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.

Joel Robinson

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

Malaysian developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/s-p-setia">SP Setia</a> is the latest to jump into St Leonards booming Transport Oriented Development precinct.

The developer, which has previously delivered Sapphire by the Gardens apartment development in Melbourne, identified the Atchison Street site in 2023. It filed a Scoping Report around 12 months ago, and now has revealed the designs for the new&nbsp;40-storey mixed-use tower.

The State Significant Development Application covers <a href="https://next-portal.urban.com.au/projects/14650/summary">20-22 Atchison Street</a>, a 1,374 sqm site positioned between St Leonards Station and the new Crows Nest Metro station.

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cox-architecture">COX Architecture</a>, the project would deliver 181 apartments, above a four-storey commercial podium, five basement levels, and new public domain works along Mitchell Street. The apartment mix comprises 35 one-bedroom apartments, 39 one-bedroom-plus-study apartments, 85 two-bedroom apartments, and 22 three-bedroom residences.

The proposal has been lodged as a shop-top housing development under the NSW Government’s TOD planning pathway, which allows increased density around key transport infrastructure. The site sits within the recently rezoned Crows Nest Accelerated TOD Precinct.

<img alt="First look: SP Setia targets St Leonards skyline with 40-storey TOD tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b799673d-48e2-46b0-801a-0e33a9330100" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/atchinson%20site.png?VersionId=dPh0UfwfaHpbFL1R7H1cbZNbIW0CHbCC" />

SP Setia acquired the Atchison Street site as part of its continued expansion into the Australian apartment market. In comments made to City &amp; Country (The Edge Malaysia) in 2023, SP Setia President and CEO Datuk Choong Kai Wai described the acquisition as “a strategic move” aligned with the group’s post-pandemic market recovery strategy.

“Our target for this exceptional development is local and overseas buyers, including first-home buyers, downsizers and investors,” Choong said.

The tower has been designed as a slender vertical form rising from a mixed-use podium, with COX Architecture positioning the development as a response to the evolving St Leonards and Crows Nest skyline.

“The purpose of the project is to facilitate the delivery of high-quality housing at a strategically located site and deliver a built tower outcome that is consistent with the desired future character of St Leonards and aligns with the TOD controls,” the design report stated.

<img alt="First look: SP Setia targets St Leonards skyline with 40-storey TOD tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b1a85eee-76f7-436c-a6da-73ba827b9b13" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/atchinson%20entry.png?VersionId=dA9jHGPMcm.dDbwk4QfxqWiY5bfh3UVt" />

The podium would incorporate retail uses fronting Atchison Street, commercial tenancies, landscaped communal areas, and pedestrian improvements along Mitchell Street. Vehicle access and loading would be consolidated via Atchison Lane.

Residents would have access to more than 665 sqm of communal indoor and outdoor spaces, while the development proposes 96 parking spaces across five basement levels.

The proposal also includes a commitment for 10 per cent of residential floor space to be allocated toward affordable housing through a monetary contribution.

COX said the tower form responds directly to the emerging high-density character of the precinct while seeking to maximise solar access, cross ventilation, and outlook from apartments.

<img alt="First look: SP Setia targets St Leonards skyline with 40-storey TOD tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="2163f85c-f63b-4be3-aafa-f8763976cec5" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Article%20Feature%20Image%20%28Grid%29_5.png?VersionId=WiAmtIKJ6.ZQ41EtYEQ1fol7AeorKBlL" />

“The building is orientated towards north,” the Apartment Design Guide compliance report noted, adding that the tower’s slim form was driven by the constrained inner-urban site dimensions.

The design also incorporates landscaped setbacks and communal open space at podium level, intended to soften the interface with surrounding streets and improve pedestrian amenity.

The project adds to a growing wave of redevelopment proposals reshaping St Leonards and Crows Nest following the opening of the Sydney Metro City line and the NSW Government’s push for higher-density housing around major transport nodes.

Last week Stockland filed plans just down the road. They want to build a <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/601-pacific-highway-st-leonards-nsw-2065">52-storey tower on Pacific Highway</a>.

Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/nsw/first-look-stockland-plans-52-storey-538-apartment-st-leonards-tower">First look: Stockland plans 52-storey, 538-apartment St Leonards tower&nbsp;</a>

First look: SP Setia targets St Leonards skyline with 40-storey TOD tower

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/urban-property-group">Urban Property Group</a> has revealed plans for a new mixed-use tower at 10 Dangar Street, Wickham, advancing a proposal that would reshape the southern gateway to Newcastle’s city centre with one of the city’s tallest residential buildings.

The State Significant Development proposal, now on exhibition, seeks approval for a <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/bowline-10-dangar-street-wickham-nsw-2293">43-storey tower</a> immediately adjacent to the Newcastle Interchange. The project would deliver around 200 apartments, including 42 affordable housing dwellings, alongside 99 co-living units, a 171-room hotel, retail space, and new public domain integrated through the site.

The scheme marks a significant escalation of plans previously approved for the site. Urban Property Group took over the prominent 2,904 sqm parcel, where excavation and demolition had already commenced under an earlier consent for a 14-storey mixed-use development.

<img alt="First look: Urban Property Group unveils Newcastle’s next supertower at Wickham interchange" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="58a96dd9-407f-4d20-86b4-94e4bfeef74b" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/wickham%20podium.png?VersionId=LGlf08pdFGAZDzvx_CXC4XakHNZRuEE0" />

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/sjb-architects">SJB</a>, the tower has been conceived as a landmark transit-oriented development anchored to the Newcastle Interchange precinct. The proposal includes 245 build-to-sell apartments across a mix of one, two, and three-bedroom residences, as well as two penthouses. Fifteen apartments and one operational unit are earmarked for NDIS housing. The co-living component would add a further 99 units, while the podium would accommodate retail uses and hotel facilities.

SJB said the site presents “a valuable opportunity to anchor the precinct by setting the standard for design, active ground planes and character at the key southern gateway.”

The architecture responds directly to the site’s position beside major transport infrastructure and within one of Newcastle’s fastest-evolving urban renewal precincts. The tower form sits above a sculpted podium designed to frame new public spaces, including a through-site pedestrian link connecting Station Street to Hannell Street, landscaped plazas, and activated retail edges.

<img alt="First look: Urban Property Group unveils Newcastle’s next supertower at Wickham interchange" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="a7bd6ff0-f7db-4ce8-a6dc-ea56e72c6149" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/wickham%20lanne.png?VersionId=xzf39VADyhj7zBQY2I9fx9vI62u2tuSb" />

The design report describes the project as part of the broader transition of Wickham into “a vibrant, high-quality mixed-use urban precinct” that leverages proximity to the station, open space, and regional connectivity.

A detailed public art strategy has also been prepared for the development. The strategy positions the project as “a transit-oriented development of state significance at the gateway to Newcastle’s city centre” and outlines a series of integrated artworks responding to Newcastle’s industrial and transport heritage.

Creative Road’s curatorial framework for the project, titled Unveil, draws on “stratified surfaces, carved volumes, and light-filled apertures” while referencing Newcastle’s transformation from an industrial city into a contemporary education and technology hub.

<img alt="First look: Urban Property Group unveils Newcastle’s next supertower at Wickham interchange" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="77a882bb-14b1-4d28-99ff-9438e39508c0" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/wickham%20site.png?VersionId=cevgo_vN0eKPK78P8YcEu3mKPLkpFqE7" />

The proposal is being advanced through the NSW Housing Delivery Authority pathway after being declared State Significant Development in June 2025. The accompanying scoping report states the development aims to “maximise the site’s proximity to the Newcastle Interchange by delivering transit-oriented development” while increasing housing supply and affordable housing provision within the Newcastle LGA.

Urban Property Group’s plans align with the long-term strategic vision established under the Wickham Master Plan, which identified the interchange precinct as suitable for substantial uplift in height and density. The current proposal would significantly intensify that vision, positioning the tower among the tallest developments proposed for Newcastle.

The site sits immediately north of the Newcastle Interchange, bounded by Dangar Street, Hannell Street, and Charles Street. It is surrounded by a rapidly growing cluster of residential towers and mixed-use projects that have emerged following the completion of the light rail and transport interchange.

First look: Urban Property Group unveils Newcastle’s latest tower at Wickham interchange

Bottega House has completed settlement of a landmark riverfront site in Macquarie Street, St Lucia, representing its first major Brisbane development.&nbsp;

Positioned on the banks of the Brisbane River, the <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/180-macquarie-street-st-lucia-qld-4067">premium site at 180 Macquarie Street</a> features uninterrupted river frontage in one of Brisbane’s most tightly held residential precincts.&nbsp;

The proposed development, currently under assessment with Brisbane City Council, has been designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/plus-studio">Plus Studio</a> with interiors by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/interior-designers/mim-design">Mim Design</a> and will deliver a boutique collection of premium residences positioned specifically for owner occupiers and downsizers.&nbsp;

The residences are set to redefine luxury apartment living in the area, with a focus on architectural quality, refined finishes, landscape integration and elevated amenities including curated wellness facilities, resort-style pools and recreation spaces rarely seen in the local market.&nbsp;

Exclusive sales for the project will be led by Keenan &amp; Byrne, ahead of an anticipated launch later this year.&nbsp;

Bottega House Managing Director Nick Malloch said the project reflects the group’s ambition to deliver a highly curated residential offering within one of Brisbane’s most tightly held precincts.&nbsp;

“This is an incredibly rare riverfront opportunity and one we have approached with a long-term perspective,” Malloch said.&nbsp;

“Our vision from the outset was to create a boutique collection of residences that feel more like private homes than traditional apartments, with generous proportions, refined finishes and exceptional amenity throughout."

Malloch says there is a&nbsp;lack of premium owner-occupier stock of this quality in the market, particularly for downsizers wanting space, privacy and a true lifestyle offering without compromise.&nbsp;

"Demand is expected to be strong given the scarcity of premium riverfront opportunities of this nature within Brisbane’s inner-west."&nbsp;

Bottega House secures landmark riverfront site in St Lucia 

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The arrival of the first piling rig officially marks the commencement of construction at SIERA’s new beachside apartment development, Exhale, in Northcliffe.

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/exhale-surfers-paradise-8-enderley-avenue-surfers-paradise-qld-4217">Exhale</a>, a glass-encased tower featuring 54 large-scale apartments at 8 Enderley Avenue, is SIERA’s third Gold Coast development. It follows the recently completed PIPIS Bilinga beachfront project, which achieved suburb-record prices, and the soon-to-be-completed Chevron Island development, Tapestry.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=112661 project_image_fid=359603]

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/siera">SIERA</a> Founder and Managing Director Brent Thompson said the arrival of the piling rig represented a significant milestone for the development, which is scheduled for completion in late 2028.

Over the next month, around 260 piles are expected to be installed as work progresses on the basement structure. The building is anticipated to rise above ground level early next year, before unveiling its sculptural glass curtain wall, developed in collaboration with specialist façade engineers.

“The façade was designed to maximise panoramic coastal views while creating a distinctive architectural identity,” Thompson said.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=112661 project_image_fid=355935]

Designed by BDA Architecture, Exhale will comprise just 54 two- and three-bedroom residences across 26 levels, a level of low-density living rarely delivered in this beachside pocket between Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach.

The project has been conceived as a resident-only building, with no short-stay accommodation permitted. SIERA says the model is intended to appeal to long-term owner-occupiers rather than transient holiday demand.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=112661 project_image_fid=361052]

Residences have been designed with large-format layouts and expansive glazing, with most apartments featuring more than 30 metres of glass frontage to maximise natural light and ocean views.

The amenity offering spans two levels and centres on wellness and lifestyle, including a heated magnesium pool, sauna, yoga and Pilates studio, gymnasium, private dining facilities, cinema lounge, and dedicated surfcraft storage.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=112661 project_image_fid=359607]

More than half of the apartments have already sold. SIERA has also opened a sales gallery for Exhale at its Chevron Island commercial premises, near its Tapestry tower and the site of its second Chevron Island apartment development, which is slated to launch in early 2027.
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[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=112661]

SIERA kicks off construction at Northcliffe tower Exhale

Dwelling Values

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<h2 class="mt0">According to the CoreLogic RP Data Home Value Index, dwelling values were absolutely flat across the combined capitals during December, with negative movements in Sydney, Adelaide and Canberra being offset by a rise in dwelling values across the remaining five capital cities.</h2>
The Sydney housing market was the main drag on the December results, with dwelling values down 1.2%, while values were down 1.5% in Adelaide and 1.1% in Canberra. The remaining capitals saw a rise in dwelling values, led by a 2.3% bounce in Perth values and a 1.0% rise in Melbourne values over the month.
<h2 class="mt0">Index results as at December 31, 2015</h2>
<div>
<img src="https://corelogic.com.au/contentAsset/raw-data/1fa07848-c6e4-4690-9274-f824244c11d9/fileAsset" alt="2016-01-04--Dec_Index" width="569" height="271">
After dwelling values had been broadly rising since June 2012, the December quarter results revealed a 1.4% fall in dwelling values across the combined capitals, the largest quarter on quarter fall since December 2011.
Six of the eight capital cities recorded a negative result over the December quarter, with weaker conditions in Sydney and Melbourne acting as the greatest drag on capital city performance. 
<a href="/images/2016/01/13/Screen%20Shot%202016-01-13%20at%2010.32.33%20AM.png" target="_blank">Click to enlarge</a>
<img src="/images/2016/01/13/Screen%20Shot%202016-01-13%20at%2010.32.33%20AM.png" alt="">
The largest quarterly fall was recorded in Sydney, where dwelling values were down 2.3% over the final three months of the year, followed by Melbourne, where dwelling values were 1.9% lower. The only capital cities to show a rise in dwelling values over the December quarter were Brisbane (+1.3%) and Adelaide (+0.6%).
This was in contrast to the first three quarters of 2015, where capital city dwelling values rose by 9.3%, largely driven by a 14.1% surge in Sydney values and a 13.3% increase in Melbourne. 
In stark contrast, the final quarter of 2015 showed Sydney as the weakest performer of any capital city, with dwelling values down by -2.3% while Melbourne recorded the second weakest result of -1.9%.
<a href="/images/2016/01/13/Screen%20Shot%202016-01-13%20at%2010.33.28%20AM.png" target="_blank">Click to enlarge</a>
<img src="/images/2016/01/13/Screen%20Shot%202016-01-13%20at%2010.33.28%20AM.png" alt="">
The complete 2015 calendar year results reveal a 7.8% increase in capital city dwelling values which is the lowest rate of capital gain over a calendar year since 2012 when values slipped 0.4% lower over the full year.
Highlighting the diversity in the capital city housing markets, dwelling values fell across four of the eight capitals in the 2015 calendar year. The largest of these falls were recorded in Perth, down by 3.7%, and Darwin down by 3.6%. Hobart and Adelaide also showed subtle falls of 0.7% and 0.1%. 
Despite the recent weakening of housing market conditions in Sydney and Melbourne, the two largest capital city housing markets still recorded much stronger annual gains than all other capital cities,  11.5% in Sydney and 11.2% in Melbourne. Dwelling values in Brisbane and Canberra were up a more sustainable 4.1% over the year.
The wealth created from housing in Sydney and Melbourne has been exceptional over the past twelve months.
In dollar terms, Sydney home owners have seen approximately $82,000 added to their wealth thanks to the strong capital gains over the year while home owners in Melbourne have seen the value of their dwelling grow by approximately $60,400. Brisbane home owners are $18,560 better off while Canberra owners have seen the value of their homes increase by approximately $21,900.
Home owners in the remaining capital cities have seen some erosion of their wealth via falls in the value of their dwelling. The largest losses have occurred in Perth where the average dwelling is now worth approximately $19,970 less than it was 12 months ago, while Darwin home owners have seen the value of their home shrink by a similar $18,150.
The annual decline has been milder in Adelaide and Hobart, however dwelling values are still $515 lower in Adelaide over the year and down $2,430 in Hobart.
The slowdown in housing market conditions across Sydney and Melbourne in the last half of 2015 is being driven by a range of factors that can best be described as both organic and externally influenced.
<a href="/images/2016/01/13/Screen%20Shot%202016-01-13%20at%2010.34.56%20AM.png" target="_blank">Click to enlarge</a>
<img src="/images/2016/01/13/Screen%20Shot%202016-01-13%20at%2010.34.56%20AM.png" alt="">
Organic market conditions have been derived from affordability pressures, rental yield compression and cyclical factors, while factors from external influences largely stem from a change in the regulatory framework introduced by APRA which has made it more expensive and difficult for investors to access housing finance. Added to this is higher mortgage rates and more restrictive credit policies and loan servicing requirements.
 
Tim Lawless is head of the CoreLogic RP Data research and analytics team and can be contacted <a href="https://blog.corelogic.com.au/author/timlawless/" target="_blank">here</a>.
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tlawless-5VLUrbAk9s

Capital gains stall in the final month of the year: Tim Lawless

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GUEST OBSERVER
At the National Housing Conference last week, there was considerable optimism about the newly appointed federal minister for cities, Jamie Briggs, whose infrastructure mandate includes housing.
New energy is coming from the states with the largest affordable housing deficits – a social housing initiative from the New South Wales government and a “refreshed” metropolitan planning strategy in Melbourne with a stronger emphasis on affordable housing.
It is now possible to imagine Australia having a national affordable housing strategy, backed by funding, by the end of 2016.
Australia certainly needs such a strategy. The population is projected to reach 38 million in the next 35 years. Sydney and Melbourne are each expected to grow by at least three million people. The proportion of older people will be higher, with a lower proportion in the paid workforce.
This means we need at least six million new housing units in the next three decades. There is increasing impetus to locate these dwellings close to public transport, employment clusters and health and social services.
<h2>Cost pressures are intensifying</h2>
Rising housing demand and prices affect everyone, but low-income renters have fared worst in recent years. Capital city rents rose by twice the level of inflation from 2005 to 2010. By 2011, the shortage of suitable rental properties exceeded 500,000.
As a result, even most households that receive Commonwealth Rent Assistance (projected to cost A$6.6 billion in 2015-16) pay well over the recommended maximum rent. Some 55% of the A$7.7 billion annual cost to the government of capital gains exemptions and negative gearing goes to the top 10% of income earners. Only 4% goes to the bottom 20% of households by income.
Existing programs are not accomplishing policy aims. The Abbott government discontinued two small national programs, the Social Housing Initiative co-funding construction of non-profit housing and the National Rental Affordability Scheme subsidising below-market rental housing. No national strategy or infrastructure funding program has replaced those small but important initiatives.
<h2>Key steps towards affordability</h2>
What would be the basic elements of a national affordable housing strategy? Economist David Rosen led a review of the US$7 trillion spent in the US on federal finance, tax, lending, spending and regulatory programs and policies. According to Rosen, the place to start is a standard definition of “affordable housing”.
The next step would be to calculate current and projected need for affordable housing by subtracting housing need from the available stock. There are local efforts to calculate this in cities like Melbourne, but it would need to be done in a consistent way across the country.
The cost of owning or renting a home includes rent or mortgage payments, property taxes and unit maintenance. A household can also incur onerous transport costs, if living far from employment and good public transport. Internationally, affordability is usually defined as housing that costs no more than 30-35% of household income, adjusted for household size.
For households earning less than 30% of their area’s median income, private market housing will almost certainly be out of reach without some form of subsidy.
In metropolitan Melbourne, for instance, the average weekly income is A$1333. A little over 11% of households in the city (159,000 households) earn less than A$400 a week, which is 30% of the median income. These households could only afford to pay a maximum of A$133 a week on the rent or mortgage. Less than 1% of rentals in Melbourne are available at those prices.
Social housing constitutes less than 3% of total housing stock. Most of it is occupied by these low-income households. So, at the most basic level, affordable housing would seek to fill that shortfall of more than 150,000 units in one major city alone, as well as building for future affordable housing needs.
<h2>How do we fund affordable housing?</h2>
After calculating need, the next requirement for a national affordable housing strategy would be to identify all potential revenue sources to fund it. These could be direct funding from national, state and local governments, but also indirect funding through tax rebates, low- or no-cost land, or mechanisms like reduced parking requirements or expedited planning approvals (which cuts land-holding costs and uncertainties).
A plethora of mechanisms used in other countries could be adopted here. For instance, in the US the Low Income Housing Tax Credit has, since 1986, allowed private investors to obtain tax credits in return for a ten-year investment in constructing or rehabilitating low-income rental housing. The stable and bipartisan program injects about US$6 billion a year in capital into affordable housing.
If a small proportion of the negative gearing tax credit were re-allocated towards investment in social housing, a similarly scaled program could be instituted in Australia. Similarly, if the Commonwealth guaranteed a 6% return on social housing investment, how much of the A$2 trillionheld in superannuation funds could be unlocked?
For the past two years, the Transforming Housing project has brought together state and local government, private developers, community housing providers and commercial and philanthropic investors to identify barriers to scaling up affordable housing in metropolitan Melbourne and how to overcome them.
Much of the emphasis has been on mechanisms at a state and local level, ranging from value capture financing to innovative design and construction. However, there is growing consensus that a Commonwealth affordable housing strategy is essential to enable integrated action by other levels of government and the private and charitable sectors.
With a clear sense of the numbers around affordable housing need and a stable financing and renewal model, the Turnbull government could reap multiple co-benefits. A national strategy could make cities more liveable, stimulate the property and construction sector, and reduce healthcare costs. The private and charitable sectors are waiting to swing into action.
 
Carolyn Whitzman is professor of Urban Planning, University of Melbourne and author for The Conversation. She can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/carolyn-whitzman-9944" target="_blank">here</a>.
This article was co-authored by: Dr David Rosen, principal of DRA Associates and an advisor on development, finance and policy; Rob Pradolin, general manager of business development for Frasers Property Australia; Catherine Brown, CEO of the Lord Mayor’s Charitable Foundation; and Dr Heather Holst, deputy CEO and director of services and housing for Launch Housing.
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mick.cee-iDmgDDAmu8

A national affordable housing strategy: necessary, attainable and maybe on its way

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Australia has set itself up for a classic property crash - and potentially take the economy with it - if our luck doesn't hold, the expatriate Professor Steve Keen has forecast.
Chinese buyers had given Australia's debt-booze-addled gamblers a possible out.
"Australians are now gambling on whether the fallout from China's crash will prick their own bubble, or inflate it once more," he suggested.
"In everywhere but Australia, I'm famous for predicting the 2008 crash," the UK based former Sydney professor told his recent Irish audience ahead of a conference next month.
"In Australia, I'm famous for being wrong about house prices - they rose after the crash, when I expected them to fall."
He says he partly got the cause right, but the direction of the cause wrong with his 2008 forecast.
"As the Irish know only too well, what really causes house prices to rise rapidly is too much mortgage debt, rising too quickly.
"House prices exploded here in the "Celtic Tiger" days, only to collapse when the mortgage bubble burst - bringing the economy down with it," <a href="https://www.independent.ie/world-news/asia-pacific/listen-is-that-the-sound-of-a-bubble-bursting-down-under-34137299" target="_blank">he wrote in the Irish Independent</a>.
Keen wrote that Australians avoided the nasty hangover "by the classic Antipodean method: they went for the 'Hair of the Dog' cure.
"Whereas the rest of the world unwound its mortgage debt, Australians piled into it - first in 2008 when the government turbocharged the market by doubling the grant it gave to first-home buyers, and then since 2012 when falling interest rates encouraged Baby Boomers to throw their so-called retirement savings into the housing market casino.
he said the Australian hangover cure worked, but at the expense of mortgaging Australia to the hilt.
When the crisis hit in 2008, Australian mortgage debt was already higher than in the USA: mortgage debt peaked at 72pc of GDP in America then, but Australia's level was 10pc higher again.
"Today, mortgage debt in the USA has fallen to 53pc of GDP-what wimps!
"The hard-drinking Australians now have a mortgage debt level of 91pc of GDP and rising."
"As any fan of the 'Hair of the Dog' cure knows, it only works if you keep drinking.
"So can Australians maintain their record for insobriety and keep imbibing from the Bar of the Banks?
Left to their own devices, I have little doubt that my ex-countrymen could keep knocking back the 4X of mortgage debt forever.
But as 'Hair of the Dog' devotees also know, one danger of this cure is that the bartender will eventually refuse to serve you.
"And that seems to be happening in Australia now ....with the policeman (the "Australian Prudential Regulation Authority") finally awoken from his slumber, and is now insisting on less alcohol in the brew-otherwise known as a lower loan to valuation ratio.
Kenn says these moves seem to be have blown the froth off the Australian market.
In the boom days, more than 80pc of properties were sold at auction, and frequently for well over their reserves.
Steve Keen noted the auction clearance rate appears to be heading further south.
"Prices are still rising, but the rate of price increase has slowed. 
As fans of rugby will appreciate, Australians can win on luck as well as talent.
"But it's only luck now that is keeping Australia from tasting the bitter brew that Ireland was forced to sip when the myth of the Celtic Tiger was exposed as a debt-drunkard's delusion.
"Australia has set itself up for a classic "Marsupial Tiger" crash.
"As the growth rate of mortgage debt slows, the market will come down and potentially take the economy with it.
"But Australians are relying on their other secret weapon: luck.
"Chinese buying of Australian real estate-partly as insurance against things going bad in China, partly to buy blue skies, which can't be bought in China for love nor money - has given Australia's debt-booze-addled gamblers a possible way to walk away from it all and appear sober rather than sozzled.
"However, China itself is going through its own property market crash, and there's no external force that will rescue its speculators from that fate.
"So Australians are now gambling on whether the fallout from China's crash will prick their own bubble, or inflate it once more."
Professor Steve Keen is just one of the many big names from the world of economics appearing at <a href="https://www.kilkenomics.com/" target="_blank">Kilkenomics</a>, called Davos with jokes, in two weeks' time.
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jchancellor-FAypfDUnLy

Australia faces property crash - taking the economy with it - if luck doesn't hold, Professor Steve Keen

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The only capital city where rental yields aren’t being compressed is Hobart, according to CoreLogic RP Data.
Weekly rents in Hobart are rising at a faster pace than dwelling values which are down slightly over the past year.
Hobart is now showing the second highest yield profile across the capital cities after Darwin.
"In fact, it may not be long before Hobart overtakes Darwin as the highest yielding capital, considering the pace of rental falls across the Darwin market place," Tim Lawless recently suggested.
Property Observer went looking for rentals in Hobart and found a mix of units and houses in the range $152 to $850 per week.
For units, the lowest came in at $152 per week, while the highest was $850.
1. This neat one-bedroom unit at <a href="https://www.realestateview.com.au/rental-properties/49a-emmaline-court-rokeby/Property-Details-rent-residential-9657980" target="_blank">49A Emmaline Court, Rokeby</a> is to be rented out for $152 per week. The listing is by Danica Reeves of Ray White and the unit is available from October 28.
2. This three-bedroom fully furnished apartment at <a href="https://www.realestateview.com.au/rental-properties/5b-117-collins-street-hobart/Property-Details-rent-residential-9687466" target="_blank">5B/117 Collins Street</a> is out for rent for $850 per week. The listing agent is Jan Nielsen of Salamanca Realty.
Among houses, the lowest rental was $250 per week and the highest $650.
1. This three-bedroom home with a garage at <a href="https://www.realestateview.com.au/rental-properties/1-newton-place-bridgewater/Property-Details-rent-residential-9541772" target="_blank">1 Newton Place, Bridgewater</a> is available for $250 per week. Amanda Harvey of LJ Hooker is the listing agent. 
2. At the higher end, this four-bedroom house sitting on the corner of Barrack and Melville Streets at <a href="https://www.realestateview.com.au/rental-properties/2-76-barrack-street-west-hobart/Property-Details-rent-residential-9706860" target="_blank">2/76 Barrack Street, West Hobart</a> has views of the city and River Derwent. It is to be rented out for $650 per week through Carol Bogun of Falls Real Estate.
 
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j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

Hobart house rentals rising faster than any other capital city: What investors will yield

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Gosford vendors lost $6 million plus in recent property resales, with Warringah district ranking next as Sydney's biggest loss making locations, according to the recent CoreLogic RP Data Pain &amp; Gain report.
Only 2.0% of homes resold in Sydney over the second quarter of 2015 sold at a loss, down from 2.4% over the first quarter and also lower than a year earlier (2.7%).
The Burwood, Hunters Hill, Willoughby and Wollondilly council areas each recorded no resales at a loss over the quarter.
The Mosman (7.5%), Gosford (4.1%) and Pittwater (4.0%) council areas each recorded the highest proportions of loss-making resales throughout Sydney over the quarter. 
The median loss in Mosman was $67,000.
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Gosford tops loss taking, with Warringah, Pittwater and Mosman troubled: CoreLogic RP Data Pain & Gain report

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Dwelling values across Sydney are up by a 'healthy' 4.6% over September quarter while figures remain flat over the month, according to CoreLogic RP Data.
In the October Housing Market Update video, CoreLogic RP Data research director Tim Lawless said Melbourne's strong clearance rates are helping it to overtake Sydney as the nation's best performer.
Watch the update <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://vimeo.com/141744155" target="_blank">here</a>.
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jonathanchancellor-7SQnKwU6yx

Dwelling values across Sydney up by 'healthy' 4.6%: CoreLogic RP Data

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Capital city dwelling values increased by 0.9% over the first month of Spring, according to CoreLogic RP Data head of research Tim Lawless.
In the latest national housing market update he says the quarterly rate of growth is 4.0% and annual rate of growth at 11.0%.
Watch the video <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fq_OnQKCpLs" target="_blank">here</a>.
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Capital city dwelling values increase by a healthy 0.9%: CoreLogic RP Data

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GUEST OBSERVER
Across the nation home prices are starting to look healthier with the gains more wide spread across the states, rather than being just Sydney or Melbourne based. In fact Sydney prices only lifted by 0.1% while capital city home prices rose by a much more robust 0.9%. Even more encouraging five of the eight capital cities recorded growth.
In fact if you take out the capital cities and look at the “Rest of State” index, home prices lifted by 0.6%. Granted it is still early days for the regional cities with home prices up just 2.8% over the past year, but the signs are more encouraging. We would expect to see the lift in capital city house prices eventually filters out across the regional towns over the next 12-24 months. Strength in home prices across the nation will be more supportive of a lift in activity levels over the medium term.
Sydney house prices are up almost 17 per cent on a year ago with total returns lifting by a staggering 21 per cent over the past year. Although in the Sydney housing market there are signs that price growth will be more circumspect going forward. The tighter lending policies being adopted by the banks, coupled with new housing supply should ensure much more sedate property price growth. 
The manufacturing sector expanded for the third consecutive month. Clearly a function of the lower Australian dollar.
The job market continues to improve with job vacancies at the highest levels in almost three-year highs. With population growth slower than in past years, unemployment has more chance of falling over the coming year.
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What do the figures show?
Home prices
The CoreLogic RP Data Hedonic Australian Home Value index of capital city home prices rose by 0.9 per cent in September to stand 11 per cent higher than a year ago.
House prices rose by 0.9 per cent in September while apartments rose by 0.6 per cent. House prices were up 11.6 per cent on a year ago and apartments were up by 7.3 per cent.
The average Australian capital city house price (median price based on settled sales over quarter) was $613,000 and the average unit price was $515,000. The average Sydney house price was $920,000 – still well short of a $1 million. 
Dwelling prices rose in five of the eight capital cities in September: Melbourne (up 2.4 per cent), Brisbane (up 1.4 per cent), Canberra (up 1.0 per cent), Perth (up 0.5 per cent) and Sydney (up 0.1 per cent). Prices fell in, Hobart (down 1.9 per cent), Adelaide (down 1.2 per cent), and Darwin (down 0.3 per cent).
Home prices were higher than a year ago in four of the eight capital cities. Prices rose most in Sydney (up 16.7 per cent), followed by Melbourne (up 14.2 per cent), Brisbane (up 4.6 per cent), and Canberra (up 0.6 per cent). Price fell in Darwin (down 3.9 per cent), Perth (down 0.9 per cent) Adelaide (down 0.3 per cent), and Hobart (down 0.2 per cent).
Total returns on capital city dwellings in the year to August rose by 14.4 per cent with houses up 14.7 per cent on a year earlier and units up 12.3 per cent.
Job vacancies:
Job vacancies rose by 2.7 per cent to 160,900 in seasonally adjusted terms in the three months to August. It was the highest number of vacancies in almost 3 years (since November 2012).
Over the year vacancies lifted 18.6 per cent in Victoria in original terms over the year but fell 34.2 per cent in Northern Territory and fell by 11.3 per cent Western Australia. Over the past year, job vacancies rose by 15,100 or 10.2 per cent in original terms.
Over the past year, vacancies rose the most in Administrative and Support Services and Accommodation, Cafes and Restaurants (both up 5,100). Vacancies fell most in Manufacturing (down 3,300), Mining and Transport and storage (both down 1,000) and Communication services (down 1,000).
Performance of Manufacturing
The Performance of Manufacturing index rose by 0.4 points to 52.1 in September. A reading above 50.0 indicates that the sector is expanding. Production, orders, exports, sales, and capacity use rose in September but employment, selling prices eased, while wages fell. 
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<div class="column">What is the importance of the economic data?</div>
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The CoreLogic RP Data Hedonic Australian Home Value Index is based on Australia’s biggest property database. Unlike the ABS Index, which excludes terraces, semi-detached homes and apartments, the CoreLogic- RP Data Hedonic Index includes all properties. Home prices are an important driver of wealth and spending. The Australian Bureau of Statistics releases Job Vacancies data each quarter. The data is useful in gauging the strength of the job marketThe Australian Industry Group and PricewaterhouseCoopers compile the Performance of Manufacturing Index (PMI) each month. The Australian PMI is the Australian equivalent of the US ISM manufacturing gauge. The PMI is one of the timeliest economic indicators released in Australia. The PMI is useful not just in showing how the manufacturing sector is performing but in providing some sense about where it is heading. The key ‘forward looking’ components are orders and employment.
What are the implications for interest rates and investors?
The Reserve Bank won’t be lifting or cutting interest rates any time soon. A couple more months of sedate growth in Sydney home prices will be welcomed by policymakers – there is just no fundamental reason to change interest rate settings at present.
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 The ongoing lift in job vacancies is certainly encouraging – supporting household confidence and spending.
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<div class="column">CommSec expects interest rate settings to remain unchanged over 2015 and 2016. </div>
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<div class="column">Savanth Sebastian is an economist for <a href="https://www.commsec.com.au" target="_blank">CommSec</a></div>
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Healthy home prices: CommSec's Savanth Sebastian

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Gold Coast dwelling prices have been tipped to perform next year with new data from SQM Research predicting a rise of between 7% to 11% due to a number of factors including a strong tourism dollar, low rental vacancy rates and high rental yields.
Managing director of SQM Research, Louis Christopher, said they lifted their investment rating for the Gold Coast from 3.0 stars issued in 2011 to 3.75 stars.
“Back in 2010 the Gold Coast housing market suffered a perfect storm of events that created a major dwelling price crash," he said.
"A lot of those events have now dissipated and right now, there are many favourable economic factors which are helping to improve the region.
"So we believe Gold Coast property investors are likely to enjoy good returns, both in rents and capital growth for up to the next three years.”
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Gold Coast tipped to perform in 2016: SQM Research

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Momentum in the economy is stretching across the non-mining economy beyond the dwelling sector, according to National Australia Bank group chief economist Alan Oster.
In the latest Bigger Picture – A Global &amp; Australian Economic Perspective report he said household consumption growth is expected to remain below trend and is reliant on a decline in the household savings ratio which is vulnerable at present to weak consumer confidence.
"Against that, there is increasing evidence that growth momentum is broadening across the non-mining economy – not limited to the dwelling sector – in response to the lower AUD and interest rates, with improvement particularly evident in services sectors," he said.
"Residential markets remain strong, with dwelling prices continuing to grow more than 10% over the year to August. 
"Surprisingly, dwelling investment surprisingly fell by 1.9% in Q2 despite strength in building approvals and a very elevated stock of residential projects in the construction pipeline. While this did follow growth of over 6% in each of the two preceding quarters, this weakness is likely only temporary given record levels of work to be done. "
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