<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/draycon">Draycon Building</a> is nearing completion of Boutique Chevron Island, a 42-apartment development on the northern end of Chevron Island at 17–19 Parneno Street, with a limited-time offer of fully furnished apartments available.

Now more than 90 per cent complete, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/buildings/boutique-chevron-island-17-19-parneno-chevron-island-qld-4217">Boutique</a> has been shaped by one of the Gold Coast’s most tightly held island addresses, where riverfront outlooks and walkable access to Surfers Paradise converge.

For Draycon Building Managing Director Howard Dabit, the appeal of the site was immediate.

“I knew it was a good site as soon as I saw it,” Dabit said.

“The position and location on the north end of <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/chevron-island-qld-4217">Chevron Island</a>, the way the river swirls around the site basically from the north to the east, it feels like the site is surrounded by the water. The height that we’ve got and the aspect looking north is beautiful. Eighty per cent of the apartments are looking north so they get that drenching sunlight coming in.”

[smartcode_project:default project_id=89709 project_image_fid=360922]

That northern orientation places the development within a stretch of Chevron Island defined by open river aspects and skyline views, while remaining embedded in the suburb’s established village setting.

Chevron Island has increasingly drawn owner-occupiers seeking centrality without the intensity of high-rise beachfront living. Positioned at the geographical centre of the Gold Coast, the island offers direct access to both the beach and key cultural infrastructure while retaining a neighbourhood-scale character.

Connected by bridge to Surfers Paradise, Chevron Island offers walkable access to beaches, riverfront parklands and a revitalised foreshore boulevard animated by walkers and cyclists throughout the day. The Pacific Ocean is only minutes away, reinforcing the suburb’s dual river-and-surf identity.

At the same time, Thomas Drive forms the spine of the island’s village life, delivering cafés, wine bars, casual dining and everyday services within easy reach. Independent grocers, wellness operators and neighbourhood retailers contribute to a community atmosphere that remains distinct from the vertical scale of the beachfront.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=89709 project_image_fid=360915]

In the opposite direction, the Green Bridge links directly to HOTA – Home of the Arts – placing galleries, performance venues and parklands within walking distance. Weekly markets and major exhibitions draw visitors from across the region, while residents return to a quieter residential pocket at day’s end.

Public transport, including nearby bus routes and the G:link light rail corridor along the coastal spine, strengthens connectivity north and south. Griffith University, the Gold Coast University Hospital precinct and established private schools such as The Southport School are all within a short drive.

Ongoing investment across Surfers Paradise, HOTA and the broader Southport corridor has elevated amenity while preserving Chevron Island’s comparatively low-rise residential character. It is this balance, walkable village atmosphere paired with metropolitan-scale infrastructure, that continues to differentiate the suburb from higher-density beachfront precincts.

Boutique comprises just 42 residences, designed to maximise river and skyline outlooks within this tightly held island setting.

Boutique Chevron Island is slated for completion in April 2026, with prices starting from $1,220,000.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=89709]

Joel Robinson

Draycon Building’s Boutique Chevron Island places 42 residences at the heart of the Gold Coast

Sydney developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/deicorp">Deicorp</a> has secured planning approval for a $300 million residential development in Lindfield, marking the company’s second project on Sydney’s North Shore and its first on the Upper North Shore.

Located on Beaconsfield Parade and designed by DKO Architecture, the state significant development comprises three buildings of up to 10 storeys and will include 399 residences, including 59 affordable homes and 40 adaptable homes.

Residences will range in size from one, two and three bedrooms, with two-bedroom apartments accounting for over 60 per cent of the product make-up. Residents will have access to a broad suite of amenities, including a wellness area, indoor and outdoor recreational spaces, a pool, a gym, a community room and a golf simulator.

In line with Deicorp’s long-standing focus on creating transit-oriented communities, the project is located just 260 metres from the Lindfield Train Station, reinforcing its role in delivering well-connected housing close to established infrastructure, retail and local services.

The inclusion of affordable and adaptable housing supports greater diversity within the local market, while the mix of apartment types responds to demand from downsizers, young professionals and families seeking access to the Upper North Shore.

Deicorp Founder Fouad Deiri OAM said the approval represents an important milestone for both the company and the suburb

“This approval allows us to deliver well-designed homes in a location that is already supported by strong transport and community infrastructure," Deiri said.

"Our focus is on creating places that integrate into their surroundings and provide long-term value for residents, and the broader Lindfield community. Being within walking distance of the station ensures this project supports sustainable growth in the right locations."

Across its portfolio, Deicorp currently has 4,703 apartments under construction, playing a leading role in shaping connected, liveable communities across Sydney.

Its expanding portfolio of Metro-linked developments includes Tallawong Village, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kings-bay-village-five-dock-53-75-queens-road-five-dock-nsw-2046">Kings Bay Village</a> in Five Dock, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/hyde-metropolitan-sydney-133-141-liverpool-street-sydney-nsw-2000">Hyde Metropolitan</a> in Sydney CBD, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/falcon-alexander-crows-nest-8-alexander-street-crows-nest-nsw-2065">Falcon &amp; Alexander</a> in Crows Nest and Showground Village, Castle Hill.

Deicorp purchased the Beaconsfield Paradise site last year. Construction is scheduled to commence in Q2 of 2026 and will be completed in 2029.

Deicorp expands portfolio to nearly 5,000 apartments with Lindfield project

In a joint venture with The Trump Organization, Australia developer Altus Property Group has announced plans to bring a Trump International Hotel &amp; Tower to the Gold Coast, marking the first Trump-branded project in Australia.

"Trump International Hotel &amp; Tower, Gold Coast is our first official project in Australia and reflects our unwavering commitment to delivering world-class luxury experiences in iconic locations around the world," Eric Trump, Executive Vice President of The Trump Organization, said.

"This development exemplifies the Trump brand’s dedication to quality, sophistication, and unmatched service, and we are thrilled to bring this vision to the vibrant Gold Coast community."

The 91-storey building, which will become the tallest in Australia at 335 metres, will feature a&nbsp;285-room luxury hotel bearing the trademark Trump logo. It will also include 272 luxury residential apartments, a three-level podium with an exclusive Beach Club, and over 3,400 sqm of premium commercial, retail, and dining space, revitalizing the central Surfers Paradise precinct.

“Trump International Hotel &amp; Tower, Gold Coast will be a truly unique offering in the Australian market, bringing the prestige and allure of a world-class luxury brand,"&nbsp;Altus founder and chief executive David Young said.

"Altus Property Group is proud of its track record in delivering landmark developments across Australia, and our expertise ensures this project will be an outstanding success."

Trump Hotel heads for the Gold Coast to become Australia's tallest building

More than a century after the Corrimal Coke Works first opened in 1912, the industrial landmark that helped shape the suburb is being reinterpreted as a walkable residential neighbourhood, with Stage One of <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-works-stage-one-27-railway-street-corrimal-nsw-2518">The Works</a> now underway at 27 Railway Street.

For 102 years, the site was central to <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/corrimal-nsw-2518">Corrimal</a>’s economic and social identity before operations ceased in 2014. Rather than erasing that legacy, developer Legacy Property has embedded it into the masterplan, retaining and reinterpreting elements such as the iconic 1912 brick chimney and sections of the original C1 Coke Oven Battery, alongside the adaptive reuse of the former powerhouse building.

Stage One will introduce 181 apartments across low-rise buildings, offering predominantly two and three-bedroom residences with completion targeted for mid-2027. The scale and configuration reflect a deliberate focus on owner-occupiers, targeting those seeking a lower-maintenance home in a prime location within the northern suburbs of Wollongong.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=143415 project_image_fid=359833]

Apartments have been designed to maximise natural light and cross-ventilation, with floor-to-ceiling glazing extending living areas onto generous balconies. Engineered timber flooring, induction cooktops and 900mm ovens in larger residences support everyday functionality, while two interior palettes allow buyers to tailor finishes to their preferences. The material selection draws on a restrained coastal language, intended to connect homes to their surroundings rather than compete with them.

The Works forms part of a broader 18-hectare masterplan that will ultimately deliver around 550 dwellings, new parks, and a heritage precinct celebrating the site’s past. More than seven hectares are dedicated to open space, including Southern Park and a Village Green with community gardens and recreation areas. The creek corridor is being rehabilitated with 150,000 native plantings, restoring biodiversity to the site and softening landscape.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=143415 project_image_fid=359841]

Positioned adjacent to Corrimal Station and within walking distance of Corrimal Town Centre, the precinct places daily essentials, rail connections and local retail within easy reach. Wollongong CBD, including the hospital, university and entertainment venues, sits approximately 6.5 kilometres to the south.

For buyers more familiar with North Wollongong, Corrimal offers a different proposition: a well-established coastal suburb framed by beaches to the east and the escarpment to the west, with a strong sense of local identity shaped in part by the former Coke Works. The Works seeks to reinforce that identity by creating a connected, walkable neighbourhood between coast and escarpment, rather than a standalone apartment complex.

Sustainability underpins the development approach. The Works is targeting Wollongong’s first 5-Star Green Star-rated community, with water-sensitive urban design, recycled materials and energy-efficient buildings integrated across the masterplan. For residents, these measures provide not only environmental benefits but also reduced operational costs and future resilience.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=143415 project_image_fid=359842]

With construction commenced and display materials available to view, prospective buyers can now engage more directly with the project’s vision, reviewing floorplans, material selections and the broader masterplan in detail. For many local homeowners weighing a move, the opportunity to experience how heritage, landscape and contemporary design intersect may help bridge the gap between familiarity and the next chapter.

As Stage One progresses toward its mid-2027 completion, The Works represents a significant chapter in Corrimal’s evolution, transforming a site that once powered local industry into a walkable residential precinct designed for its next generation of residents.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=143415]

Legacy Property’s The Works reimagines Corrimal’s century-old Coke Works

When it comes to developing in Melb​ourne's Bayside region, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/lowe-living">Lowe Living</a> knows exactly what buyers want.

With a longstanding presence in the area and a string of sell-out projects, Lowe Living consistently delivers developments that are as sought-after as their predecessors.

Their latest instalment is in <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/hampton-vic-3188">Hampton</a><a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/hampton-east-vic-3188">&nbsp;East,</a> the same postcode where they have previously delivered Hampton Hill and Oceano. The developer-builder recently commenced construction on its newest project,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/marella-hampton-31-35-alicia-street-hampton-east-vic-3188">Marella</a>, a collection of 32 apartments just five minutes from the beach.

Site acquisition is paramount to success. Lowe Living rarely brings a building to market that isn’t within walking distance of essential amenities, whether it be the beach, a prominent retail strip, or a train station. Marella is no exception, located at its Alicia Street address, less than a kilometre from the retail heart of Hampton Street and Hampton Station.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=146197 project_image_fid=358495]

Equally important to Lowe Living is the architecture.

For Marella, they appointed <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cera-stribley-architects">Cera Stribley</a>, who explains that the architectural vision was to create a contemporary reinterpretation of the Californian bungalow, a style that’s iconic to Hampton’s heritage.

"By borrowing, abstracting, and reinterpreting elements of this quintessential style, such as strong datum lines, articulated columns, exposed structures, and roof tiles, our design strikes a balance between modernity and familiarity," says Cera Stribley.

"This approach ensures that the development is not only visually appealing but also contextually sensitive, resonating with Hampton's existing architectural landscape."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=146197 project_image_fid=358499]

The building features terracotta brick, soft cream masonry, and exposed metal detailing, giving it a tactile presence that is intended to weather gently over time.

Internally, the focus on lasting quality continues, with two and three-bedroom residences anchored by sculptural stone kitchen islands, natural light, and clearly defined transitions between living, dining, and outdoor spaces.

The layouts have been carefully designed. Open-plan zones extend to private balconies, with light-filled interiors and generous kitchen proportions, supported by Miele wall ovens, induction cooktops, and integrated fridge-freezers. These are not small apartments rebranded as luxury; they have been designed at scale, with ample storage, hotel-style entry access, and secure basement parking provided as standard.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=146197 project_image_fid=358492]

At the uppermost level, Marella’s Signature Collection penthouses offer city or bay views, large entertaining terraces (some with outdoor spas), and elevated finishes, including fully wrapped stone kitchen benches and a Liebherr wine fridge.

Flexible room arrangements allow for a fourth bedroom or secondary living space, sought-after by both empty nesters who want the space when family visits and families with older children.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=146197 project_image_fid=358498]

A residents’ lounge on the ground floor reinforces the project’s small-community feel. With a fireplace, private dining area, and adjoining terrace, it’s one of several shared spaces that balance amenity with privacy and scale.

Construction has commenced, with completion expected in early 2027.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=146197]

Lowe Living continues Bayside legacy as Marella rises in Hampton

Job Growth

<html><body>
Western Sydney is set for a further construction boom, with two more projects getting the green light today through the NSW Government’s Planning System Acceleration Program. 
Planning approval has been given to a new recycling facility in Penrith and a major upgrade to a brick production facility in Horsley Park that, combined, will inject an additional $27.8 million into the economy and support more than 130 local jobs. 
Premier Gladys Berejiklian said Western Sydney has been a big winner in the first tranche of projects that have had their assessments fast-tracked to create jobs and investment in response to COVID-19.  
“Western Sydney is undergoing significant growth, which is why we’ve fast-tracked the assessment of projects in the region over the past three weeks to create opportunities for more than 16,000 local jobs and $1.8 billion in investment,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“The housing and construction industries will be vital to supporting our State’s economy through the pandemic and so we’re doing what we can to keep the industry moving.” 
The latest projects approved in Western Sydney include:
<ul>
<li>A $26 million upgrade to the 1960’s Austral Bricks facility at Horsley Park. The state-of-the-art facility will be one of the most technologically advanced of its kind in the world and produce enough bricks to build five homes every hour. The facility’s upgrade will support 60 construction jobs and 35 ongoing operational roles.</li>
<li>A new $1.8 million recycling and transfer facility in Penrith, operated by NSW Waste Recycling, that will support a significant increase to waste recycling in Western Sydney. The project will support 25 construction jobs and 12 operational roles once complete.</li>
</ul>
Planning and Public Spaces Minister Rob Stokes said the Planning System Acceleration Program was a vital lever in the State’s economic recovery. 
“We have re-prioritised projects in the State’s planning system so projects are assessed more quickly to keep people in jobs and the NSW economy moving during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Mr Stokes said. 
“We’ll have another tranche of shovel-ready projects ready to announce shortly, which will also have their assessments finalised within four weeks.” 
<table border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tbody>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="340">
Project
</td>
<td valign="top" width="146">
Investment value
</td>
<td valign="top" width="79">
Jobs
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="340">
Austral Bricks facility upgrade
</td>
<td valign="top" width="146">
$26 million
</td>
<td valign="top" width="79">
95
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="340">
Penrith Resource Recovery Facility
</td>
<td valign="top" width="146">
$1.8 million
</td>
<td valign="top" width="79">
37
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="340">
Bunnings Warehouse at Bringelly Business Park
</td>
<td valign="top" width="146">
$22 million
</td>
<td valign="top" width="79">
400
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="340">
Mt Druitt CBD rezoning
</td>
<td valign="top" width="146">
$1.49 billion
</td>
<td valign="top" width="79">
15,000
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="340">
Rezoning land at Glenlee to create a 60 hectare jobs hub
</td>
<td valign="top" width="146">
$94.2 million
</td>
<td valign="top" width="79">
188
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="340">
Rezoning the Bankstown CBD to allow more retail, residential and public space
</td>
<td valign="top" width="146">
$166 million
</td>
<td valign="top" width="79">
332
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td valign="top" width="340">
TOTAL
</td>
<td valign="top" width="146">
$1.81 billion
</td>
<td valign="top" width="79">
16,052
</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
To be considered for accelerated assessment, a project must already be progressed in the planning system, deliver a public benefit, demonstrate an ability to create jobs during construction and once complete, and be able to commence construction or lodge a development application within six months. 
Western Sydney projects approved in Tranche 1 of the Planning System Acceleration Program include:
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j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

Construction boom fast-tracked for Western Sydney 

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Today we have run with three charts - Australian dwelling completions, commencements and approvals. The point of this is to illustrate that the current rate cuts are not going to be a job creator for the Australian housing construction industry anytime soon. Naturally it may help other parts of the economy. But not housing construction. To be clear the process of building a property starts at the approval stage. Once approved, building construction commencements normally occur between 6 to 18 months after approvals. And then finally, completions normally occur 18 months to 3 years after approvals.
 
<img src="https://gallery.mailchimp.com/9badbd870addb4af72206c2eb/images/d0a5d23c-7109-4a61-9e45-e2a75ad4aee2.png">
<img src="https://gallery.mailchimp.com/9badbd870addb4af72206c2eb/images/c2e4fa2e-a581-4020-941d-0f5835b9a3e2.png">
<img src="https://gallery.mailchimp.com/9badbd870addb4af72206c2eb/images/69a3110b-3f74-4a58-843a-93ff0600815e.png">
Dwelling completions are only peaking now and so there are a whole bunch of projects that are on the verge of completion. Normally once a project is completed, workers move onto the next project. But as we can see on the commencements chart, there are now less commencements than completions. And so there is less work available, meaning more job losses are coming. To make matters worse, building approvals are still tracking south and are considerably lower than commencements. This means even more housing construction job losses are on the way over the course of 2020 and likely, 2021. This will happen despite the interest rate cuts, tax cuts and easier lending standards. As the building approvals illustrate, there has been no response as yet in the form of higher demand for new housing. The real jobs creation phase, where there are labourers and contractors on the ground, naturally happens at the commencements phase and gets slowly wound down as the building gets closer to completion. So with the fall off in building approvals, housing construction is going to be a detraction to GDP for many months to come. This must be quite the concern for the RBA and for the Federal Government for that matter. As you may have guessed, housing construction is not an insignificant proportion of total employment. The RBA places it at just under 6%. The last time this occurred was back in 2011 to 2013. However the country still had the mining boom as a major job creator at that time. For now, mining investment seems to have bottomed out and will moderately pick up over the next 12 to 24 months, therefore taking some of the slack. But no one is expecting a massive uplift in mining. There is of course infrastructure and that may help to an extent. Apparently for FY20 some $13 billion dollars has been estimated to be spent on Infrastructure which should at least keep climbing through to 2023. By comparison, there was some $42 billion dollars’ worth of dwellings approved over the 12 months to September 2019. Infrastructure better help with the offset. And perhaps with mining added, it will. The RBA is forecasting the unemployment rate to fall to 5% by 2021. But no-one really knows for sure. Let’s hope they are right. Otherwise Australian unemployment is going to keep rising in 2020 and that won’t be good for anyone.
LOUIS CHRISTOPHER is the CEO of SQM Research.
</body></html>

louischristopher-TWpYcZDLBK

Current rate cuts aren't going to be a job creator for housing construction: SQM's Louis Christopher

<html><body>
EXPERT OBSERVATION
The Aerotropolis Investor Summit is a positive move to encourage private sector investment into future jobs for Western Sydney.
The focus on the 10,000 hectare economic zone around Western Sydney Airport as the location for a massive growth in Western Sydney jobs is a good example of the outcomes of the City Deal between the three levels of government.
And the establishment of the Western Sydney Development Authority under Chief Coordinator Geoff Roberts will lead to faster decision making in turning plans into reality.
The range of jobs proposed is impressive covering aerospace, defence, manufacturing, healthcare, freight, logistics, agribusiness and education.
Clearly these jobs will be closer to the people of Western Sydney and help redress the jobs exodus from the West to the East in Sydney.
The proposed North South Rail Link will help Western Sydney residents have easy access to the jobs hub.
The potential expansion of the West Metro from Parramatta announced by the Premier, Gladys Berejiklian, at the Summit would link all three cities across metropolitan Sydney.
While the Investor Summit has focussed on the issue of jobs there also needs to be more discussion about the residential components of the third city, the Parkland City.
With the Western Sydney Airport having no curfew clearly housing will be located kilometres away from the airport and the economic zone.
Most commentators on cities prefer a mixed use approach to planning where jobs and residential co-locate to ensure a lively public domain.
Future planning will need to address this issue so that the Parkland City can be as successful as the Harbour City and the River City.
CHRIS JOHNSON is chief executive officer of property development industry group Urban Taskforce and can be <a href="https://www.urbantaskforce.com.au/?option=com_content&amp;view=article&amp;id=97&amp;Itemid=126#.Vdaart55dFI" target="_blank">contacted here</a>.
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cjohnson-8xfqfuuCSq

Aerotropolis private investment critical for Western Sydney jobs: Chris Johnson

<html><body>
Expert observer
Melbourne has a serious problem. Most of its job growth is in the CBD, yet most of its <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Previousproducts/3218.0Main%20Features252014-15?opendocument&amp;tabname=Summary&amp;prodno=3218.0&amp;issue=2014-15&amp;num=&amp;view=" target="_blank">population growth is at the far extremes</a> of the city. It’s the same in other big Australian cities, like <a href="https://theconversation.com/if-the-people-cant-get-to-their-jobs-bring-the-jobs-to-the-people-57567">Sydney</a>.
Getting people to work is becoming harder. Many people take more than an hour to commute each way. They could better spend this time with their families, or at work; commuting time is wasted time.
There are three ways we might tackle this:
<ul>
<li>change the planning rules to let more people live near the centre</li>
<li>improve the freeways and railways so that people can commute more quickly</li>
<li>promote job growth away from the CBD.</li>
</ul>
We almost certainly need to do all three.
The Victorian Planning Authority (<a href="https://vpa.vic.gov.au/" target="_blank">VPA</a>) has <a href="https://vpa.vic.gov.au/urban-renewal/national-employment-clusters/" target="_blank">identified</a> three places in the west of the city – Footscray, Sunshine and Werribee – where jobs should be developed. The Victorian government is on the cusp of making major decisions that could convert these potential employment hubs into actuality. There are three big development proposals before the government that could make a difference. It would be a pity if it missed these opportunities.
<h2>Change of tack is needed</h2>
At the moment the Victorian government’s main strategy is to improve the infrastructure. This is a very expensive solution.
In parallel, the Planning Authority has been working to improve population density by allowing more high-rise housing, particularly around main railway stations and tramlines. However, resistance from local residents has made it hard to increase density in the middle suburbs.
We have seen very little effort so far in Melbourne to create job opportunities within the city but away from the CBD. The planners have identified several potential employment hubs but have not figured out how to create jobs there. This has been a failure of state governments over recent decades.
The problem is most acute in the west of the city. On <a href="http://www.communityprofile.com.au/melbourneswest" target="_blank">current growth trends</a>, by 2030 there will be a shortage of 100,000 jobs in the west; that many extra people will have to commute out every day.
<h2>What’s on the drawing board?</h2>
At Footscray, the key decision is where to locate the <a href="http://www.westernhealth.org.au/AboutUs/News/Pages/A-new-beginning-for-Footscray-Hospital.aspx" target="_blank">new hospital</a>. The best opportunity for future employment would be to <a href="http://www.westernhealth.org.au/AboutUs/News/Documents/Media%20release%20-%20Footscray%20Hospital%20rebuild_7Dec17.pdf" target="_blank">put it next to Victoria University</a> to exploit co-investment and synergies between the two. This would accelerate Footscray’s emergence as a professional services hub.
The payoffs in terms of jobs will be much greater than if the hospital is built well away from the centre of Footscray, which is the other main option. The decision is a test of whether the government really intends to create a polycentric city or not.
At Werribee, the decision is whether to go ahead with the proposed <a href="http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/future-melbourne/tech-giants-push-for-piece-of-30bn-super-city-in-east-werribee/news-story/51e77278242514b23567bf6b9e00050c" target="_blank">Australian Education City</a>. This is an ambitious proposal to develop a completely new technology city, mixing technology companies, universities, research laboratories and suitable housing. There would be significant public infrastructure needs to complement the private investment.
The big advantage for Melbourne would be that it gains a major new technology precinct. It is an important proposal for the west because the region has very few jobs in IT, computing and e-commerce.
The third big opportunity lies in the rail connection between Sunshine and the airport at Tullamarine. With Sunshine the hub for regional rail and well connected to the CBD, the proposed <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/sunshine-route-to-melbourne-airport-backed-by-rail-group-20171123-gzrqgl" target="_blank">airport link</a> adds a major new facility that Melbourne lacks. It would also transform Sunshine, making it an important focal point for hotels and other airport-oriented businesses.
While the state Labor government has proposed this alternative, the <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/melbourne-airport-rail-to-be-under-way-within-10-years-premier-says-20171122-gzqywe" target="_blank">post-2025 start date</a> makes it less valuable as a city-shaping investment.
To maintain the quality of life of its residents, Melbourne badly needs to create new poles of employment. The west of the city has <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Previousproducts/3218.0Main%20Features252014-15?opendocument&amp;tabname=Summary&amp;prodno=3218.0&amp;issue=2014-15&amp;num=&amp;view=" target="_blank">some of the fastest population growth</a> in the nation. What is lacks is a commitment from government to growing jobs in the region and away from the CBD.
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/93067/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">The location of the Footscray hospital, the decision on the Australian Education City, and the timing of the airport rail link are once-in-a-generation choices. Let us hope the government makes decisions that will support dispersed job growth. Failure to do so will make Melbourne a much less attractive place to live in future.
<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/rodney-maddock-107543" target="_blank">Rodney Maddock</a>, Vice Chancellor's Fellow at Victoria University and Adjunct Professor of Economics, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/monash-university-1065" target="_blank">Monash University</a>
This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" target="_blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/our-growing-big-cities-need-new-centres-of-employment-heres-melbournes-chance-93067" target="_blank">original article</a>.
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New centres of employment are needed in our growing big cities

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Arrears on loans underlying Australian residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) transactions declined nationwide during the third quarter, in line with cyclical expectations, according to a recent report by S&amp;P Global Ratings.
Continued employment growth and low interest rates have kept arrears low in most parts of the country, but there are marked differences in the arrears levels of resource and non-resource states as well as metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, according to the report RMBS Performance Watch: Australia.
RMBS Performance Watch: Australia looks at mortgage arrears across the country, based on the Australian Bureau of Statistics Australian geographical standard classifications.
The 20 worst-performing regions in the country are predominantly in the metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas of Western Australia and nonmetropolitan Queensland, reflecting the greater impact of the downturn in mining investment in these locations.
The areas with lower arrears are mostly in inner and outer Sydney.
This reflects the correlation between property prices and arrears performance for more seasoned loans, which benefit from the improved equity build up and enhanced refinancing prospects this affords.
Amortizing loans with high levels of seasoning in metropolitan areas are underpinning the solid arrears performance of loans underlying Australian RMBS transactions.
The performance of these loans and ones originated more recently could diverge if interest rates start to rise, however, testing the prudence of lending standards.
We expect arrears performance to remain relatively stable while employment conditions remain stable and unemployment is relatively low.
However, the currently high level of household debt has increased borrowers' sensitivity to future interest rate rises.
We believe this risk is more heightened for higher loan-to-value ratio loans.
This is because there is less equity built up in the underlying property and such borrowers' refinancing prospects are likely to be less favorable, particularly in an environment of tightening lending conditions.
Standard &amp; Poor's Performance Index (SPIN) measures the weighted-average arrears more than 30 days past due on residential mortgage loans in publicly and privately rated Australian RMBS transactions.
The value of loans underlying Australian RMBS transactions, including noncapital market issuance, was A$128.951 billion.
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jrobinson-rf4aSBido9

S&P says mortgage arrears stable thanks to positive job growth and low interest rates

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GUEST OBSERVER
Job growth has been on the surge for a while now. And much of that surge makes sense:
Although China is squeezing Australia's income, it has had much less of an impact on our production growth, and it's the latter which drives jobs.
Even better, within the overall economy, the sectoral make up has seen greater strength in service sectors, which by and large are the key job generating industries in the nation.
Finally, a combination of weak wage growth and good productivity gains has made workers a more competitive option for businesses as they decide between more workers and more machines.
That backdrop is one which is increasingly favourable for the nation’s CBD office markets. The strength in the national job numbers had held true for white collar employment as well, but it had been failing to fully translate into bums on seats in CBD offices. Yet latest data have shown that gap narrowing pretty fast. However, this is very much a Sydney story. The picture remains mixed outside the Premier State, with Melbourne doing fine but Brisbane and Adelaide both labouring, and Perth continuing on its downward spiral. In fact, outside of NSW itself, the most notable good news story is that a pause in public sector cutbacks has seen Canberra’s market steady of late, though even there the overall job numbers are continuing to fall.
The big office markets of Sydney – Sydney CBD and North Sydney – are at sixes and sevens. Or to be more specific, overall jobs in those markets have grown at rates in the range of 6-7% in the last 12 months. In case you are wondering, the last time that the CBD was at that speed was ahead of the Sydney Olympics. Cathy Freeman hadn’t done a victory lap when the pace of growth in CBD office demand was last this strong.
While Sydney’s performance ranks alongside Ben Johnson’s at the Seoul Olympics in 1988 – and for potentially some of the same artificial reasons – Melbourne’s job gains have been strengthening, but remain more believable than those north of the Murray. To be clear, it’s not that white collar job gains in Melbourne’s CBD are accelerating by that much, but they are now clearly ahead of this market’s longer term trend rate of growth (which, by the way, is the strongest of any bar that of Canberra).
Brisbane – in contrast – remains very much more subdued. Or, at least, that’s true of the CBD, with the Near City market much healthier. To be clear, this isn’t an office market that is going backwards. 2014-15 marked a return to growth in Brisbane’s CBD office demand, and 2015-16 seems to have cemented that return to growth. Yet most rebounds show an initial turn of speed, and that simply isn’t the case in Brisbane.
A fast fading resources boom has torn strips out of the performance of the Perth market. That pain will eventually end, but – despite some green shoots – there’s not going to be much joy generated any time soon. It’s on the back foot already, China is still slowing, miners remain under a lot of financial pressure, and big construction projects are essentially in a run off phase, with very few new projects to follow in their wake.
Unlike much of the rest of Australia, Adelaide isn’t benefiting from measured strength in the finance sector.
Moreover, with 2016-17 shaping up as one of weakness in business services, it may be a few years before this particular market finally gets back in gear.
Canberra’s time in purgatory seems set to end. 2016 is, after all, an election year, and such years often trigger promises that usher in a greater need to for public service. These forecasts point to a return to happier times for the capital’s office demand.
James Allnutt is a Deloitte Access Economics director specialising in <a href="https://www.deloitteaccesseconomics.com.au" target="_blank">demographic, forecasts of state economies, and property demand</a>. 
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jchancellor-FAypfDUnLy

Job growth surge spills into CBD markets: Deloitte Access Economics

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Energy and resources minister Josh Frydenberg said recently that the latest employment figures show extremely strong job growth, the greatest Australia's had since 2006. Is that right?
With shakes in the global stock market and uncertainty abroad, politicians are understandably keen to reassure voters that Australia’s economic fundamentals are strong.
Employment data produced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) is one way we can test Australia’s economic waters, and resources and energy minister Josh Frydenberg said recently that the latest employment figures show extremely strong job growth.
Is he right?
Checking the numbers
The ABS' December Labour Force survey release showed that over the course of 2015, total employment was up by 301,300 people (adjusted for regular seasonal fluctuations and rounded to closest 100 people). Of those 301,300 jobs, the majority (187,200) were full time.
In the last three months of 2015, growth compared to same time the previous year has fluctuated between 2.6% and 3%. That’s above the average annual growth in employment since 2000 of around 1.9%. In short, employment growth recently has been strong.
Is it the greatest level of job growth since 2006?
Table 1 of the release shows that this growth is indeed the strongest of any calendar year since 2006.
However, one could also look at changes over the 12 months to any month. Doing that, you could say, for example, that November 2010 with a figure of around 314,300 had a stronger level of job growth than the latest employment figure show. It was also stronger in November of 2015, when it was at about 344,900.
In other words, if you look only at changes for calendar years (between the beginning and the end of any given year), Frydenberg is right to say it’s the greatest level of job growth since 200
<a href="/images/2016/01/25/Screen%20Shot%202016-01-25%20at%209.55.00%20AM.png" target="_blank">Click to enlarge</a>
<img src="/images/2016/01/25/Screen%20Shot%202016-01-25%20at%209.55.00%20AM.png" alt="" width="844" height="620">
That said, comparing the recent data to particular points in the past is less important than what the data tell us about the current trends in the labour market.
<h2>Trends</h2>
While the ABS devotes considerable resources to undertaking the survey, it is worth remembering that published employment growth is an estimate. The survey is only a sample of the population. The ABS reports on page 40 of its release that the standard error of monthly employment growth is 29,300 people, so, while employment growth recently has been strong, considerable uncertainty surrounds the numbers.
More generally, monthly movements in these data are volatile. For example, in December employment actually fell marginally, although this followed two months of strong growth and therefore was still a good outcome.
Due to this volatility in the monthly series, the ABS' trend series may provide a better guide about the extent to which recent growth is likely to persist in the future.
Over the last three months of 2015, growth in trend employment averaged around 30,300 people, compared to 43,000 based on the data adjusted only for regular seasonal fluctuations.
In other words, the data show us that the underlying trends in the job market recently have been pretty good.
Other, unofficial, data point to an improvement in the labour market. The December 2015 ANZ Job Advertisement Index showed growth compared to the same time in 2014 in their trend estimate at 11.4%, compared to around 10% in the middle of 2015.
<h2>The unemployment rate</h2>
The unemployment rate, which is also produced by the ABS in the labour force survey, has improved over the last three months. At <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/6202.0">5.8%</a>, it is down from 6.2%, where it had fluctuated around since mid 2014 (see Table 1 of the release). Similarly, the trend unemployment rate has also improved and in December reached 5.8%.
<a href="/images/2016/01/25/Screen%20Shot%202016-01-25%20at%209.59.59%20AM.png" target="_blank">Click to enlarge</a>
<img src="/images/2016/01/25/Screen%20Shot%202016-01-25%20at%209.59.59%20AM.png" alt="" width="742" height="490">
Is 5.8% a good outcome for the unemployment rate? A simple benchmark is that average unemployment in Australia since 2000 is 5.5% – so it’s still currently a little above average.
Another way to judge the level of the unemployment rate is to look at developments in wages. If the unemployment rate was too low, growth in private sector wages would pick up. However, in the September quarter (which predates the recent drop in the unemployment rate) wages growth was soft.
To put Australian unemployment in a global context, the average unemployment rate of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) nations was 6.6% in November 2015. However, we need to caveat this comparison. Many countries, such as some in Europe, have unemployment rates that are, on average, higher than Australia’s, reflecting the different structure of their labour markets.
Australia’s unemployment rate has shifted down and that has persisted for three months, which gives greater confidence that it might not be temporary. However, given the volatility of these data and the uncertainty presently surrounding the outlook for the global economy it will be important to see whether these gains are maintained in coming months.
<h2>Verdict</h2>
Josh Frydenberg was right. Employment growth in 2015 was the strongest of any calendar year since 2006, although comparable growth also occurred over the 12 months to November 2010. It is also fair to say Australia has recently experienced strong jobs growth.
Review
This FactCheck is excellent in its comprehensive review and interpretation of the Labour Force Survey data. It is pointed out that labour market statistics, such as the unemployment rate and the number of people employed, are only estimates not the actual numbers in the population.
The statistics are based on the Labour Force Survey, which is a sample of 0.33% of the population about the employment status of everyone in the household aged 15 years and older. Because they are based on a sample of the population, the statistics have errors. In its monthly report the ABS publishes these “sampling errors” and clearly says that the estimate of the monthly change in the employment has a “95% confidence interval”. The media and the government rarely, if ever, report the range of estimates.
It is well known among economists that “you don’t trust one month’s figures” – the trend in labour force statistics is what’s important in understanding what’s going on in the labour market.
This FactCheck does a good job of explaining that the ABS “trend estimates” are much more reliable than the actual raw estimates. Again, the media (and politicians, when it suits them) tend to concentrate on the actual number, particularly whether it has risen or fallen. As the author also pointed out, the start and end date of the change usually makes a difference to the estimate of the change.
As the above states, although the minister’s assertion can be questioned somewhat by adopting a different start and end date, the overall conclusion that jobs growth is reasonably strong is correct. <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/tim-robinson-138270" rel="author" style="line-height: 1.3em;"></a>
 
Tim Robinson is research fellow, Melbourne Institute, University of Melbourne and author for The Conversation. He can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/tim-robinson-138270" target="_blank">here</a>.
Phil Lewis is professor of economics, University of Canberra and author for The Conversation. He can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/phil-lewis-8714" target="_blank">here</a>.
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