSW Government’s Housing Delivery Authority pathway, which was introduced to accelerate housing supply across the state. The application was declared State Significant Development in April 2025 following an expression of interest process.</p>

<p><img alt="Aqualand" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="faf6d97d-2671-454f-b85a-fe1c6a7be608" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.51.49%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=diVd28OBVr5.YV.7prrOz.uAanwwwm7a" /></p>

<p>St Leonards has been particularly active with new developments in recent weeks. Developer SP Setia’s <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-sp-setia-targets-st-leonards-skyline-with-40-storey-tod-tower">plans for a new 42-storey tower</a> recently went on exhibition through the same pathway, while <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-stockland-plans-52-storey-538-apartment-st-leonards-tower">Stockland’s 52-storey tower proposal</a> was also recently unveiled.</p>

<p>Aside from the St Leonards project, which is expected to take around nine months to move through the approvals process ahead of a potential 2027 launch, Aqualand is also preparing to launch Boronia, a new apartment project in Roseville comprising around 111 apartments on Larkin Street.</p>

<p>The developer also has approvals in place for the next stage of the Barangaroo precinct, which will feature new residential, retail, hospitality and community uses, alongside a new metro entry across the five-hectare site.</p>

<p>More than 50 new retail destinations are planned for Central Barangaroo, alongside a 270-metre-long boulevard connecting Hickson Park to Nawi Cove. Together with Harbour Park, more than 50 per cent of the precinct will comprise public open space and parkland.</p>


First look: Aqualand joins St Leonards apartment party

<section data-scroll-anchor="false" data-testid="conversation-turn-5" data-turn="user" data-turn-id="e65dbe94-e3b6-47f7-b62a-9cbb30c9bf79" data-turn-id-container="e65dbe94-e3b6-47f7-b62a-9cbb30c9bf79" dir="auto">Time &amp; Place’s plans to transform the former David Jones factory building in Surry Hills into a mixed-use residential precinct have gone on exhibition through the NSW Government’s In-fill Affordable Housing pathway.</section>

<section data-scroll-anchor="false" data-testid="conversation-turn-6" data-turn="assistant" data-turn-id="request-WEB:f4d533b7-64a5-413d-86fd-5c99649c2b73-2" data-turn-id-container="request-WEB:f4d533b7-64a5-413d-86fd-5c99649c2b73-2" dir="auto">
<p data-end="577" data-start="264">The Marlborough House proposal, lodged for the <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/marlborough-house-47-97-marlborough-street-surry-hills-nsw-2010">47-97 Marlborough Street</a> site, would see the adaptive reuse of the heritage-listed warehouse building alongside the construction of new residential additions and a separate apartment building on the northern portion of the site.</p>

<p data-end="577" data-start="264">The proposal seeks approval for 172 apartments across three buildings, including 15 per cent affordable housing managed by a community housing provider for at least 15 years from occupation.</p>

<p data-end="577" data-start="264"><img alt="Marlborough" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="5d1d3c2a-bf13-47d6-a335-7c01102cdee1" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.29.36%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=cjMYrbR.BLUlWH4dar0RVDDo0bG.u2YT" /></p>

<p><em>Interior view from the Northern Building Penthouse overlooking the park</em></p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p data-end="1070" data-start="809">The redevelopment is planned for the prominent 3,413 sqm site bounded by Marlborough Street, Goodlet Street and Lansdowne Street, directly opposite Eddie Ward Park and around 200 metres from the Surry Hills light rail stop.</p>

<p data-end="1246" data-start="1072">Time &amp; Place acquired the former David Jones building in 2024, marking the first time the property had changed hands in around 50 years.</p>

<p data-end="1483" data-start="1248">Designed by Wardle, the proposal centres around the adaptive reuse of the former David Jones factory, originally constructed between 1913 and 1935 in the Inter-War Chicagoesque architectural style.</p>

<p data-end="1854" data-start="1485">Wardle noted in its Architectural Design Report that the building “occupies a significant place in the industrial and cultural history of Surry Hills” and at its peak was “the largest department store manufacturing facility in Australia, employing over 800 people and fuelling the growth of Sydney’s fashion and retail industries.”</p>

<p data-end="2059" data-start="1856">The practice said the project positions itself “not as an isolated intervention, but as a contributor to the civic, social, and architectural grain of the precinct.”</p>

<p data-end="2318" data-start="2061">The proposal would deliver 75 apartments within the retained southern heritage building, 59 apartments within the central addition, and a further 38 apartments within the new northern building fronting Lansdowne Street.</p>

<p data-end="2486" data-start="2320">Planning documents show the scheme would comprise a mix of heritage apartments, new-build apartments, townhouses and penthouses.</p>

<p data-end="2486" data-start="2320"><img alt="Marlborough" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="57758518-40a3-4b83-958c-d06e96a2cffa" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.29.42%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=VerlX9ST5xgBi8.1_YRsqdWTJeT6ygjs" /><em>Interior View of the Heritage Building Apartment</em></p>

<p data-end="2814" data-start="2488">The development would also include a ground-floor retail tenancy on the corner of Marlborough and Lansdowne streets, rooftop communal open space, a landscaped pedestrian link along the western edge of the site, and basement parking accessed from Lansdowne Street via a car stacker system.</p>

<p data-end="3188" data-start="2816">&nbsp;</p>

<p data-end="3625" data-start="3404">The scheme emerged from a competitive design process run by Urbis, with Wardle ultimately selected as the winning architect ahead of FJC Studio, TZG, Architectus and Wilkinson Eyre.</p>

<p data-end="4003" data-start="3627">The Design Integrity Panel later described several aspects of the Wardle scheme as fundamental to the project, including “the stepped character of the new addition to the north of the site”, the landscaped western pedestrian link, and the “garden arrival” experience separating the original Marlborough House from the heritage addition.</p>

<p data-end="4149" data-start="4005">Wardle’s design heavily references the site’s industrial and heritage history, while also responding to the surrounding Surry Hills streetscape.</p>

<p data-end="4488" data-start="4151">The Architectural Design Report describes Surry Hills as “a finely grained neighbourhood with beautiful and expressive brickworks throughout the suburb,” with the proposal introducing a material palette intended to sit comfortably alongside the existing warehouse fabric and neighbouring terraces.</p>

<p data-end="4609" data-start="4490">The report also outlines the project’s relationship with Eddie Ward Park and the broader landscape context of the area.</p>

<p data-end="4894" data-start="4611">“Marlborough House occupies a site of deep cultural memory and the neighbouring Eddie Ward Park is of local ecological significance, where natural systems, topography, and stories have long shaped human experience,” Wardle noted in the report.</p>

<p data-end="5090" data-start="4896">The architects said the proposal sought to “rebind built form to Country” through landscape, materiality and the adaptive reuse of the heritage structure.</p>

<p data-end="5090" data-start="4896"><img alt="Marlborough House" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="9ae3f2f9-c85f-477a-a6f8-b43f6cb97c41" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-28%20at%209.29.53%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=B.qUCLqRvJOR.n9CvYcTpaknIX9LuqKZ" /></p>

<p data-end="5304" data-start="5092">The project is also being progressed under the NSW Government’s in-fill affordable housing provisions, allowing developments that include affordable housing to access additional height and floor space incentives.</p>

<p data-end="5498" data-start="5306">Under the plans, 2,593 sqm of the project’s floor space would be dedicated to affordable housing, slightly exceeding the required 15 per cent threshold.</p>

<p data-end="6154" data-is-last-node="" data-is-only-node="" data-start="5806">In its Design Excellence Strategy, Urbis said the project aimed to “sensitively adapt and enhance the heritage-listed building on site through alterations and additions that preserve its historical significance” while delivering “high-quality market and infill affordable housing development in Surry Hills.”</p>

<p>Time &amp; Place has been one of the most active developers nationally in the last 12 to 24 months. Late last year they completed&nbsp;The Queensbridge in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/southbank-vic-3006">Southbank</a>, a mixed-use tower with 353 apartments and a hotel. They are currently selling Park Modern, 246 apartments near the famous Botanic Gardens in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/south-melbourne-vic-3205">South Melbourne</a>, and have future projects, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-wilmot-173-burke-road-28-hope-street-glen-iris-vic-3146">The Wilmot</a>&nbsp;in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/glen-iris-vic-3146">Glen Iris</a>, the redevelopment of the Northcote Plaza, and another tower in South Melbourne.</p>

<p>The developer broke into Sydney just a few years ago with Two Tides in Manly. They have another project nearby, which is at the ultra-luxury end of the market on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/buildings/shoreline-manly-beach-89-90-north-steyne-manly">North Steyne</a>, fronting the beach.</p>

<p>It is also continuing to work through the <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-time-place-settles-on-design-for-the-chimes-potts-point-redevelopment">redevelopment of The Chimes building</a> on Macleay Street in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/potts-point-nsw-2011">Potts Point</a>, as well as a project on <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/time-place-to-take-on-mosman-apartment-market">Mosman's Redan Street</a>.</p>
</section>


First look: Time & Place unveils Marlborough House redevelopment designs for former David Jones warehouse in Surry Hills

<p>The residential transformation of St Kilda Road is set to continue into with more new apartment plans for the sought-after boulevard.</p>

<p>Wing Tai Asia has lodged plans for a major residential tower at 464-466 St Kilda Road, replacing the former VACC House with an 18-storey mixed-use development designed around a retained heritage podium and a sculpted contemporary tower.</p>

<p>The proposal, prepared under Victoria’s Significant Residential Development with Affordable Housing pathway, would deliver 325 apartments and ground-floor retail across the prominent 4,653 sqm boulevard site in Melbourne’s St Kilda Road North Precinct.</p>

<p>The project centres on the adaptive reuse of the site’s heritage-listed VACC Building, an eight-storey office designed by Bernard Evans that has occupied the address for decades. Planning documents state the development would involve “carefully dismantling and conserving off-site the original metal fabric of the podium visible from St Kilda Road,” before reinstating it as the defining frontage of the new scheme.</p>

<p>Above the restored podium, Wing Tai is proposing a curvilinear residential tower. The scheme includes 172 one-bedroom apartments, 63 two-bedroom apartments, 66 three-bedroom apartments, and 24 four-bedroom apartments, alongside two ground-floor food and beverage tenancies fronting St Kilda Road.</p>

<p>The tower has been designed with substantial articulation and variable setbacks to minimise perceived bulk and maintain view corridors along the boulevard. Urbis, which prepared the planning report, said the design “has been significantly articulated through a curvilinear design” with “an interplay with materials, façade expression and depth” to create visual separation and visual interest.</p>

<p>The proposal also includes 254 basement car spaces, landscaped pedestrian links connecting St Kilda Road and Queens Lane, and a biophilic landscape strategy featuring canopy trees, raised planters, cascading greenery and a glass oculus pool overlooking the eastern frontage.</p>

<p>Planning documents confirm the $270.1 million development will contribute 3 per cent of project costs to the Social Housing Growth Fund as part of the application process.</p>

<p>Wing Tai acquired the St Kilda Road property in 2018 alongside Abacus Property Group for $95.38 million, before later consolidating ownership of the site. The property previously served as the Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce headquarters for around 60 years.</p>

<p data-end="345" data-start="110">The transformation of the St Kilda Rd boulevard is already beginning to materialise, with a number of high-profile projects recently completed, launched, or approaching launch as developers continue to back the long-term appeal of the precinct.</p>

<p data-end="689" data-start="347">Among the most notable recent completions is Louise by Samuel Property Group, just off the strip on Queens Lane, the same pocket Hirsch &amp; Faigen recently launched The Queensbury. Mirvac is too on the same street with The Albertine, which is approaching completion.</p>

<p data-end="689" data-start="347">Dexus recently secured approval for its slice of St Kilda Road, while Gurner also has approved plans for the precinct.</p>


Wing Tai unveils 325-apartment St Kilda Road tower on former VACC House site

<p>Roberts Co has entered a new phase of growth following its acquisition by Arada, one of the world’s fastest-growing property developers in Australia.</p>

<p>The acquisition is supported by a $50 million capital injection into Roberts Co’s Australian balance sheet, consisting of the previously announced $25 million recapitalisation and an additional $25 million in new funding from Arada.</p>

<p>This investment strengthens Roberts Co’s financial position, stabilises operations, and provides the foundation for strategic expansion beyond its New South Wales base, with a focus on new opportunities in Queensland, including the Brisbane and Gold Coast regions.</p>

<p>With Arada’s international resources and financial backing, Roberts Co will broaden its portfolio across residential, commercial, and infrastructure sectors, reinforcing its strong market position in New South Wales and setting itself to capture growth in one of Australia’s most dynamic construction markets.</p>

<p>Ahmed Alkhoshaibi, Group CEO of Arada, said Roberts Co has a proud Australian heritage, an outstanding delivery record, and a strong reputation for collaboration with clients and partners.</p>

<p>"By combining this expertise with Arada’s global scale and financial capacity, we are creating a platform for sustained growth in the Australian market,"&nbsp;Alkhoshaibi said.</p>

<p>“Our $50 million capital injection, including new funds from Arada, underlines our commitment to both stabilise and expand Roberts Co’s operations, particularly into the fast-growing Queensland market. We see significant potential in South-East Queensland’s pipeline and are confident Roberts Co is well placed to deliver lasting value for clients and communities.”</p>

<p>George Kostas, CEO of Roberts Co, said Queensland, and particularly South-East Queensland, is one of the most active and opportunity-rich regions in Australia right now.</p>

<p>"The lead-up to the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games will bring unprecedented investment across housing, transport, and infrastructure. Roberts Co is eager to play a major role in that transformation and secure a meaningful share of this fast-growing market.”</p>


Arada pours more funds into Roberts Co, flags expansion into South East Queensland construction market

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<p>Melbourne-based property group and fund manager OpenCorp has acquired new sites to host its latest crowdfunded house and land developments.</p>
<p>Located in Greenvale, 20 kilometres north of the Melbourne CBD, the 168-lot subdivision site is positioned close to the company’s sold out Umbra development. It will be the 23rd project OpenCorp has funded through a property development fund.</p>
<p>Currently under construction, Umbra already is projecting good returns for investors. OpenCorp is currently anticipating a total return of 110% against the forecast of 58%. Its 41% internal rate of return sits against the forecast of 30%.</p>
<p>Like Umbra, investors in the Greenvale development would subscribe to an OpenCorp managed property development fund to participate as equity partners in the new $46 million project.</p>
<p>Based on the success of Umbra, 70% of the $11.4 million of the equity being raised for the development has been committed by one major Melbourne investor.</p>
<p>“They participated in the first Greenvale development and were eager to invest in the subsequent similar development,” says OpenCorp director Allister Lewison (pictured above centre).</p>
<p>OpenCorp have also closed its capital raising offer with the $3.5 million fund being considerably over-subscribed.</p>
<p>The new development fund is forecast to provide investors a total return of over 54%, or an internal rate of return close to 23%.</p>
<p>“Our development funds provide a great way for family offices, high net worth clients and retail investors to invest in developments when they don’t have the time, money or skills to do so themselves,” Lewison says.</p>
<p>“Our 10 year track record combined with average returns of over 20% per annum are proving very popular with small and large investors, given the returns from other asset classes.”</p>
<p>The new Greenvale development is expected to attract first homebuyers seeking a site to build a family home at an affordable price point in anticipation of the City of Hume’s continued rapid growth.</p>
<p>“The Melbourne market continues to remain very robust for quality developments in the right catchments,” Lewison says.</p>
<p>“The sub markets in which we operate are very much focused on strong demand and supply fundamentals.”</p>
<p>Greenvale is located a 30 minute drive from the Melbourne CBD and 10 minutes from Tullamarine Airport. </p>
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Crowdfunding property developer OpenCorp acquires second Greenvale site

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<p><span>The six-hectare NSW Southern Tablelands property Kiloren, with intact Edna Walling gardens, has finally sold.</span></p>
<p>It was in 1982 gardening author Jennie Churchill and her husband, vet Rob Churchill, took over the Crookwell garden with the <a href="https://www.kiloren.com" target="_blank">best named gardener in the land</a>.</p>
<p><span>There were four parties interested at the end with the property sold to a couple from Canberra.</span></p>
<p><span>Jennie sayes she is confident they will care for the garden beautifully. </span></p>
<p><span>The garden was installed by Walling in 1951, surrounding the three bedroom John Mansfield designed house, which was built for the Broadbent family.</span></p>
<p><span>Walling was familiar with the climate given her nearby Markdale, Binda commission for the Ashton family in the late 1940's.</span></p>
<p><span>The classic Walling features include basalt walls and pathways softened by relaxed planting.</span></p>
<p><span>She described the garden as one of her less formal designs and said she brought plants from her own nurse at Bickleigh Vale near Melbourne, where she has a cottage within the grounds.</span></p>
<p><span>Jennie and her husband will be moving back to their Potts Point base and continue with plans for a Tasmanian retreat.</span></p>
<p><span>Around $980,000 was being sought. </span></p>
<p><em>This article was first published in the Saturday Daily Telegraph.</em></p>
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Edna Walling garden at Southern Tablelands finally sold

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<p><span>Melbourne's first interactive playground Harmony Garden has been revealed at Point Park on Yarra's edge, just moments from Melbourne's CBD.</span></p>
<p><span>The interactive playground, created by real estate investment group Mirvac, allows children to compose music using sculptural bells and gongs which are integrated into a playground environment.</span></p>
<p><span>Constructed from timber, the large wall features 16 stainless steel gongs, eight anodised aluminium harmonic bells and three cube drumming seats that combine to create an interactive musical instrument spanning 11 metres.</span></p>
<p><span>The innovative playground was designed by co-creator of Birrarung Marr's Federation Bells Neil McLachlan, artist and sculptor Emilia Storm and landscape designer Simon Ellis.</span></p>
<p><span>Dotted throughout the landscaped park are 11 multi-sensory interactive bell sculptures inspired by indigenous coastal plantings and situated within native gardens.</span></p>
<p><span>Children use a specially-engineered colourful soft plastic stamen to play the bells.</span></p>
<p><span>Mirvac’s Head of Residential, John Carfi, said the Harmony Garden will be a unique and fun way to bring children and adults together.</span></p>
<p><span>Federation Bells co-creator, Neil McLachlan, also an Associate Professor at the University of Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences, said the park would encourage children to play cooperatively.</span></p>
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Mirvac unveils Melbourne's first interactive musical playground at Yarra's edge

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<p>The NSW Government is set to sell its Land and Property Information (LPI) unit in 2016.</p>
<p>NSW has JPMorgan undertaking a scoping study on the sale, according to the Australian Financial Review column, Street Talk. </p>
<p>LPI provides all mapping, titles and other related land information services for NSW.</p>
<p>While the sale of the state's LPI would be the first sale of its kind in Australia, Victoria and South Australia are also consider selling their own land titles offices. </p>
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<p>The AFR suggest that the NSW LPI is likely to be worth $500  million.</p>
<p>In 2014-15 some 900,000 plus dealings were lodged for registration, marking a 6.7 per cent increase on already strong volumes in the previous financial year.</p>
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NSW LPI to be sold with $500 million hopes

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<p><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Property Observer has sought sales and listings over recent months highlighting the beauty of the jacaranda.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Here's our latest finds.</span></p>
<p><span>1. <span><a href="https://www.realestateview.com.au/Real-Estate/jacaranda-estate-lot-48-45-lancashire-drive-mudgeeraba/Property-Details-buy-residential-9785743" target="_blank">Lot 48, 45 Lancashire Drive, Mudgeeraba, QLD</a> (below)</span></span></p>
<p><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2015/11/18/700_jac1.jpg" alt="" width="519" height="315"> </p>
<p><span>The property in Ascot was a no brainer for top spot.</span></p>
<p><span>Simply entitled 'Jacaranda', the gated estate compromises of land and house space, with this townhouse the last of the lot.</span></p>
<p><span>The four bedroom, two bedroom house is on the market for just over $540,000.</span></p>
<p><span>The estate features a jacaranda at every turn.</span></p>
<p><span>2. <span><a href="https://www.realestateview.com.au/Real-Estate/24-roger-street-muswellbrook/Property-Details-buy-residential-9760204" target="_blank">24 Roger Street, Muswellbrook, NSW</a> (below)</span></span></p>
<p><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2015/11/18/jac2.jpg" alt="" width="552" height="335" style="line-height: 1.3em;"></p>
<p><span>The 898 sqm property is nestled behind a lavish jacaranda tree.</span></p>
<p><span>The three bedroom, one bathroom home is on the market for $320,000</span></p>
<p><span>3. <span><a href="https://www.realestateview.com.au/Real-Estate/6-pagottos-ridge-road-north-lismore/Property-Details-buy-residential-9759488" target="_blank">6 Pagattos Ridge Road, North Lismore, NSW</a> (below)</span></span><span style="line-height: 1.3em;"> </span></p>
<p><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2015/11/18/jac4.jpg" alt="" width="486" height="295"></p>
<p><span>The three bedroom, one bathroom property includes 2.79 hectares of land.</span></p>
<p><span>The back garden of the property features an outside decking and views of the blooming jacaranda's</span></p>
<p><span>4. <span><a href="https://www.realestateview.com.au/Real-Estate/9-orville-street-malvern-east/Property-Details-buy-residential-8520422" target="_blank">9 Orville Street, Malvern East, VIC</a> (below)</span></span></p>
<p><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2015/11/18/jac5.jpg" alt="" width="413" height="251"></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Another property that sits behind an imposing jacaranda. </span></p>
<p><span>The property features two bedrooms and one bathroom and is currently under offer, however was previously on the market for $1.69 million.</span></p>
<p><span>5. <span><a href="https://www.realestateview.com.au/Real-Estate/10-prosper-parade-glen-iris/Property-Details-sold-residential-9381214" target="_blank">10 Prosper Parade, Glen Iris, VIC</a> (below)</span></span></p>
<p><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2015/11/18/jac6.jpg" alt="" width="504" height="306"></p>
<p><span>The property has been architecturally designed to make the most of the lavish gardens surrounding the home.</span></p>
<p><span>The outdoor decking is met by vibrant jacaranda's in spring. </span></p>
<p><span>The property sold at auction in September with the price undisclosed.</span></p>
<p><span>6. <span><a href="https://www.realestateview.com.au/Real-Estate/4-6-gardenvale-drive-coes-creek/Property-Details-sold-residential-8556534" target="_blank">4-6 Gardenvale Drive, Coes Creek, QLD</a> (below)</span></span></p>
<p><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2015/11/18/jac7.jpg" alt="" width="525" height="319"></p>
<p><span>Mature jacaranda tress surround the 1754 sqm block and keep privacy to a maximum.</span></p>
<p><span>The three bedroom property was sold for $450,000 in October. </span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.3em;"> </span></p>
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Jacaranda's ablaze in property offerings

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<p><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">All 46 lots offered in the final release of Mirvac's Schofields master-planned development were sold out on the weekend.</span></p>
<p><span>More than 700 people registered interest in the blocks, which started at $399,900 for a 324-square-metre block.</span></p>
<p><span>Some were offered as house-and-land packages starting at $670,500 in the <a href="https://theavenue.mirvac.com/" target="_blank"><span>393-lot development</span></a>.</span></p>
<p><span>Six new home designs were launched at <a href="https://theavenue.mirvac.com/about/overview/" target="_blank"><span>The Avenue </span></a>in late June 2015.</span></p>
<p><span>Mirvac's head of residential, John Carfi, said The Avenue was set within the government's north-west growth sector which has benefited from investment in infrastructure including the Schofields train station, new schools and roads.</span></p>
<p><span>"The Avenue blends the peace of rural tranquility with the convenience and rich amenity of an established urban neighbourhood," the marketing suggested. </span></p>
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 Sellout in Schofields on The Avenue

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<h3 class="post-title entry-title"><strong style="color: #333333; font-family: Tahoma, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 1.3em;"><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Consumption and deleveraging</span></strong></h3>
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<div>An interesting speech from Dr. Christopher Kent, Assistant Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) in Canberra.</div>
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<div>The speech noted that household consumption has responded to low interest rates since 2013, but in a less strong manner than might have been expected.<br><br>Let's take a look at three of the main observations raised...<br><br><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Part 1 - The balance sheet and wealth channels ("aka. Equity withdrawal, mate")</span></strong>
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<div>One of the drivers for a less strong consumption response through this cycle has been the diminished role of housing equity withdrawal.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>In the first half of the 2000s households withdrew significant equity to finance their consumption, but this no longer appears to be occurring on such a widespread basis, according to the Reserve Bank's data.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>In fact in recent years household net spending on assets has exceeding borrowing.</div>
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<div class="separator"><img src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-B1H_R0K_1UU/VX692piqWgI/AAAAAAAAWIA/fZS-HIftYAY/s400/RBA1.jpg" width="365" height="400"></div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">The evidence here suggests that the so-termed "wealth channel" - rising household wealth boosting consumption - has not been as effective to date as in cycles past.</div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Part 2 - The cash-flow channel - household balance sheets and buffers</span></strong></div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">Of course, it is well known that Australian households are net borrowers on average. </div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">However, the RBA's figures also show that while households' interest earning assets (such as bank deposits) have risen strongly as a share of disposable income over recent years - even exclusive of superannuation - interest bearing liabilities have not.</div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">In fact, household liabilities as a share of household disposable incomes have been steady for some years now.</div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator"><img src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZUlS798T_sM/VX6_I-lCS6I/AAAAAAAAWIo/JSStEaFE5C0/s400/RBA6.jpg" width="365" height="400"></div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">How so? This is thanks in part to record low borrowing rates, with aggregate mortgage buffers apparently soaring to record levels and many households evidently electing to pay down their debt faster, known as "deleveraging".</div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">I believe that this is in part due a mechanism whereby mortgage repayments are held steady even in the event of downward adjustments to interest rates on variable rate products, something which is perhaps unique to Australia.</div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">Average mortgage prepayments are rapidly approaching an incredible 30 months, while as a share of housing loans outstanding aggregate mortgage buffers have soared to well over 15 per cent, which is remarkable if true.</div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">In short, through this interest rate easing cycle more households appear to have moved further ahead on their mortgage repayments.</div>
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<div class="separator"><img src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_GJEDSZ7SqE/VX692rQKzvI/AAAAAAAAWIE/9XIu_L5yvgE/s400/RBA2.jpg" width="400" height="336"></div>
<br><div class="separator">It is often said that Australians are holding "record high" household debt, but the Reserve Bank charts claim that this fails to acknowledge the increasing role of offset accounts and investor credit.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>When offsets and credit are included in the statistics household credit as a percentage of household income has actually declined by 4 percentage points over the past half decade, noted Dr. Kent.</div>
<br><div class="separator"><img src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ylZP5atiPzc/VX693VMvFDI/AAAAAAAAWIM/zo96JKlK40g/s400/RBA4.jpg" width="372" height="400"></div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Part 3 - The supply side</span></strong></div>
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<div class="separator">As is typical, dwelling construction, being the most interest rate sensitive sector of the Australian economy, is responding strongly to easier monetary policy, with building approvals now at their highest level on record and dwelling investment up by 9 per cent over the past year.</div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">This will likely put downward pressure on apartment rents and prices in some regions.</div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div> </div>
<div>However, one eminent challenge is that the supply of greenfield land in the Sydney region (inclusive of Newcastle and Wollongong) in particular, and also in south-east Queensland (Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast), has plummeted to extremely low levels, which is putting significant upwards pressure on land values.</div>
<div> </div>
<div>In Sydney the stock of suitable sites for apartments has been depleted too in recent years.<br><br>With a dearth of suitable sites to build either houses or apartments, the Reserve notes the risk of a material spike in dwelling prices caused by the inadequate supply.</div>
<div class="separator"><img src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4HOM_XSDTV0/VX692otsOCI/AAAAAAAAWII/ktRH_sGI00Y/s400/RBA3.jpg" width="386" height="400"></div>
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<div class="separator"><span>A parallel challenge is that with the residential construction industry pushing towards full capacity, this is likely to result in inflation of land and construction work, potentially "<em>pushing up the prices of new and existing dwellings, </em><span><em>via increases in land prices, construction wages, developers' margins or some combination of all three</em>"</span>.</span></div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">While labour shortages have not bitten particularly hard to date despite some skills shortages arising, rising demand for building materials has already pushed the rate of inflation for new dwelling costs fully two points above its average for the inflation-targeting period (i.e. since 1993).</div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">This is somewhat agitating since the residential construction boom is still in its infancy, relatively speaking.</div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div>Furthermore, alterations and additions (i.e. major renovations work) could easily pick up further, further accentuating materials shortages.</div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">The wrap</span></strong></div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">Dr. Kent's speech concluded that consumption has picked up in Australia since 2013, and monetary policy is working as it should, to some extent.</div>
<div class="separator"> </div>
<div class="separator">However, many households are also electing to pay down their debts faster, and this is having some dampening effect on the strength of the consumption response experienced to date.</div>
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<em>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>.</em><br><p><em>His latest book is <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>.</em></p>
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RBA suggests squeezed land supply could spike prices: Pete Wargent

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<p><span>GUEST OBSERVER</span></p>
<p><span>Inspired by Robert Shiller’s best seller, <em>Irrational Exuberance</em>, I developed the Jamie Durie Index (JDI) over a decade ago, which represented the number of times the name ‘Jamie Durie’ appeared in newspapers and magazines.  Shiller’s book suggested that the media typically play an important role in propagating asset price booms.  </span></p>
<p><span>Jamie Durie -host of top rating TV show, <em>The Block</em> - was the poster boy of Australia’s property market culture and the JDI was designed to measure the media attention and chatter surrounding property.  As it happened, the JDI correlated closely with the cycle in house prices, with both peaking in 2003.</span></p>
<p><span>At the time, Australian property was booming, stories of house price gains achieved in no time with an assist from plenty of debt dominated dinner party conversation, and Australia was rapidly becoming a nation of home renovators, inspired by Jamie Durie and shows like <em>The Block</em>.</span></p>
<p><span>Fast forward to 2015 and <em>The Block</em> has come a long way, having out-lived its original host.  In its initial form, it survived only two seasons.  After a six year absence, the Nine Network re-introduced the show in 2010, which has been hosted by Scott Cam ever since.  Despite the 20% lift in average home values in the past three years, <em>The Block</em> and other home renovation shows – including House Rules and Reno Rumble - haven’t hit the heights of a decade earlier.</span></p>
<p><span><strong>The rise and rise of home renovation shows...</strong></span></p>
<p><span>The recently appointed Treasury Secretary, Mr John Fraser, has weighed in on the debate about whether there is a bubble in property prices, suggesting that the plethora of home renovation television shows represents compelling evidence of over-investment in housing.  While there might be signs of a property market culture re-emerging, we need to tread carefully about drawing strong inferences about a property bubble for a number of reasons.</span></p>
<p><strong><span>...but little sign of a speculative frenzy</span></strong></p>
<p><span>First, a shift in consumer attitudes and tastes has contributed to the proliferation of home renovation shows.  For instance, the growing popularity of cooking shows, including Master Chef and My Kitchen Rules, together with the emergence of the celebrity chef, is largely due to the renewed interest in food and home cooking and a waning interest in processed foods.  Is anyone suggesting there is a bubble in home cooked food?</span></p>
<p><span>Second, the aggregate data doesn’t point to over-investment in housing, just yet.  Private sector dwelling investment has lifted to a little above 5% of GDP, but this remains well below prior peaks of around 6½% (see chart).</span></p>
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<p><span>Third, despite the growing interest in home renovation shows, this has not yet translated into a lift in the share of their budgets that consumers devote to home renovations.  That much is obvious from the fact that the value of renovations declined to 1.8% of GDP in 2014, well below the peak of 2.7% of a decade ago and its lowest level in more than twenty years (see chart).  To put this in context, had the value of renovations accounted for 2.7% of GDP in 2014, this would have translated into a dollar value of $43 billion, well above the actual spending on renovations of $30 billion, representing a shortfall of over $10 billion.</span></p>
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<p><span>The academic literature confirms that the level of home improvement activity provides a valuable insight into home owners' expectations of future price growth.  In a paper published in the Journal of Financial Economics, Harrison Hong and other researchers from Princeton show that in the United States, homeowners who are optimistic about future house prices are more likely to speculate on future price growth by renovating.</span></p>
<p><span>Fourth, increased liquidity, a pre-requisite for speculative bubbles according to Shiller, has been absent to date.  In fact, the annualised turnover rate of the stock of housing has declined to 4%, around half its level from a decade ago (see chart).  Normally, turnover rises with house prices because greater home equity encourages home-owners to trade up to more expensive homes and vendors who observe higher turnover infer that demand has picked up and lift their reserves.</span></p>
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<p><span>The RBA speculates that various factors underpin muted housing turnover: the unusually low participation of owner-occupiers in housing market transactions and growing evidence that homeowners have become more reluctant to borrow against increases in net wealth to trade up homes.  Hardly ingredients of a property bubble.</span></p>
<p><strong><span>Tipping point for a bubble has not been reached...yet</span></strong></p>
<p><span>Despite the proliferation of home renovation shows on Australian television, signs of a re-emerging property market culture, and strong upswing in Sydney and Melbourne property prices, the modest level of renovation activity, low turnover in the housing stock and the fact that private sector dwelling investment is in line with historical norms suggests that the property market does not yet share the speculative elements that prevailed during the boom of the early 2000s.</span></p>
<p><span>Back then people renovated to cash in on the soaring equity in their home so they could trade up to bigger places.  Now, the reality has set in that the transaction costs of moving are too high and households are more realistic about their expectations of capital growth.  If there does exist a tipping point for the emerging property market culture to morph into a speculative frenzy of over-investment, I believe that we are not there yet.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Founder of Evidente, <a href="https://www.evidente.com.au" target="_blank">Salvatore (Sam) Ferraro</a>, is a top rated quantitative analyst and has over 17 years of experience in financial markets, with investment banks, Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch, providing advice on best practice to portfolio managers and as a senior portfolio manager for a boutique funds management firm, covering banks, insurers, utilities and infrastructure stocks. </p>
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Are the Jamie Durie devotees really to blame for the 2015 over-investment property boom?

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<p>The Channel 7 Tasmanian House Rules contestants,<span style="line-height: 1.3em;"> Cassie and Matt have a $248,000 mortgage, the second smallest so far of the revealed prizes.</span></p>
<p>Cassie and Matt bought their affordable, quirky 1960s home, which they’ve come to adore.</p>
<p>Nothing had been done since it was built in the <span>Geilston Bay suburb</span>.</p>
<p><span>They are in the third series of the Channel 7 reno show, in which six teams from around Australia have their homes renovated room by room by opposing teams.</span></p>
<p><span>It has often won the night in ratings since it debuted last month.</span></p>
<p><img src="https://s.yimg.com/iu/api/res/1.2/Hm.Egawcln49nqn3ChKNUg--/YXBwaWQ9eXZpZGVvO2ZpPWZpbGw7dz04Njg7cT05MDtuPTE7cm90YXRlPWF1dG8-/https://s.yimg.com/ea/img/-/150529/tas_house_final_1amfl5v-1amfl65.jpg"></p>
<p>W<span>ith Tassie’s cold temperatures, the couple would love for their house to be insulated.</span></p>
<p>The pair met 10 years ago, but it wasn't until five years later they began a relationship.</p>
<p>In 2014 they bought their first home together in the Hobart suburb. It comes w<span style="line-height: 1.3em;">ith its pink bathroom, purple bedroom and fluorescent green carpet.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">"We want to preserve the character of the home; maintain that 1960s feel but modernise it," Cassie said.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">"My mum and dad's first house was in the same suburb so we see it being our forever home," Cassie says.</span></p>
<p>Cassie is a pharmacist and <span style="line-height: 1.3em;">Matt is a swim instructor who's studying to become a P.E teacher.</span></p>
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Cassie and Matt's House Rules Tasmania $248,000 mortgage 

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<p>Western Australia builder Gransden Constructions has won top gongs at the recent HIA-CSR Australian Housing Awards, taking out both the Australian Home of the Year and Custom Built Home of the Year Awards.</p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">The winning trophy home, located in the Perth Hills suburb of Bedfordale, is on 20 hectares and built around five areas known as pods, which make up a total of 1000 square metres. </span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.3em;">One of the pods features a 20m heated pool, complete with enough fibre-optic lighting to make the roof look like the Milky Way.</span></p>
<p><span>Builder George Allingham told <em>WA Today </em>the owners, retirees </span><span>Retirees Tena and Terry Wheeler, wanted a house inspired by their combined love of Japanese architecture.</span></p>
<p><span>"It's a large house but it doesn't feel particularly large – it nestles into the block. The architect said it 'touches the earth lightly'," he said.</span></p>
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<p><a href="https://hia.com.au/aha" target="_blank">HIA-CSR Australian Home of the Year</a> is the top accolade with other finalists:</p>
<ul>
<li>Metricon Homes<span class="small-txt">South Australia</span>
</li>
<li>Planbuild Homes<span class="small-txt"> Queensland</span>
</li>
<li>Stonehaven Homes<span class="small-txt">Victoria</span>
</li>
<li>Spacemaker Home Extensions<span class="small-txt"> Victoria</span>
</li>
<li>BCG Constructions Pty Ltd<span class="small-txt">Victoria </span>
</li>
<li>Giorgi Exclusive Homes <span class="small-txt">Western Australia</span>
</li>
</ul>
<p><span>The project also won the award for the </span><span>Australian Custom Built Home of the Year</span><span>, partnered by Stramit Building Products. </span></p>
<p><span>The judges were impressed with the execution of the build and the material combination, and described this home as an exemplary masterpiece. </span></p>
<p><span><a href="https://www.gransden.com.au/-Company-" target="_blank">Gransden Construction</a> services the $1 million-plus market in new homes and the $850,000-plus market in home additions or renovations.</span></p>
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<p><span>Architect Suzanne Hunt says her</span><span style="line-height: 1.3em;"> favourite feature of the home was the</span><span style="line-height: 1.3em;"> tranquillity, light and connection to the landscape.</span></p>
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<p><span>The orientation of the house on the east-west long axis makes the most of natural weather conditions, including solar gain, natural light and the capturing of prevailing breezes.</span></p>
<p><span> High-level remote-controlled windows, sliding glass doors, and louvred and sashless windows ensure cross-flow ventilation. </span></p>
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<p><span style="line-height: 1.3em;"> </span></p>
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