&nbsp;

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.

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.

The project has recorded more than $500 million in sales across the first three towers, equating to around 580 apartments sold.

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.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370975]

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.

Construction has now commenced across four towers ranging between 18 and 30 storeys, with Hamilton Marino and Maxcon appointed as builders.

Once complete, the precinct is expected to comprise around 1,100 residences, alongside retail, hospitality and public realm uses integrated throughout the site.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370981]

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.

“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.

“To deliver that requires an extraordinary level of detail, coordination and discipline across multiple verticals, from design and hospitality through to wellness and service.”

“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.” 
[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370977]

The project’s design places a heavy focus on landscaping, wellness amenities and biophilic design principles.

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.

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.

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.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370980]

Gurner said the company’s experience through its Saint Haven wellness clubs had directly informed the residential offering now being incorporated into Elysium Fields.

“We’re seeing a clear global shift toward longevity, performance and proactive health,” Gurner said.

“Our role is to deliver that in a way that feels seamless, highly private and beautifully resolved within the environments we create.”

A large component of the wellness offering is planned through the resident amenity and health facilities proposed within the precinct.

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.

The developer is also seeking approvals for what it describes as a “reverse ageing medical clinic” within the precinct.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370978]

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.

Within the first tower, Helios, residents will also have access to a dedicated amenity offering known as the Sky Private Club.

The upper 15 levels of the building will include private lounges, dining spaces, rooftop amenities and optional private wellness studios integrated within residences.

The Helios tower itself comprises 260 apartments ranging between 60 sqm and 300 sqm, including a collection of penthouses.

That includes a planned two-storey penthouse spanning around 600 sqm with uninterrupted bay views.

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.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=144441 project_image_fid=370979]

The sales result comes as GURNER™ continues expanding its national development pipeline beyond Victoria.

“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.

“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.”

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.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=144441]

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

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.

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.

Multiplex has been appointed the builder, and construction is now underway.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=108274 project_image_fid=365784]

Since its first project, Central Equity has delivered more than 85 residential developments with a combined end value exceeding $8 billion.

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.

“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.

He said NAB’s early support was instrumental in helping establish the company’s development model.

“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.

“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.”

[smartcode_project:default project_id=108274 project_image_fid=365771]

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.

Recognising changing demographics and lifestyle preferences, the company began developing high-rise residential projects designed to bring permanent residents into the city centre.

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.

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.

The developer said the Palmera apartment tower reflects its long-term view of the Gold Coast as a growing and increasingly diversified economy.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=108274 project_image_fid=365768]

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.

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.

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.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=108274]

NAB funds $1 billion Surfers Paradise apartment development, Palmera

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.

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.

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.

<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" />

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.”

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.

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.

Planning documents show the development would consist of a part-13, part-39 storey tower form positioned above a four-storey podium.

“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.

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.

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.”

<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" />

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.

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.

“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.

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.

“The broader precinct is undergoing significant change, with a mix of existing mid-rise buildings and newer high-density developments,” the report stated.

“Recent and approved projects indicate a consistent shift toward taller built form, typically organised as tower-and-podium typologies with more active ground levels.”

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.

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.

&nbsp;

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.

<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" />

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.

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.

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.

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.

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">
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.

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.

<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" />

Interior view from the Northern Building Penthouse overlooking the park

&nbsp;

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.

Time &amp; Place acquired the former David Jones building in 2024, marking the first time the property had changed hands in around 50 years.

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.

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.”

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.”

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.

Planning documents show the scheme would comprise a mix of heritage apartments, new-build apartments, townhouses and penthouses.

<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" />Interior View of the Heritage Building Apartment

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.

&nbsp;

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.

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.

Wardle’s design heavily references the site’s industrial and heritage history, while also responding to the surrounding Surry Hills streetscape.

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.

The report also outlines the project’s relationship with Eddie Ward Park and the broader landscape context of the area.

“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.

The architects said the proposal sought to “rebind built form to Country” through landscape, materiality and the adaptive reuse of the heritage structure.

<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" />

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.

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.

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.”

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.

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.

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>.
</section>

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

The residential transformation of St Kilda Road is set to continue into with more new apartment plans for the sought-after boulevard.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Dexus recently secured approval for its slice of St Kilda Road, while Gurner also has approved plans for the precinct.

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

Commercial

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The London-based private equity investor Terra Firma is considering the partial sale of Australia’s largest privately owned beef producer, Consolidated Pastoral Company.
The decision by Terra Firma to introduce a part-owner for Consolidated Pastoral is thought to signal attempts to increase its capacity for a potential acquisition, possibly Macquarie Pastoral.
It has appointed investment bank Barclays Capital to field recent approaches from Chinese parties, the Australian Financial Review said.
Consolidated Pastoral was bought from the Packer family in 2009 for around $450 million.
It’s believed Terra Firm was considering a partial sale of as much as 40%.
Consolidated Pastoral has a book value of about $700 million.
Owning and operating 19 cattle stations, it has more than 360,000 head of cattle across 5.6 million hectares of land in Australia.
The CPC chief executive Troy Setter said the company had received interest from Indonesia and China.
 
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jchancellor-FAypfDUnLy

Chinese and Indonesians get chance to secure Terra Firma Australia pastoral offering

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Joseph Safra, Brazil’s second-wealthiest man, is buying London’s Gherkin skyscraper.
The conical office tower has been bought by Safra Group, a company he ­controls, for about £726 million (A$1.33 billion).
The Gherkin tower, at 30 St Mary Axe, has become one of ­London’s best-known landmarks since it opened a decade ago. 
The building was one of the first skyscrapers in the city to earn a nickname. Its tenants include reinsurer Swiss Re.
Safra has an estimated net worth of $US12.2 billion (A$14 billion), coming from a family with roots in mid-19th-century Aleppo, Syria.
A fund managed by IVG Im­mobilien, once Germany’s biggest real estate company, and London-based Evans Randall bought the Gherkin from Swiss Re for £600 million (A$1.08 billion) in 2007. Deloitte took control of the building in April after the Swiss franc’s appreciation caused some of the debt payments to balloon.
The price is equivalent to a yield of about 3.8%, said the source, who asked not to be identified because the information is private.
Photo: Creative Commons
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London's Gherkin office skyscraper sold to Brazilian billionaire

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Shimao Property, controlled by billionaire Hui Wing Mau, has bought 175 Liverpool Street in Sydney’s CBD.
<a href="https://rca.joneslanglasalle.com.au/property-offices-nsw-sydney-501232079" target="_blank">It sold through JLL</a> for around $390 million by the Singapore’s GIC Real Estate that paid $230 million in 2005.
The newly refurbished A-Grade office building totalling 48,890 square metres of NLA is occupied by Telstra, state and federal government tenants.
GIC, the sovereign wealth fund of Singapore, owns about $4 billion worth of real estate in Australia, including Sydney's Chifley Tower and Queen Victoria Building.
The Chinese-born Hui Wing Mau is a BRW Rich Lister and was ranked by Forbes as China’s 12th richest person, worth around $6.35 billion.
He is a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. 
Shimao Holdings, which is listed on the Hong Kong stock exchange, holds 112 developing projects in 42 cities.  
Its holdings include hotel projects such as the $548 million InterContinental Shimao Hotel in Shanghai.
Following the completion of InterContinental Shimao Shanghai Wonderland (Groundscraper Hotel) in Shanghai, a hotel situated at the lowest altitude in the world, Shimao Property announced its “Hotel on the Cliff” project in Jiangyin. 
The group generates its turnover primarily from property development, property investment and hotel operations.
As at 30 June 2014, turnover of the group reached RMB 23.68 billion (A$4.4 billion), grew by 42.0% when compared to RMB 16.68 billion (A$3,14 billion) for the corresponding period in 2013.
During the period, revenue from property sales amounted to RMB 22.61 billion, accounting for 95.5% of the total revenue and representing an increase of 44.1% over the corresponding period in 2013.
The average recognised selling price increased by 4.2% to RMB 11,518 (A$2,166) per square metre in the first half of 2014, from RMB 11,059 (A$2,080) per square metre for the corresponding period in 2013. 
Notwithstanding the Chinese residential market remains sluggish in the first half of the year, the group posted contracted sales of RMB 8.07 (A$1.51 billion) billion in June, which was a record high for monthly sales since the inception of Shimao Property.
It was also the fourth month in which the group had registered consecutive sales growth, after it had posted monthly sales of more than RMB 6 billion (A$1.13) from March to May inclusive. 
Building on its strategic positioning, established in 2013, as a “Pioneer in Urban Evolution” and a “Lifestyle Service Provider”, Shimao Property launched branding campaigns across the country this year.  
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Singaporeans sell Hyde Park, Sydney office to Hui Wing Mau's Shimao Property

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Office vacancy rates have lept towards 15% in Brisbane, Darwin, Canberra, Adelaide and Perth. This takes the national average to 12.4%, as an overall vacancy level.
However, businesses are now leasing space once again in both Sydney and Melbourne — where their vacancy rates are currently hovering around 10%, according to JLL.
Tenant demand for space under 800 square metres has been strong — with technology firms, investment banks and business services expanding. Compared with other capital cities, Melbourne enjoys demand from a far wider profile of tenants.
By 2016, the Property Council of Australia is predicting a vacancy rate of under 9% for Sydney and Melbourne. Whereas, the other capital cities are expected to still be up around 16% (CBD Office markets are considered "in balance", with a vacancy rate of between 6% to 8%).
<h3>Offshore Buyer Demand</h3>
Overseas investors have been responsible for boosting sales of commercial property to nearly $11 billion during the September quarter. Their contribution was about $4.4 billion and accounted for half the number of actual sales.
Interestingly, Singaporean investors (at $2.8 billion) have clearly outperformed Chinese investors (at $518 million).
While many of the purchases were made within the various CBDs, there will be an obvious flow-on effect to the inner-city suburbs around most Australian capital cities.
Furthermore, there were a significant number of purchases made of lower-grade office buildings — which are planned for either development (or conversion) into apartments.
<h3>Two-fold Effect</h3>
These projects will obviously help in reducing the overall vacancy rate around the country, by effectively withdrawing whole buildings from the market.
However they will also create added concern for those fearing an unhealthy oversupply of inner-city residential accommodation, within our capital cities.
Bottom line: Overseas investors are clearly seeing numerous opportunities here in Australia. And their increased activity over the past year has certainly taken many local investors by surprise.
Provided you base your purchases upon underlying fundamentals, the next four to five years is looking rather rosy for commercial investors.
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Commercial property: State of the nation

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Asia Pacific confidence rises, with investors targeting office stock: Colliers

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GDI Funds Management Limited has entered into a conditional put and call option deed for the sale of 233 Castlereagh Street, Sydney for $156 million.
The B-grade office price represents an increase of $27 million compared to the June 2014 independent valuation. It is a 31 level 1976-built commercial office tower located in the southern end of the Sydney CBD within close proximity to the Downing Centre. 
It has been speculated Asian development interests were the intending buyers.
GDI Property Group recently leased a 1,800-square-metre office suite for the filming of the upcoming political drama Truth, starring Robert Redford and Cate Blanchett.
The film is based on the 2005 memoir Truth and Duty: The Press, the President, and the Privilege of Power.
Based on 60 Minutes producer Mary Mapes' 2005 memoir, the movie centres on the 2004 scandal that erupted after US news anchor Dan Rather reported that then president George W Bush received preferential treatment to avoid the Vietnam War draft.
Robert Redford will play the famous American anchor, while Cate Blanchett will portray producer Mary, who was subsequently fired over the story. 
The short-term lease was negotiated by Brendan Shipp and Thomas Fredriksen of Knight Frank, who said the movie directors needed nondescript views, as the movie is based in New York City.
Filming was expected to take eight weeks with the tenant paying about $100,000 a square metre gross for the space.
The GDI Property Group Steve Gillard said the sale was a great result and validated the GDI Property Group business model of buying well‐located CBD office properties with multiple exit options.
The option deed is conditional upon GDI Property Group procuring by September 2015 amendment of the covenanted restriction in relation to the allowable gross floor area.
GDI Property Group is confident that it will approve the amendment or replacement of the restriction on use.
Other key terms of the option deed include a $1 million call option fee has been paid.
GDA had previously advised in the GDI Property Group prospectus that it had been investigating the feasibility of alternative redevelopment options, including residential conversion, for its property at 233 Castlereagh Street, also known as 324 Pitt Street. 
In 2006 Leighton Properties Pty Limited (LPPL) and Lend Lease Real Estate Partners 1 Limited announced that they had exchanged contracts with SAITeysMcMahon, an Orchard Funds Management entity, for the sale of 233 Castlereagh Street at a price of $120 million.
It was transferred again in 2010 at $102 million. 
Quality office tenants over the years have included Moray and Agnew and more recently Copyright Agency, Carlson Wagonlit Travel and General Pants Co. The property known as Telstra House was owned by Telstra until selling at $55 million in 2002.
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More mid-town residential looms as GDI secure 233 Castlereagh Street, Sydney deal

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There has been fierce debate around commercial licensing recently. The Real Estate Institute of Victoria's (REIV) Enzo Raimondo is particularly against the recent changes.
Here's a Q&amp;A with Raimondo explainging why they oppose the gazetted regulatory changes.
What are the changes to commercial licensing?
The Victorian government has gazetted a regulatory change which enables anyone involved in the sale of real estate other than residential or rural land, will be exempt from the licensing requirements of the Estate Agents Act where,
<ul>
<li>The price in the contract of sale is at least $15 million or the property has a total gross floor space of at least 10,000 square metres.</li>
<li>Each party to the sale purchase or exchange of real estate owns other real estate with a total value of at least $15 million or a total floor space of at least 10,000 square metres.</li>
</ul>
Anyone involved in the leasing of real estate other than residential property or rural land, will be exempt from the licensing requirements of the act if the person or company for whom the person is acting owns property with a total of at least $15 million or a total floor space of at least 10,000 square metres.
It should be noted that the ALP, on Monday announced that it will review these changes if elected in Victoria at the upcoming state election on 29 November.
How does the REIV believe this will affect the industry and consumers?
It will create a two-tiered system where some agents will be licensed (for sales and leasing transactions below the threshold) and others won’t be licensed.
This will open the industry up to unqualified and inexperienced operators - and potentially criminals - because there will be no probity checks, and the operators will not be required to maintain an audited trust account or comply with the requirements of the estate agents act.
This will lead to a high level of financial risk to vendors, purchasers, landlords and tenants and means that thousand s of small businesses in Victoria will lose the inherent safeguards provided by the estate agents act.
This will hurt small business tenant in Victoria and may lead to increased rents, prices and put thousands of jobs at risk.  
What will the REIV be doing to stop the changes?
The REIV continues to lobby both sides of government in regard to the changes, and is running a public campaign leading up the state election (and beyond).
Are there any other changes to commercial licensing that should be implemented?
There is already an exemption in place for large commercial transactions between related parties, which the REIV believes is sufficient to meet the needs of a wide variety of stakeholders involved in these transactions. For this reason there is no need for the changes that have been proposed.
They represent deregulation of the commercial and industrial estate agency practice, yet are being promoted as red tape reduction.  
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Victoria's proposed commercial licensing changes: Q&A with the REIV's Enzo Raimondo

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The fund manager Placer Property Group have bought the NewActon East building in Canberra, home to the head office of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).
Placer is seeking to raise $26.5 million in equity from self-managed super funds and individual investors for the unlisted property fund.
It offers investors an initial return of 7.75% paid quarterly.
The <a href="https://www.placerproperty.com.au/fund_newacton_east" target="_blank">NewActon East Property Fund</a> is a single-asset syndicate which will run for approximately seven years.
The fund’s only asset will be the commercial component of 21-23 Marcus Clarke Street, an ‘A’-grade, mixed-use building in the NewActon precinct on the fringe of the Canberra CBD. 
It was constructed in 2007 as an eight-storey, mixed-use office, retail and residential development. The fund has only acquired the building’s office and retail components (five storeys plus 115 car parking spaces) – the remaining three storeys of apartments remain in separate hands. 
Purchasing the asset will require $45 million to $49 million, including costs. 
It is expected the asset to produce reliable income, based on: 
<ul>
<li>98.5% occupancy;</li>
<li>Contracted fixed rental increases of at least 3.35% per annum; </li>
<li>A WALE of 9.2 years (by income); and</li>
<li>
A credit-worthy major tenant – 79.8% of passing rent is secured by a lease to the ACCC until 2022, the year after the initial term expires. 
</li>
</ul>
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ACCC's Canberra head office bought by Placer Property fund

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Sydney’s historic Griffiths Teas building are likely to be converted into New York-style converted warehouse apartments, offices and retail space.
Boutique residential developer Cornerstone Property Group has paid $22.22 million through JLL agent James Aroney for the factory that was sold by the property investors Isaac and Susan Wakil.
The Commonwealth and Wentworth Street, Surry Hills acquisition is part of a broader strategy to carve a niche transforming aging industrial buildings into stylish retail spaces and innovative warehouse style apartments, Cornerstone chief executive Michael Grant said.
<img src="https://www.urban.com.au/images/2014/11/05/surry-hills-nov-5-two.png" alt="">
The Cornerstone group recouped $37 million when all 39 apartments in its soon to be redeveloped Classic sportswear ­factory on Cleveland Street sold in May.
An historic mixed-use development at 119-121 Kippax Street is its latest project.
Isaac and Susan Wakil have also offloaded Key College House in Sydney to a ­consortium associated with property developer Michael Teplitsky.
Key College at 49-53 Wentworth Avenue is set to become a hotel and apartment tower with 98 hotel rooms and 35 apartments with hotelier Paul Fischmann’s Eight Hotels group.
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Historic Griffiths Teas, Surry Hills building set for mixed-use conversion

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The RBA's Dilemma
The general consensus is that our dollar should ideally be trading at around US85 cents and that would provide a balance between encouraging non-resource export businesses, while not adding unwanted inflationary pressure.
The RBA could achieve this simply by lowering the official interest rate. However, that would then fuel even more local borrowing — especially within the residential property market.
Ideally, the RBA would like to raise interest rates. Yet, that will only encourage more overseas funds into the country chasing attractive higher returns. Without a lower dollar exchange rate, that would put even more pressure on our export industries.
However, with the Aussie dollar falling to around US90 cents recently (and slipping slightly below that since), maybe the RBA will have its wish fulfilled.
The Impact of a Permanently Lower Dollar
Immediately, this would discourage overseas funds chasing higher returns and temper the demand by investors for both residential and commercial property.
Furthermore, the banks would begin losing their source of cheap funds and therefore, have less money available to lend.
Both these events would help cool the present frenetic market— where funds are often merely "seeking a home", with scant regard to value fundamentals — be it for residential or commercial property.
Bottom line: Make sure you stick to the basics, when assessing commercial property.
Always set out to look for:
<ul>
<li>Well-designed, well-located properties;</li>
<li>Solid tenants on a good leases; and</li>
<li>The ability to "add value", where possible.</li>
</ul>
Make sure you remain an investor in quality, not merely an accumulator of commercial property.
If you cannot find exactly what you want on realistic terms, perhaps you need to wait for the dust to settle and simply let these over-eager "amateurs" discover the importance of basing decisions upon underlying value.
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