Walk past a new apartment development promoting its sustainability credentials and it's easy to picture rooftop gardens, mature trees, landscaped courtyards and residents surrounded by nature.

But in many cases, that's not actually what those sustainability ratings guarantee.

Australia's leading environmental rating tools have played a significant role in improving the energy efficiency and environmental performance of buildings. Yet despite their focus on reducing emissions, many don't require developers to include trees, biodiversity or meaningful green space.

In other words, a building can achieve one of the country's highest sustainability ratings while containing little more than concrete, glass and hard landscaping.

That disconnect has led to the emergence of a new movement across Australia's property industry: nature-based cities.

The concept goes beyond designing buildings that consume less energy. Instead, it encourages developers to treat nature as essential infrastructure, integrating biodiversity, tree canopy, living landscapes and green spaces into projects from the earliest stages of planning.

Research has consistently linked access to nature with better physical and mental health, cooler neighbourhoods, improved biodiversity, stronger climate resilience and more connected communities. As Australia's cities continue to become denser, advocates say those outcomes should be considered just as important as energy efficiency.

Nature Based Cities (NBC) was established in 2022 to help accelerate that shift.

Founded by Hamton Executive Chairman Paul Hameister OAM, the not-for-profit was created after research highlighted a significant gap in Australia's sustainability framework. While existing environmental rating tools rewarded energy performance and emissions reductions, they placed little emphasis on the inclusion of living landscapes.

"We've always wanted to do more, and we know other developers who want to do more, but the ESD rating tools just aren't there," Hameister says.

"In Australia, you can have a five-green-star rated building that's concrete and glass with not a blade of grass.

"The focus is on reducing emissions, which is laudable, but there hasn't been enough attention paid to protecting and re-establishing nature. We need both for the health of the environment and for communities."

Since its launch, NBC has developed independent design guidelines and accreditation frameworks that encourage developers to prioritise ecology, biodiversity, tree canopy, walkability and living landscapes alongside traditional sustainability measures. The organisation first focused on medium and high-density residential developments before recently expanding into precinct-scale communities and masterplanned neighbourhoods.

Jan Talacko, founder of sustainability consultancy Ark Resources and a member of the Nature Based Cities Advisory Council, says the initiative addresses an area that has largely been overlooked by the property industry.

"Throughout my 25 years of working collaboratively with all stakeholders in the property sector, I've always favoured a pragmatic approach to sustainable design which encourages initiatives that not only meet environmental expectations but also improve amenity," Talacko says.

"Whilst we are making steady progress in relation to energy and carbon emissions from buildings, there has been much less emphasis on encouraging biodiversity and tackling the urban heat island effect.

"The Nature Based Cities initiative responds to a gap in the suite of tools currently used by the property development sector, which don't provide sufficient incentive, or recognition, for the integration of landscaping and greenery."

For apartment buyers, the shift is also changing the questions worth asking.

Rather than assuming a sustainable building will naturally include abundant green space, buyers are increasingly being encouraged to look beyond environmental ratings and ask what nature is actually being delivered. How much tree canopy will the development create? Has biodiversity been considered? Are landscaped spaces designed for people as well as appearance?

As Australia's cities continue to grow upwards and outwards, the next generation of sustainability may not simply be measured by lower emissions, but by how successfully developments bring nature back into everyday urban life.

Joel Robinson

What does it really mean for a building to be 'green'?

A who's who of Australian surfing, business and entertainment has emerged on title records following the completion of Esprit Rainbow Bay, the latest boutique beachfront apartment development by former professional surfer Paul Gedoun's S&amp;S Projects.

The completed project has attracted an enviable collection of owners, many with long-standing ties to the southern Gold Coast and the surf culture that has helped define Rainbow Bay and neighbouring Kirra for generations.

Given Gedoun's own background in surfing, it perhaps comes as little surprise that some of Australia's most recognisable surfers have chosen to buy into the development overlooking one of the country's most celebrated stretches of coastline.

Pezet Matheson directors Jayde Pezet and Todd Matheson launched the project in late 2021, and have managed the sales campaign all the way through to its sell-out and recent completion.

<img alt="Esprit" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="08fc6261-b84e-4b09-8a44-66d3067fd0d1" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-07-29%20at%208.51.05%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=4AOcb6ETZwNUnMPdTtz1B3pZAIB_jgZ2" />

Former world champion Mick Fanning, who grew up in Coolangatta, secured an apartment in 2023. He paid&nbsp;$2.07 million. Last year he sold his Bilinga home for over $16 million.

Three-time world champion Joel Parkinson also purchased in the development, alongside big wave surfer Mark Mathews. Mathews bought the most expensive apartment in the building, spending just over $4 million.

Joining them is Rip Curl founder Doug Warbrick, whose company helped shape Australia's global surfing industry over the past five decades.

The appeal of Rainbow Bay has extended well beyond the surfing community.

International DJ Paul Fisher purchased an apartment through his investment vehicle, YLB Developments, an abbreviation of his trademark phrase "You Little Beauty".

The purchase comes as Fisher and his wife Chloe are developing their own luxury apartment project further north in Palm Beach. Their boutique beachfront development, Pescado, comprises just seven apartments on Jefferson Lane, which start from just shy of $6 million. The couple intend to retain the two-level penthouse as their Australian base between international touring commitments.

Melbourne Storm coach Craig Bellamy and his wife Wendy have also invested in Esprit, purchasing two apartments after spending decades holidaying on the southern Gold Coast. They also have a luxury apartment in Joe Adsett's Rockpool, less than 400m away from Esprit.

<h2>Boutique project draws owner-occupiers</h2>

Esprit launched in 2021 and sold strongly, with buyers drawn to its boutique scale, beachfront position and contemporary design.

The completed development comprises 94 apartments across 11 levels, offering expansive floorplans designed primarily for owner-occupiers rather than the investor market.

Crowning the building is Club Esprit, pitched as being the Gold Coast's first residential rooftop wellness centre. The roof features a&nbsp;25 metre magnesium lap pool, which is surrounded by wet daybeds and poolside cabanas,&nbsp;multiple barbecue areas,&nbsp;a yoga and relaxation play lawn, and a private dining room with a kitchen scullery, bar, lounges, and an outdoor terrace.

The wellness centre is&nbsp;fully equipped with a Technogym, ice bath, infra-red sauna, steam room, thermal room, and treatment room. The roof has views spanning&nbsp;Rainbow Bay, Snapper Rocks and the Pacific Ocean.

<h2>S&amp;S Projects continues to shape Rainbow Bay</h2>

S&amp;S Projects founder Paul Gedoun has become one of the key figures behind Rainbow Bay's evolution over the past several years.

After establishing S&amp;S Projects, Gedoun has focused on delivering lifestyle-driven apartment developments designed primarily for owner-occupiers seeking a permanent coastal home.

Esprit is Gedoun's third completed project in Rainbow Bay, following Flow and Awaken, both of which achieved record prices for the suburb.

He is now delivering <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/radia-rainbow-bay-271-boundary-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">Radia Rainbow Bay</a>, a 38-apartment development on Boundary Street that is currently selling, and has no plans to leave the precinct anytime soon. S&amp;S Projects has also lodged plans for its fifth Rainbow Bay development, an 88-apartment project on Boundary Street featuring a strong wellness focus.

Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/qld/first-look-s-s-projects-proposes-88-apartment-wellness-tower-at-coolangattas-boundary-street">First look: S&amp;S Projects proposes 88-apartment wellness tower at Coolangatta's Boundary Street</a>

&nbsp;

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Who's who of buyers revealed as Esprit Rainbow Bay settles

Apartment buildings are increasingly being designed around how people actually live day to day, not just how they want a building to look.

For buyers, that shift is showing up in practical inclusions that respond to changing habits. Work-from-home spaces, EV charging, wellness amenities, secure bike storage and parcel management are becoming part of the broader apartment conversation, reflecting a move toward buildings that reduce friction in everyday life.

Online shopping has become one of the clearest examples of that change.

Australians spent a record $82.6 billion online in 2025, with nearly one in four retail dollars now spent online. That has made parcel delivery a regular part of apartment living, rather than an occasional inconvenience.

For apartment residents, however, the delivery process can be less straightforward than it is for detached homes. Parcels may be left in lobbies, redirected to Post Offices, missed entirely, or placed under the responsibility of building managers and concierge teams.

That is why secure parcel infrastructure is increasingly being considered alongside more familiar apartment amenities.

<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-VjjLwoViX0?si=A3k7ws9NX35Uac7_" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe>

Australia Post Parcel Lockers offer one way to address the issue. When a parcel arrives, residents receive a notification through the AusPost app or SMS, then collect it using a QR code or one-time PIN. The parcel is kept secure, accessible and removed from common areas.

The broader Parcel Locker network now includes more than 1,500 locations across Australia, positioned at Post Offices, shopping centres, supermarkets, transport hubs and other accessible locations.

For new apartment projects, the relevance is clear. A building’s amenity offering is no longer only about lifestyle spaces, but also about convenience, security and functionality.

As buyer expectations evolve, secure parcel delivery is becoming part of the same design conversation as flexible working, sustainable transport and resident wellbeing.

It is one less thing for residents to worry about, and another example of apartment design adapting to the way Australians now live.

Apartment design is adapting to the way Australians shop

While school holidays and trips to Europe tend to define the winter property market, there's been no cold snap at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-walden-north-sydney-177-walker-street-north-sydney-nsw-2060">The Walden</a> in North Sydney.

Developer-builder&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/aland">ALAND</a> sold more than $35 million worth of apartments throughout June, including a $6.8 million apartment that now ranks among the highest apartment sales ever recorded in North Sydney.

SRM Residential agent Ben Stewart said buyer demand throughout June reflected a mix of improving market confidence and longer-term thinking from owner-occupiers.

"We're seeing strong demand from owner-occupiers who are taking a longer-term view," Stewart said.

"Many recognise the opportunity to secure an apartment in an iconic building and premium location while values remain attractive. They may initially lease the property, but the intention is to eventually move in themselves, rather than purchasing purely as an investment."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134323 project_image_fid=367129]

Located at 177 Walker Street, The Walden will deliver 161 one, two, three and four-bedroom residences across a 30-storey tower designed by Rothelowman. Every apartment occupies a corner position, maximising natural light, cross ventilation and views across Sydney Harbour, the Opera House, Sydney Heads and the northern districts.

Rather than a traditional balcony, the residences feature winter gardens that seamlessly extend the open plan living areas, creating versatile spaces for relaxing or entertaining throughout the year. Floor-to-ceiling glazing draws in natural light while showcasing sweeping views from the building's elevated Walker Street position.

Every apartment features high-end Calacatta marble, bespoke joinery, and fully integrated appliances.

The larger residences have been planned with distinct entertaining and private zones, with many master suites positioned on corners to capture natural light and harbour views. Walk-in dressing rooms, freestanding baths and refined stone finishes reinforce the house-like feel that has resonated with downsizers and owner-occupiers.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134323 project_image_fid=6393]

Rothelowman Principal Ben Pomroy said the project was designed to make the most of its unique position overlooking the harbour.

"The Walden is a celebration of all things beautiful, curated for those who expect nothing less than exceptional," Pomroy says.

"Meticulously designed entertaining spaces and light-filled living areas that capitalise on capturing the natural beauty of Sydney's iconic harbour."

Residents will also have exclusive access to The Pavilion, a dedicated amenity building featuring a rooftop pool, wellness studio, gymnasium, sauna, concierge service, residents' lounge, private dining spaces and work-from-home facilities.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134323 project_image_fid=6402]

The project marks ALAND's first major luxury apartment development in Sydney's inner-city market after more than two decades delivering residential communities across Greater Sydney.

Founder and CEO Andrew Hrsto previously said the rarity of the Walker Street site made it an opportunity the company could not overlook.

"This is a rare opportunity to bring a truly exceptional project to life in one of Sydney's most iconic locations, and to showcase our craftsmanship and design expertise at a world-class level," Hrsto said.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134323 project_image_fid=6383]

The Walden has been introduced to the market at a time when demand for living in North Sydney is at an all-time high. Billions of dollars have been invested in infrastructure, including the recently opened Victoria Cross Metro station, located just 300 metres from The Walden, providing residents with direct access to the Sydney CBD in just minutes.

Private investment has also transformed the area through the arrival of new retail and dining destinations, elevating the lifestyle offering in what was once considered primarily a commercial precinct rather than an aspirational residential address.

The Walden is currently under construction and is scheduled for completion in 2028.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=134323]

ALAND records $35 million in sales in North Sydney as The Walden bucks quiet winter selling season

The long-awaited redevelopment of the former Eastlakes Shopping Centre site has reached a major milestone, with Conquest's plans for a new mixed-use precinct officially placed on public exhibition.

The State Significant Development Application would transform the 1.7-hectare site at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/19a-evans-avenue-eastlakes-nsw-2018">19A Evans Avenue</a> into one of Sydney's largest urban renewal projects, delivering 736 apartments above a new shopping centre anchored by Woolworths, alongside specialty retail, dining, commercial space and new public open spaces.

The public exhibition marks the next chapter for the project after <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/conquest">Conquest</a> acquired the stalled Stage Two development from Crown Group, who completed the first stage across the road prior to their voluntary liquidation.

<img alt="First look: Conquest unveils plans for 736-home Eastlakes Shopping Centre redevelopment" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="5fca22c5-d1ed-4e2c-8801-03f7df1eafc8" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/eastland%20podium.png?VersionId=uomwr41nF8CmLUZRDcu3mHQechlbxucS" />

&nbsp;

Designed by DKO Architecture, the proposal comprises four residential buildings ranging from 14 to 18 storeys above a two-level retail podium. The development would deliver 736 apartments, including 74 affordable homes, 215 Build-to-Rent apartments and 521 market residences. Provision has also been made for dual-key apartments, which could increase the total number of dwellings to 877.

At ground level, the shopping centre has been designed as the suburb's new meeting place, anchored by a full-line Woolworths and complemented by a curated mix of fresh food retailers, cafés, restaurants, health services and everyday convenience shopping. Generous pedestrian links and landscaped public spaces will connect the retail precinct through to Jack Mundey Reserve, creating a more walkable and connected neighbourhood.

Conquest CEO Michael Akkawi said the redevelopment was about far more than replacing a shopping centre.

"Eastlakes has been overlooked for too long, and this is the community’s moment. We are building a shopping centre and homes, a genuine heart for the suburb, and we genuinely want locals to help shape it."

"We enrich communities through the creation of homes, places, and experiences designed for life, built to last, and owner for generations. That starts with listening, so we warmly encourage everyone with a connection to Eastlakes to view the plans and share their thoughts."

<img alt="First look: Conquest unveils plans for 736-home Eastlakes Shopping Centre redevelopment" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="22f6fb20-54fb-4bd7-8a92-48fafdd00608" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/eastland.png?VersionId=cugp7s9hrMHGJJdYzkeAkrFoQgnF4GXf" />

DKO said the design had been shaped by the site's landscape setting and surrounding open space.

"Our vision for the site embraces its unique Bidjigal identity by blending the residential living with generous landscaping and a material palette inspired by the Bidjigal locality, and celebrating the panoramic views to Botany Bay and the wetlands reserves."

"Taking cues from Country, we seek to harmonise built form with the landscape and lightly touch the earth. By reconnecting, retaining and regenerating existing ecology, and weaving in natural elements, we can deepen our connection to Country."

The landscape strategy extends across the podium and rooftops, incorporating communal gardens, children's play areas, lawns, community gardens, family gathering spaces and extensive tree planting. New landscaped links will also strengthen the connection between the precinct and Jack Mundey Reserve, while publicly accessible open spaces have been integrated throughout the development.

The proposal builds on Conquest's broader placemaking strategy for the site. Through an ongoing partnership, local artist Joe Rashbrook has been appointed Urban Art Curator, working alongside young residents to transform the project's site hoardings into a public art gallery that allows the community to engage with the redevelopment before construction is complete.

Conquest has rapidly expanded its development pipeline since acquiring the Eastlakes site, with more than $6 billion worth of mixed-use projects now in planning across Sydney, including Stanmore, Castlecrag and Waterloo.

Conquest CEO Michael Akkawi said the redevelopment was about far more than replacing a shopping centre.

First look: ‘Far more than replacing a shopping centre’ as Conquest unveils 736-home Eastlakes redevelopment

Asset Management

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GUEST OBSERVATION
The Financial Services Royal Commission spent the last couple of weeks uncovering misconduct in the superannuation industry. But as we clean up superannuation we should also fix another deficiency – the need to provide life-long incomes for retirees.
A recent survey found a third of Australians over 80 had run out of money. The rest want reliable life-long incomes. Funnily enough, there are many projects that need funds and can produce cash flows for decades – infrastructure particularly.
Superannuation funds are increasingly making infrastructure investments themselves. What is needed is a way to link the long-term cash flows derived from physical assets straight through to pensioners.
Investment markets are currently too conflicted to do so.
The status quo
Companies, and even governments entering long term projects mainly use short-to-medium-term bank loans to fund their activities. These loans must be refinanced regularly.
For reasons that the Financial Systems Inquiry could not explain, companies often borrow overseas and so are subject not just to the risk of changing interest rates, but also to fluctuating foreign exchange rates.
To reduce these risks they may enter into sophisticated hedging programs, but this only serves to move risk elsewhere in the financial sector.
Banks, which provide short term finance for long term projects, suffer regular liquidity crises when depositors want to withdraw their money. An IMF report records 129 crises in the 40 years before 2010.
<img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/232240/original/file-20180816-2903-1ufngwx.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" alt="">
Banking crises.
At the same time, about 70% of superannuation benefits are taken as “account-based pensions” – regular income streams that the pensioners draw down to pay their expenses.
This money has been invested in thousands of investment options, all of which provide liquidity so that pensioners can sell assets at any time.
But if the money is taken as regular monthly income, all of this liquidity is unnecessary – the funds could have been invested in something that produces monthly cash flows.
The alternative
Consider, for instance, a large infrastructure project that will generate revenue over 50 years, increasing over time more or less in line with inflation.
One could design a financial instrument that paid investors a fixed proportion of that revenue. If the investors were superannuation funds, they could issue annuity contracts that paid out these cash flows to pensioners for life.
The borrowers would face lower risks, as their repayments move together with their revenue. Both borrowers and investors would be unaffected by changes to interest rates or the market value of investments.
Why hasn’t this already been done? It is not that the cash flows from long-term investments are insufficient. They currently exceed all private and public pensions.
These kinds of financial instruments are already used on a very small scale in Australia.
The major obstacle to their wider use seems to be that the financial sector feeds off the excess liquidity in the market. Banks make money by rolling over short-term loans. Investment managers, stockbrokers and exchanges make money by trading superannuation assets.
The whole sector operates under a paradigm where liquidity is paramount. So they fail to address the risks this presents to banks, economies and to retirees.
It is not that people do not like these “life annuities” when they are explained appropriately, but that their advisers and other experts active in the financial sector at best ignore them and at worst actively discourage them (by emphasising the “need” for liquidity).
The ongoing problems of the financial sector must surely make us ask whether it is fit for purpose? Or, at least, how well is it fulfilling its functions of allocating capital and managing risks?
We need appropriate pipes to ensure the cash generated by long-term assets flows through to fund pensioners. What we have instead is a flood of liquidity, which regularly buffets not only the financial sector but the entire economy.
The impetus to fund both long-term projects and life-long pensions must ultimately come from superannuation fund trustees. They appoint those who select assets and must set up the systems to ensure the cash flows are paid to pensioners.
To do this, they must first free themselves from the paradigm that liquidity is paramount. They then need to employ people and consultants whose loyalty is to the members and not the investment markets.
They will have to set up structures to be able to evaluate the soundness of new projects, and secondary markets to allow for trading as necessary. Government and regulators will have to permit funds to collaborate in this process.

Trustees will also need to take the lead and give members access to annuity products, and disinterested and expert advice as to when these are suitable.
Anthony Asher, Associate Professor, UNSW
This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/superannuation-trustees-should-find-long-term-assets-for-their-pensioners-101370" target="_blank">original article</a>.
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j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

Superannuation trustees should find long-term assets for their pensioners: Anthony Asher

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Global real estate investment manager TH Real Estate has appointed Rick Marston as head of asset management in Australia.
Marston will be responsible for asset management strategies and extracting value from real estate investments that TH Real Estate acquires on behalf of its Australian funds and private account clients.
He brings over 15 years’ experience working in senior positions across the real estate sector, including roles at Grosvenor Estates in London, Dexus and AMP Capital in Sydney, and most recently as associate director at Invesco Asset Management.
TH Real Estate, an affiliate of Nuveen, the investment manager of TIAA, is one of the largest real estate investment managers in the world with circa US$114 billion in assets under management globally.
In Australia, TH Real Estate’s core holdings include a half stake in 101 Miller Street and the Greenwood Plaza in North Sydney, as well as investments in Myer Bourke Street in Melbourne, and a 75% interest in Mount Ommaney Shopping Centre in Brisbane.
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TH Real Estate appoints Rick Marston to key role

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The Swiss AFIAA (Foundation for International Real Estate Investments) has broadened its interest in the Australian real estate market with an “asset swap”. 
The company has bought an office building in Melbourne’s <a href="https://www.realcommercial.com.au/property-offices-vic-melbourne-502382946" target="_blank">628 Bourke Street</a> (above) for its property portfolio for around $181 million. The seller is M&amp;G Real Estate Asia. 
In return, AFIAA has sold its “HQ South” office building at <a href="https://www.commercialrealestate.com.au/property/520-wickham-street-fortitude-valley-qld-4006-2013471731" target="_blank">520 Wickham Street</a> (Fortitude Valley) in Brisbane, which measures nearly 14,000 sqm, to the investor for $119 million. 
<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/2017/09/04/AFIAA_BrisbaneHQ.jpg" alt="">
The Melbourne property is in the CBD and offers around 23,400 sqm of office space and 940 sqm of retail space. Both the lift lobbies and individual floors have been renovated in recent months. One of the key tenants is the insurance company QBE.
AFIAA chief executive Ingo Bofinger said the group was planning further acquisitions in central metropolitan locations as part of its growth strategy. 
“The transaction is a prime example for the implementation of our focus strategy: We are investing the sale price received for HQ South of around AUD 119 million in a larger property in Melbourne, where we already have two more properties,” Bofinger said.
“We are eying further potential to increase rents in excellent locations in Melbourne in particular.” 
Potential properties also include real estate with development potential whose value added is to be enhanced by asset management using refurbishment measures.
In Australia, AFIAA also owns properties in Sydney in addition to two other properties in Melbourne’s CBD. 
AFIAA is an investment foundation under Swiss law that invests foreign real estate assets. Forty-five Swiss pension funds currently invest directly in prime foreign properties through AFIAA. The properties in Australia are centrally managed by the AFIAA office in Sydney. 
The legal consultant for the acquisition and sale was Mills Oakley. 
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jonathanchancellor-7SQnKwU6yx

Swiss AFIAA Foundation does an asset swap deal, buys in Melbourne, sells Brisbane HQ to realty investor 

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Altair Asset Management’s move to sell off its entire Australian portfolio of underlying shares in unit trusts citing an impending property market "calamity" and an "overvalued" equity market has been described as an over-reaction by industry executives.
Macquarie Group's former head of real estate business Bill Moss said it was overstated, while economist Saul Eslake was of the view that it was difficult to predict accurately period forecasts of collapses.
Altair’s chairman and investment officer Philip Parker said on Monday the fund had advised clients it would sell "hundreds of millions" of dollars of "underlying shares in the Altair unit trusts and then hand back the cash to those same investors". Interestingly, he has also been named a defendant in a court case brought in by his mother in an unrelated assets case involving his firm. 
“The main reason is in my opinion that there are just too many risks at present, and I cannot justify charging our clients fees when there are so many early warning lead indicators of clear and present danger in property and equity markets now,” he said. 
“I would like to make clear this is not a winding up of Altair, but a decision to hand back client monies out of equities which I deem to be far too risky at this point,” Parker said on livewiremarkets.com.
The risks he listed included the Australian East Coast ‘property bubble’ and its impending correction, China’s property and debt issues later this year, overvalued Australian markets and the unpredictable geo-political situation.
He also made it clear that Altair wasn’t being wound up, but the decision was to hand back client monies out of equities which were deemed “far too risky at this point”.
But Moss was of a different view.
"You could have said that [about China] a long time ago," Moss was cited by saying by Fairfax Media.
Australia's property was experiencing a "one-off adjustment" to yields and values because of "incredible demand" from Chinese investors, Moss said.
"I'm not convinced that it's over. From what I'm seeing, there is still a lot of strong interest from China. I would be looking for the real reason they [Altair] have pulled out," he added.
Meanwhile, Eslake said various hedge funds and economists had in the past predicted a property bust but that he had “always struggled to find credible the period forecasts that there is a collapse around the corner”. 
"Are Australian house prices and household debt high? Yes, of course they are and there are some risks that flow from that."
"But to be a 'calamity' .. you would need some things to occur that I can't see occurring anytime soon," he said.
Montgomery Asset Management funder Roger Montgomery, who knows Parker, told The Australian that his funds may not have had the flexibility to go completely to cash while continuing to manage the money, and he would not have taken the decision lightly.
“You have to give someone a lot of respect for doing that,” Montgomery said. “They are genuinely putting their clients’ interest before their own. They are not taking any fees from it.”
Amid all this, Parker is grabbing more eyeballs, with Fairfax Media reporting that he is one of the defendants named in an action stemming from claims brought by his elderly mother, Faye Mary Parker and F M Parker Pty Ltd.
Faye Mary Parker filed the suit against Attis Capital, its director David Reynolds, and Altair Assets and Pepsec, which is an entity linked to Philip Parker and Altair. 
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Altair Asset fund's total Australian selloff questioned by experts

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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/57114/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">
GUEST OBSERVER
It is received wisdom in the Australian superannuation industry that bigger is better. The theory goes that funds with more assets under management will benefit from economies of scale, because the costs of running a superannuation fund are largely fixed and do not change much, whether you are managing assets of A$500 million or $50 billion.
This means that funds which have more assets under management will spend proportionally less on administration and overheads. This will allow them to make more competitive returns and supposedly give them an edge in the marketplace. The endpoint of this reasoning is that a market’s conditions will be a “critical threshold” when it comes to size.
Any funds smaller than that threshold would be too inefficient and would eventually succumb to the larger and more efficient competition, being either absorbed into a larger fund (to restore economies of scale) or losing members attracted to greener pastures, as the bigger funds could charge lower fees per member.
<h2>But is this true for industry superannuation funds?</h2>
We decided to look into whether it was indeed the case that larger funds have an advantage in economies of scale over smaller funds. In particular, we were hoping to find signs of healthy competition in the superannuation marketplace, as competition helps assure us that the industry is appropriately serving the needs and demands of consumers. Such competition might take the form of strategic mergers between smaller funds, or attempts by larger funds to advertise their relative efficiency and lure away the members of the smaller funds.
Signs of healthy competition are especially important for the superannuation industry, as one of the largest sectors in the economy and a crucial part of our collective ability to finance our retirement. The review used data from industry funds, which disclose this information in annual reports. Retail (for profit) funds do not always disclose this information.
<h2>Comparing administrative efficiency</h2>
In order to work out whether super funds really do benefit from economies of scale, we looked at the largest and the smallest industry superannuation funds. In particular, we compared them based on the proportion of assets under management spent on administration costs each year. If the theory that “bigger is better” is correct, one would expect to find that larger funds spend a far lower proportion of their total assets on administration costs.
One would expect this difference to be especially prominent given the massive size discrepancy between industry superannuation funds: the largest, Australian Super, held over $90 billion in assets in 2015 compared to the smallest fund, Transport Super, with a relatively miniscule $114 million.
When comparing some of the top dogs to a handful of middle-sized industry funds, there seems to be no marked correlation between size and efficiency:
<a href="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/124413/width754/image-20160530-879-1jmptgw.png" target="_blank">Click to enlarge</a>
<h4>
<img src="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/124413/width754/image-20160530-879-1jmptgw.png" alt="">Source: Fund annual reports
</h4>
This is very surprising, as these funds do vary by quite a large margin of assets; the two mid-sized funds shown hold about $7 billion each, whereas the two large funds hold over $37 billion and $90 billion.
To further check these results we decided to compare a handful of the largest funds to the five smallest. At first glance, this comparison seems to confirm the “bigger is better” theory:
<a href="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/124414/width754/image-20160530-10041-3xm71g.png" target="_blank">Click to enlarge</a>
<h4>
<img src="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/124414/width754/image-20160530-10041-3xm71g.png" alt="">Source: Authors
</h4>
However, when we look past these averages at some of the individual funds (both the largest and the smallest), a much more interesting picture emerges: some of the tiniest funds (in solid lines) seem to be just as cost-effective as the very largest (the dashed lines).
<a href="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/124415/width754/image-20160530-864-pk9vqg.png" target="_blank">Click to enlarge</a>
<h4><img src="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/124415/width754/image-20160530-864-pk9vqg.png" alt=""></h4>
<h4>Source: Fund annual reports</h4>
<h2>A potentially embarrassing situation</h2>
These findings run in stark contrast to prevailing wisdom about the superannuation sector and indeed the classic economic theory of economies of scale. Not only do the biggest funds have no discernible efficiency advantage over the much smaller mid-sized funds, but there are some positively tiny funds which are just as efficient as some of the very largest.
What is going on here – is this merely some market aberration, or are some smaller funds putting up a heroic David-and-Goliath struggle against their competitors? The question for the big funds is why they have no efficiency advantage over their smallest competitors, and what steps they ought to be taking to rectify a potentially embarrassing situation which has been in place for many years.
<h2>Data</h2>
The data-set used for this article consisted of the financial information of the 14 largest and 5 smallest industry superannuation funds, as ranked by APRA’s statistical publications. The data as to the level of administrative expense came from the annual reports of the superannuation funds. An overview of the funds and the size of their assets is shown below.
<a href="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/124416/width754/image-20160530-903-21i56.png" target="_blank">Click to enlarge</a>
<h4><img src="https://62e528761d0685343e1c-f3d1b99a743ffa4142d9d7f1978d9686.ssl.cf2.rackcdn.com/files/124416/width754/image-20160530-903-21i56.png" alt=""></h4>
<h4>Source: Fund annual reports</h4>
Rob Nicholls is lecturer, UNSW Australia, and author for The Conversation. He can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/rob-nicholls-91073" target="_blank">here</a>.
This piece has been co-authored with Veevek Doolabh, a final year undergraduate law student at UNSW.
 
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