Developers and apartment buyers have a narrowing window of opportunity before Brisbane's Olympic infrastructure pipeline begins competing directly with residential construction, pushing up costs, tightening labour supply and making new projects increasingly difficult to deliver.

While Brisbane's apartment market continues to benefit from strong population growth and limited housing supply, industry research suggests the years leading up to 2027 could prove to be the most important period for developers looking to secure builders and buyers hoping to purchase before the next wave of price increases.

A new Colliers report, Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games: Creating Solutions, highlights the scale of the challenge. While thousands of new homes are planned across South East Queensland, the Brisbane Olympic Athletes Village alone will deliver more than 10,500 beds during the Games before being converted into around 1,750 to 2,000 apartments. Equivalent to almost two years of typical inner-city apartment supply, the project will also absorb a significant share of the construction workforce and building materials.

The broader construction pipeline paints an even clearer picture.

Construction Skills Queensland's Horizon 2032 report forecasts Queensland's annual construction pipeline will average $69 billion over the coming years before peaking at $75 billion in 2027-28. Demand for construction workers is expected to increase by 17 per cent to almost 150,000 people, with the industry facing an annual shortfall of around 19,000 workers that could blow out to as many as 35,000 during the peak construction period.

The Olympic venues, athletes village and supporting infrastructure will account for billions of dollars worth of work across South East Queensland through to 2032, creating intense competition for labour at a time when Australia's residential construction sector is already under pressure.

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Colliers Queensland Residential Director Andrew Scriven said the convergence of these projects is creating a clear window of opportunity for both developers and buyers.

"From 2027 onwards, the market will shift dramatically," Scriven said.

"Labour will increasingly be locked into government-led infrastructure and Olympic projects, which means private residential developments will face higher costs and tighter margins. The developers who move now are the ones most likely to get projects off the ground."

Scriven said the same dynamic would also affect buyers, with fewer apartment projects expected to launch once construction capacity tightens.

"If you're looking to change your lifestyle over the next five years, now is your window of opportunity to buy."

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Developers are already positioning themselves ahead of that window.

Following the success of Monarch at Toowong, Consolidated Properties is preparing to launch two new Brisbane apartment projects in the second half of 2026. They include <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/gloriette-30-bedivere-street-yeerongpilly-qld-4105">Gloriette</a> at Yeerongpilly Green, a 25-storey tower within one of Brisbane's key Olympic precincts, and <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/castile-47-skyring-terrace-newstead-qld-4006">Castile</a>, a recently approved 25-storey riverfront development at 47 Skyring Terrace in Newstead.

Hutchinson Builders will deliver both projects, with early works already underway at Yeerongpilly and Newstead expected to commence later this year.

The timing comes as Brisbane's fundamentals continue to strengthen, with strong interstate migration, population growth and vacancy rates remaining below 1.5 per cent.

Colliers Queensland researcher Pragya Sharma said Greater Brisbane is forecast to require around 40,000 new apartments between 2021 and 2031.

"There's a real mismatch emerging between when housing is needed and when it will be feasible to build," Sharma said.

"As a result, the period leading up to 2027 presents a key window of opportunity for developers to secure approvals, funding and construction capacity, while buyers will have greater choice before supply constraints intensify."

Colliers research outlines a critical pre-2027 window to start residential projects before labour squeeze: now is the time to buy

Joel Robinson

Developers, buyers on watch in South East Queensland ahead of construction crunch: Colliers

It's taken less than nine months for developer Sherpa Property Group to sell out all 51 apartments in its <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/flourish-oasis-palm-beach-7-9-sixth-avenue-palm-beach-qld-4221">Flourish Oasis</a> development in <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/palm-beach-qld-4221">Palm Beach</a>, over a year before its anticipated completion.

&nbsp;

Located at 7-9 Sixth Avenue, the $67 million development has resonated strongly with both local owner-occupiers and downsizers seeking high-quality apartments within walking distance of the beach, dining precincts and everyday amenities.

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Christie Leet, Founder of <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/sherpa-property-group">Sherpa Group</a>, said the sell-out reflected both the strength of the Palm Beach market and the success of Sherpa's community-first approach to development.

"The sell-out of Oasis is a fantastic outcome and reinforces the strong demand we're seeing for thoughtfully designed apartments in lifestyle locations," Leet said.

"From the outset, our vision was to create a development that genuinely enhanced the Palm Beach community while providing residents with exceptional homes and wellness-focused amenities.

"We've been incredibly encouraged by the level of local support throughout the campaign, 72.5 per cent of buyers are locals, with a significant proportion of purchasers choosing Oasis as their future home rather than an investment."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=151449 project_image_fid=357463]

Construction is now progressing following development approval, with trusted builder LPS Group delivering the project and completion anticipated in Q3 2027.

Oasis forms part of Sherpa Group's successful Flourish collection, which has become recognised for its focus on wellness, community and elevated coastal living.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=151449 project_image_fid=357469]

Residents will have private access to a rooftop amenity space featuring a pool, gym, sauna, steam room, hot and cold plunge pools, spa and barbecue facilities.

"The success of Oasis demonstrates that buyers continue to prioritise quality, location and lifestyle," Leet said.

"We are proud to have delivered a project that has resonated so strongly with the market and look forward to bringing Oasis to life for our future residents."

Sherpa recently launched <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/flourish-soleira-palm-beach-1150-1160-gold-coast-highway-palm-beach-qld-4221">Flourish Soleira</a>, its third instalment of the Flourish brand in Palm Beach following Flourish Oasis and <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/amargo-6-12-sixth-avenue-palm-beach-qld-4221">Flourish Amargo</a>.

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Sherpa sells out Flourish Oasis in booming Palm Beach

Urban Property Group's <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/la-vera-macquarie-park-94-talavera-road-macquarie-park-nsw-2113">La Vera</a> is leading the next phase of Macquarie Park's residential evolution, with the new apartment development set to become the first of several new apartment projects in the precinct to complete.

The 169-apartment building has now topped out ahead of its scheduled completion in the third quarter of 2026, as new residential investment continues to reshape one of Sydney's largest employment hubs into a true mixed-use precinct.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134951 project_image_fid=368645]

Cox Architecture has designed La Vera to capture the best of its unique positioning on Talavera Road, orienting the building towards Lane Cove National Park.&nbsp;The building features a sculpted northern façade with flowing curves inspired by the surrounding landscape, while its city-facing elevation adopts a more structured architectural expression to maximise skyline views.

"The vision for the project was to conceive a building that adopted an organic and curvilinear form to the northern portion that faces the Lane Cove National Park," <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cox-architecture">Cox Architecture</a> Director Felipe Miranda said.

"The residents that reside in the northern portion of the building benefit by having beautifully crafted curved balconies that speak to the natural context and heighten the relationship of their internal living spaces to the external balconies."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134951 project_image_fid=358802]

La Vera offers a diverse mix of one, two, three, and four-bedroom configurations, with prices currently starting from $740,000. Buyers so far have been a mix of Sydney-based investors,&nbsp;metro commuters, owner-occupiers and downsizers from surrounding North Shore suburbs.

Both investors and owner-occupiers have been drawn to La Vera's proximity to Macquarie University, Macquarie University Hospital, Macquarie Centre and the Sydney Metro, infrastructure that supports both strong rental demand and a convenient lifestyle for residents.

The apartments feature full-height glazing, timber flooring throughout living areas, stone kitchen benchtops, SMEG appliances, floor-to-ceiling bathroom tiling and ducted air conditioning.

Residents will have access to a rooftop recreation level featuring a swimming pool, sauna, barbecue facilities and landscaped relaxation areas, complemented by additional communal space at ground level. Many apartments enjoy uninterrupted views across Lane Cove National Park, reinforcing the project's connection to its natural setting.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=134951 project_image_fid=364551]

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/urban-property-group">Urban Property Group</a>, a family-owned developer and builder with nearly four decades of experience, holds a 4.5-star iCIRT rating and was Australia's first developer to introduce 10-Year Latent Defects Insurance (LDI). La Vera is the first apartment development in <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/macquarie-park-nsw-2113">Macquarie Park</a> approved to offer the additional insurance protection, alongside a five-year warranty on SMEG appliances.

Urban Property Group CEO Patrick Elias said the additional protection reflects changing buyer expectations in the off the plan market.

"Consumers are a lot more weary and a lot more concerned in buying off the plan than they ever have been. Having LDI is a tool to portray the confidence that we have in our product, and a confidence we want buyers to share," Elias said.

Following completion of the building later this year, buyers will move into their apartments well before Christmas.

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La Vera closes in on completion as Macquarie Park continues residential transformation

Brisbane developer Red &amp; Co's decision to include dual key apartments in its debut Gold Coast apartment development, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/como-varsity-lakes-22-lake-street-varsity-lakes-qld-4227">COMO Varsity Lakes</a>, is proving to be one of the project's biggest drawcards, with buyers quickly snapping up the flexible residences.

More than half of the project's 36 dual key apartments have already sold, helping drive COMO beyond the 50 per cent sold mark within the first month of launch.

The strong response highlights growing demand for apartment designs that can adapt to changing lifestyles, with buyers increasingly looking for homes that accommodate multi-generational living, provide rental income opportunities or simply offer greater flexibility over time.

Located on the shores of Lake Orr, COMO will deliver 156 apartments across 16 levels, with the dual-key residences forming a limited release within the broader development.

Each combines a primary two-bedroom apartment with a fully self-contained studio on a single title, connected by a shared foyer and lockable internal door. The design allows owners to house ageing parents, adult children or guests while maintaining privacy, or lease the secondary residence to generate additional income.

Just 17 of the original 36 dual key apartments remain available.

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The innovative configuration combines two fully self-contained residences on a single title, typically comprising a primary two-bedroom apartment alongside a separate studio residence, connected via a shared foyer and lockable internal door.&nbsp;

The model is proving particularly attractive to owner occupiers navigating changing family dynamics and the realities of the current housing crisis.&nbsp;

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<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/project-marketer/npa">NPA</a>&nbsp;CEO Andrew Erwin said dual key living was resonating strongly with modern buyers because it delivered both financial flexibility and practical lifestyle benefits.&nbsp;

“The housing crisis and rising cost of living are fundamentally changing how Australians think about home ownership,” Erwin said.&nbsp;

“Dual key apartments provide a genuine solution for families who want to stay connected while maintaining independence. Parents can help adult children save for a future home, ageing parents can remain nearby without moving into aged care, and owners still retain privacy and flexibility.

“Importantly, buyers are also recognising the financial advantages. It creates the opportunity to generate additional income from part of the home without the holding costs associated with owning a separate investment property.”&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135546 project_image_fid=363509]

Unlike traditional dual occupancy arrangements, the residences operate under a single title, meaning owners only incur one set of body corporate fees, council rates and holding costs.&nbsp;

The secondary residence can also evolve over time - functioning as guest accommodation, a home office, creative studio or private retreat before later becoming an income-producing asset.

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/red-co">Red &amp; Co</a>&nbsp;Director and Co-Founder David Laverty said the strong early sales reflected growing buyer urgency and changing priorities within the market.&nbsp;

“Securing more than half of COMO’s residences within such a short timeframe is an outstanding result and a clear endorsement of both the design and location,” Laverty said.&nbsp;

“Buyers are responding to the combination of location, connectivity and amenity, but ultimately it’s value relative to other East Coast markets that is driving enquiry.”&nbsp;

“We’re also seeing strong interest from owner occupiers looking for homes that can adapt with them over time. Flexibility has become one of the most important considerations for buyers in today’s market.”&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135546 project_image_fid=363515]

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/bda-architecture">BDA Architecture</a>, COMO features a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom residences with 2.7-metre ceilings and larger-format floorplans aimed at owner occupiers, downsizers and lifestyle-focused buyers.&nbsp;

The development will feature an extensive rooftop recreation and wellness offering including a 25-metre lap pool, sundeck, barbecue and dining areas, gym, sauna, plunge baths, landscaped gardens, wellness spaces and rooftop pickleball and paddleball courts.

The remaining dual key apartments range from 137 sqm to 167 sqm and include generous three-bedroom layouts with separate self-contained studio accommodation and dual parking.&nbsp;

Erwin said the dual key concept represented a broader shift in how Australians would live in the future.

“People want homes that can evolve with their lives,” he said.&nbsp;

“A dual key apartment can suit a family today, support an ageing parent tomorrow, and potentially generate income later on. That adaptability is becoming incredibly valuable in the current environment.”

Prices currently range from $2,115,750 to $2,583,000.&nbsp;

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=135546]

Inter-generational living drives demand for COMO’s dual key apartments as housing pressures reshape buyer priorities 

Builder-developer&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/ceerose">Ceerose</a> has doubled down on its Leichhardt ambitions, lodging its second State Significant Development Application (SSDA) in the suburb in the last six months.

Their newest proposal seeks to transform a former industrial precinct into a new residential community centred around the adaptive reuse of one of the site's heritage warehouse buildings.

The new project, on a 6,930 sqm block at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/40-76-william-street-leichhardt-nsw-2040">40–76 William Street</a>, will bring more than 200 apartments to a suburb that has seen little to no new supply in recent years. It follows Ceerose's late 2025 SSDA for a mixed-use apartment project on nearby Parramatta Road, signalling the developer's growing investment in Sydney's Inner West.

Ceerose Founder Edward Doueihi told Apartments.com.au the developer’s long-standing presence in Leichhardt and the Inner West had given it a strong understanding of how the area has evolved and where its future opportunities lie.

“Ceerose has had a long-standing presence in Leichhardt and the Inner West, giving us a unique understanding of the area’s evolution and future potential,” Doueihi said.

“Having delivered projects throughout the region, we have witnessed the suburb’s transformation first-hand and understand the opportunities for its continued growth.”

Doueihi said that understanding also informed the planning process, with a comprehensive Stakeholder Engagement Outcomes Report prepared before the application was lodged.

The report identified the key issues and concerns raised by neighbouring residents and other stakeholders, allowing those matters to be considered and incorporated into the design where appropriate.

He said the delivery of additional housing would also play an important role in supporting the revitalisation of Norton Street and the Italian Forum.

“By increasing the local residential population, the development is expected to strengthen demand for local businesses, encourage further investment, and help restore the vibrancy that made the precinct a thriving destination in the early 2000s.”

<img alt="First look: Ceerose returns to Leichhardt with 203-apartment adaptive reuse proposal at former warehouse site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="7258c54c-8167-479e-8361-2d5fca9915b4" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Appendix%2010B%20-%20CGI%20-%20View%202.jpg?VersionId=S9DQfxu_jpcB5LrAEYFUbyMzg5odW6i5" />

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/woods-bagot">Woods Bagot</a>, the redevelopment would involve the demolition of four existing industrial buildings while retaining and adaptively reusing the site's most significant warehouse. The retained structure would anchor a new residential precinct comprising five interconnected buildings arranged around a large central landscaped courtyard, with heights stepping from five storeys along the surrounding residential streets to 11 storeys at the William Street corner.

According to the Architecture Design Report by Woods Bagot, the proposal "seeks to create a residential village centred around a generous green heart while celebrating the site's industrial heritage through the adaptive reuse of the existing warehouse building."

The development would comprise 203 apartments, with 188 proposed as build-to-sell residences, alongside 15 affordable housing apartments.

Rather than treating the retained warehouse as a standalone heritage object, Woods Bagot has sought to weave the site's industrial history throughout the masterplan. The proposal retains the north and west facades of the landmark corner warehouse, while new buildings reinterpret the site's brick-and-steel industrial language through their material palette and architectural expression.

<img alt="First look: Ceerose returns to Leichhardt with 203-apartment adaptive reuse proposal at former warehouse site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="9e8c64c2-881b-49e1-8c90-6b6acaaa45b6" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Appendix%2010C%20-%20CGI%20-%20View%203.jpg?VersionId=Qm8_8H_Xrg_sc4Mdjc59vlAcKF_5wRTb" />

The design is organised around what Woods Bagot describes as a "green heart", a landscaped communal open space that reinstates the leafy character removed when the site became an industrial storage facility. A new pedestrian laneway running through the site would improve permeability between William, North and Francis streets, linking residents through landscaped public spaces while activating the ground plane.

Residents would have access to communal gardens and shared recreation areas distributed throughout the development. Sustainability has also been prioritised, with the project targeting an average 7.9-star NatHERS rating. Proposed initiatives include rooftop solar generation, rainwater harvesting, passive solar design, naturally ventilated lobbies, extensive cross-ventilation and the reuse of existing building fabric to reduce embodied carbon.

The adaptive reuse strategy became a defining feature of the application after heritage investigations found only one of the site's industrial buildings could feasibly be retained. The Heritage Impact Statement concludes that preserving the key warehouse façades while referencing the site's industrial character throughout the new development provides an appropriate balance between renewal and conservation.

<img alt="First look: Ceerose returns to Leichhardt with 203-apartment adaptive reuse proposal at former warehouse site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="efffafdb-594f-4e2b-a067-921fd51c05e1" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Appendix%2010D%20-%20CGI%20-%20View%204.jpg?VersionId=DPmE4.k16YRt0i27hEZVtJAffarpvUfx" />

"Retention and adaptation of the site buildings has been explored but found not to be feasible except for the tallest building, whose street facades will be retained," the heritage report states.

"The proposed building will interpret the brick and steel character of the subject site, including reuse of some components and construction of a large 'sawtooth' structure in the proposed open space."

<img alt="First look: Ceerose returns to Leichhardt with 203-apartment adaptive reuse proposal at former warehouse site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="3bfef2b5-83f5-40cd-9cab-767092f34266" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Appendix%2010E%20-%20CGI%20-%20View%205.jpg?VersionId=7asb3i_ql4ybbuJOUb5UHBEIy0Q9t.DF" />

The William Street site is located around 300 metres from Leichhardt North Light Rail station and a short walk to Norton Street's retail, dining and hospitality precinct. The surrounding area has increasingly become a focus for urban renewal given its proximity to public transport and the Parramatta Road corridor.

Doueihi founded Ceerose in 1998 and has grown the business to become one of Sydney's more active apartment developers in recent years, with completed projects including The Alex Collective in Alexandria, Abbie's Lane in Annandale, and the award-winning Munro House in Elizabeth Bay. They are currently delivering Belgravia, 17 luxury apartments in Potts Point.

First look: Ceerose doubles down in Leichhardt with adaptive reuse of former warehouse site

Rural Property

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Holten at Kilmore has been listed for auction by Ruralco Property’s local office who expect it to attract local, interstate and even international buyer interest.
The land area of 130 hectares is of productive soils.
It has enabled the vendors to run an average of 40 cows and their calves plus additional replacement heifers over the last seven years.
The 480 O’Grady’s Road property comes with a five-bedroom plus study architect designed.
Then grandly proportioned homestead comes with rendered brick veneer in a Tuscan style.
There is also the inherent future development potential as possible five acre or similar sized small holding and lifestyle subdivisions with quality homes that are already against the southern boundary of this holding.
The vendor says he bought the property with his wife in 2008 to pursue a farming interest as it was within a thirty-minute commute to Melbourne’s northern suburbs down the multi lane Hume Freeway.
But he says that reaching retirement age, having sold his professional practice, and seeing evidence that his physical energy resources are fading, the time has come to downsize.
“Owning and developing Holten, named in honour of my father, has been a great experience but we both feel that downsizing will be right course for the future.
“The next owner should be in a prime position to capitalise on the prospect to subdivide and develop this holding into smaller lifestyle lots which has been happening around us for some years.
He adds “one of the keys here is the location midway between the Kilmore East and Wandong railway stations which are already used by a growing number of city commuters each day, together with the Hume Freeway access to the northern suburbs”.
Adjoining the house is a tiled in ground solar heated swimming pool together with a Plexipave full sized tennis court.
There are seven catchment dams, Broadhurst Creek adjacent to the southern boundary and two annual creeks traversing the Holten property in a 650 mm plus annual rainfall average.
Ruralco Property Kilmore’s selling agent Jeanette Laffan says the expected price estimate for Holten is $2.75 million to $3 million.
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j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

Kilmore rural property expected to attract interest

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Emerald View, a 96 hectare rural lifestyle property in the historic Grandchester district, has been listed for May 5 Ray White auction.
It has been held in the one extended family for the past 147 years.
The family cattle brand (HRO) was the fifth registered cattle brand in Queensland, owned throughout that time by the Rafter and McLaughlin families.
Emerald View has been an ideal farm for grazing - initially a dairy farm but operating as a cattle property since 1968.
Emerald View is located 75 kilometres or just over an hour from the Brisbane CBD.
<img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/po.images/2017/04/6/RWR_Emerald_View_021_R.jpg" alt="">
There are more than 40 acres of fertile alluvial creek flats that have previously been cultivated with around 70% or over 160 acres is cleared.
The house, first built in 1966, was raised in 1987 and extended and renovated six years ago, with wide wraparound varandahs on three sides.
 
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Grandchester farm Emerald View to be sold after 147 years

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The largest rural land parcel at Tuggeranong has been listed for $7.5 million.
Located at <a href="https://www.realcommercial.com.au/property-land+development-act-tuggeranong-502053250">1079 Tharwa Drive</a>, the property sits on the eastern side of the historical Tharwa Bridge.
It has five kilometres of Murrumbidgee River frontage.
It consists of 1342 hectares of river corridor, pasture improved farming land and signficant woodlands.
There is a 99 year lease on the farming land that has been used since the 1850s.
It also has a homestead featuring five bedrooms and two bathrooms along with a large study and separated living areas.
A pool is also available along with a powered shearing shed, farm shed and feed storage sheds.
The farm sits as the gateway to Tharwa Village.
The property is offered through Civium Commercial agent Andrew Smith and Raine and Horne Commercial agents Nick Cotis and Frank Morella.
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Largest rural land parcel at Tuggeranong listed for $7.5 million

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Brisbane-based fashion retailer Michael Josephson and his wife Melissa have bought the historic Boscobel homestead in the Southern Highlands.
They paid $4.3 million for the 1870s-built mansion, which has been the home of recruitment industry boss Steven Hallis since 2007.
It has been on and off the market through for two year most recently listed with Bill Carpenter, of WC Carpenter.
Josephson is the co-founder of the successful lifestyle fashion chain Universal Store.
The 48.5-hectare property in Sutton Forest was the long-time thoroughbred breeding stud of Richard Turnley.
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Boscobel, Sutton Forest sold

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Crowd-funder DomaCom has 90 retail investors now holding a stake in a property in Victoria’s prime Western Districts pastoral land.
The 150-hectare property, Doyles is just outside Casterton near the South Australian border.
It is heartland prime beef cattle region with 11 paddocks of rolling high country fronting Lower Coleraine Road.
Prior to the contract to purchase the property the fund secured a local operator to be the tenant.
DomaCom’s head of property Jason Bennett said the purchased delivered a packaged opportunity to investors to enable them to invest into the rural sector.
"It is expected that investors will receive an estimated combined income and capital return of 10% per annum on their investment, based on historic returns, which is a significant improvement on bank interest," he said.
"More importantly they will have the ability to participate in the strong capital growth currently being experienced in the rural sector."
DomaCom CEO Arthur Naoumidis says the group is “enormously proud” to sign off on its first agriculture crowdfunding project, which has taken about two months to bed down.
“It’s our understanding that this is the first crowdfunding project for agriculture assets anywhere in the world.
"We knew from the Kidman bid that there was a thirst by ‘mum-and-dad’ investors to acquire agriculture assets, and we have been looking at other properties for quite some time.
"We have already more investors on our books looking to invest in this asset class, so we are confident that the Doyles deal is just the first of many.”
Elders’ Hamilton-based David Peardon, who handled the sale, said the first successful crowdfunding exercise to allow retail investors to collectively acquire an agriculture asset was an “exciting development” for the industry.
You can download an eBook from DomaCom on new smart ways to invest in agriculture, here.
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DomaCom investors sign off on first global agriculture crowdfunding deal in Victoria's Western Districts

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The Ashton family have sold Markdale, the NSW country farm with unrivalled pioneering polo history.
The 2250 hectare Binda farm has been held by three generations of Ashton's, most recently by company director Geoff Ashton and high society interior decorator wife Mary.
The 1920s house with extensions by the acclaimed Professor Lesie Wilkinson is set in an Edna Walling-designed garden.
A polo-player weathervane tops the seven bedroom homestead to symbolise the family's long association with the sport.
The undisclosed price sale was negotiated by Richard Royle Director of Colliers International Rural &amp; Agribusiness.  
A family with four boys from Sydney bought the home, continuing that theme.
The father of four polo playing sons, James Ashton, who put Australia on the world polo map, bought the original holding, followed by his son, Geoff snr.
In 1984, Geoff jnr took over the Southern Tablelands property that derives wool production and guesthouse income from its two original stone cottages and the shearers quarters.
Markdale's garden is acknowledged as one of the great country gardens of Australia, rejuvenated in recent years, featuring include a wisteria and rose pergola, several sculptures and lake with its Chinese bridge.
Only once, at Markdale, did the two Australian icons combine their talents, Professor Wilkinson extensions and gardens by Edna Walling
The guestbook shows just how generously the Ashtons have entertained their family and friends there since 1921.
Geoff and Mary have thought about selling it on and off for almost the past two decades, and would love for a buyer to emerge who has a passion for the property, set about two and a half hours drive from Sydney.
James Ashton started as the copy boy on the Hay newspaper before owning it, and in business become chairman of MLC and The Commercial Banking Company of Sydney.
He had four sons Jim, Robert, Geoff and Phil, who began playing polo against his wishes, but persuaded by his wife ‘that those who play together, stay together’ he let them continue.
In the 1930’s, the brothers shipped their horses to England, the United States and India to compete against top international teams, winning numerous tournaments, including England’s Hurlingham Championship and the Indian Empire Shield, and an invincible team in Australia retiring unbeaten in 1938.
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jchancellor-FAypfDUnLy

Historic NSW country farm Markdale sold by Ashton family

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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/70581/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1">
GUEST OBSERVER
Rural and regional Australia have had a hard time of late. The economies of Sydney and Melbourne are growing, but much of the rest of their states are not. The population of regional areas is stagnating and agriculture is struggling. 
Perhaps worst of all there is a feeling that no-one in Canberra or in the booming coastal periphery cares about this. The people of Orange have apparently spoken.
Outside Sydney, behind what seems like an impervious sandstone curtain, not all is well. Even the largest towns in regional New South Wales are struggling to retain their populations and have faced difficult economic times through the present decade, although the drought years have faded away.
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Outside the big cities, many populations in regional and rural Australia are declining or static. ABS, Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2014-15, CC BY
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Agriculture still matters, for employment and exports, but mechanisation has cost jobs. Farming is still how people see rural and regional Australia, but it is certainly not the only thing.
There is more to rural Australia than agriculture, and most places have shifted away from the mass production of agricultural commodities – move over the wheat-sheep belt – towards the marketing of rural lifestyles and landscapes. Farming becomes valuable as scenery.
City people can be tempted for weekends away and old-fashioned farm stays have evolved. But that works most easily for NSW coastal towns – like Berry and Kiama – that are within striking distances of capital cities. More distant inland places have had to work a little harder to diversify.
Ironically, Orange is one of the towns that have led the way in terms of change. An enormously successful FOOD (Food of Orange District) festival has drawn in city crowds and tempted some to remain. At the other end of the state, the Tamworth Country Music Festival has grown every year and been a massive boost to regional income.
<h2>Jumpsuiting on the bandwagon</h2>
But it is probably even smaller towns that have benefited most from festivals. Most successful of all has been Parkes, otherwise simply a transport centre on the wheat and sheep plains. This week it celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Elvis Festival. 
The whim of a handful of townsfolk, one of whom later changed his name to Elvis Lennox, the festival began in a tiny way in 1993. Parkes citizens were doubtful – what had Elvis to do with rural Australia? But the local newspaper, the tourism office and the rugby club – in jumpsuited style – got on board, and the festival boomed.
Once it lasted barely a weekend. Now it lasts five days. Two hundred people came to the first festival – now there are 20,000, almost twice the town’s population. Accommodation is booked five years in advance, home hosting extends to nearby towns like Forbes and even Orange, and tents overflow on Graceland on the Green. 
The festival brings in more than A$10 million, employs many people, and has enabled even improbable local businesses to prosper. The local vet offers “Elvis costumes for the smaller dog”. The two tattoo parlours bring in new seasonal Elvis designs. Only the funeral directors appear to have failed to gain any trickle-down effects.
Certainly luck helps, but inspiration, patience and creativity – which are not only metropolitan traits – really work. Parkes now has its King’s Castle, an Elvis museum that ensures that Elvis and his famous gold lamé suit never leave town.
Where Parkes has succeeded, its neighbours have sought to follow. Trundle, once famous for having the widest main street in the country, is now more famous for its ABBA festival. Kandos, not much further from Parkes, is working hard to develop its Bob Marley Festival. 
Who will claim Leonard Cohen? Unlike Elvis, he at least had visited Australia.
<h2>Musters and other big celebrations</h2>
There is music in the air in NSW and that music is creating employment, placing and keeping some small towns on the map and simply being a source of enjoyment when, as in the drought years of earlier this century, times were particularly tough.
The annual Deni Ute Muster has spurred revival in Deniliquin. The more static Utes in the Paddock – an open-air gallery of utes mounted in a parody of Stonehenge – breathed new life into tiny Ootha. Glen Innes remembered its Celtic ancestry and constructed an impressive circle of standing stones. 
Meanwhile, the citizens of Nyngan, at the centre of Bogan Shire, are trusting that the statue of the Big Bogan (“who stands proud with his mullet, stubbies singlet and Southern Cross tattoo”) will breathe some new life into the town in the wake of the success of the Big Banana in Coffs Harbour. And who could resist Priscilla Queen of the Desert’s birthday bash at Broken Hill’s Broken Heel Festival?
But it is not only festivals. Mountain-biking trails may work just as well. Silverton has protected its heritage buildings and become a centre for the visual arts. Bowral can thank Don Bradman for growing up there. Hill End has set the pace in reviving gold panning.
None of these activities can ever effectively replace agriculture, but all have a part to play in making regional Australia a richer and more vibrant place.
Regional Australia cannot be written off. Services, tourism and the creative industries have become a vital part of the regional mix. And the smartest regions are those that have recognised this, sought diversity and flexibility, and become creative. 
On January 12, the Elvis Express will roll into town, and Parkes will celebrate 25 years of a festival that has created employment, generated income, provided a degree of pleasure in the drought years and given one town more than a reason to hope.
John Connell is professor of Human Geography, University of Sydney and can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/john-connell-94439" target="_blank">here</a>.
Chris Gibson is director, UOW Global Challenges Program &amp; Professor of Human Geography, University of Wollongong and can be contacted <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/chris-gibson-9277" target="_blank">here</a>.
Both are authors for The Conversation.
 
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Wheat, sheep or Elvis Presley? Rural Australia has had to change its tune

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The Victorian-era country mansion, Tongy that has housed generations of well-heeled pastoralists through 180 years, has been burnt down.
The homestead and 4637ha station is just 5km north of the tiny village of Uarbry, which lost five of its 11 homes in the recent blaze.
Set on the banks of the Talbragar River, the homestead overlooked some of the state’s best black soil plains for crops and cattle farming.
Marshall Baillieu, chief executive of investment bank Rothschild Australia bought the property from family members for ­almost $20 million two years ago.
The estate agent who sold the property Richard Royle said residents had lost their homes, and also lost their businesses.
The Victorian sandstone home had an elegant wraparound veranda and stately central corridor that had featured in a number of films.
It was in 1825 the former convict Richard Fitzgerald was granted freehold title over the property by NSW governor.
Fitzgerald had acted as an overseer of the colony’s early farms.
Until the weekend, sitting at the homestead’s front doorstep was a 150-year old doormat — which was still used everyday and still carried the initials and crest of Fitzgerald.
The Baillieu family bought the property in 1923 from Fitzgerald's five grand daughters. 
Tongy was resold in 2015 within the family after it was offered widely to other investors.
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Tongy, the Baillieu family homestead burnt  

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The Tamworth district farms, Mount View Station (above) and Wildcroft have been listed for sale with an $8.5 million price tag.  
Considered one of the New England’s most prestigious properties, the current landowners have transformed the four 1800s properties on the estate.
It comes with the large Federation era homesead with 11 inch pressed metal ceilings.  
Spanning 2,500 hectares, the land currently serves as soft grazing country housing about 5,000 lambs.
It can be used as tourism accommodation. 
There are over 90 dams with 34 new and 11 key dams. Is infrastructure includes a prerequisite woolshed, sheep and cattle yards, silos and machinery sheds.  
The property has been listed through Gavin Beard of Landmark Tamworth. 
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Mount View Station and Wildcroft listed in Tamworth

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A farm with five adjoining freehold titles at Goomboorian has been sold for $3.5 million.
Located at <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property/649-tagigan-rd-goomboorian-qld-4570" target="_blank">649 Tagigan Road</a>, the property consists of 815 acres set 20 minutes east of Gympie and 40 minutes to Noosa. It is two hours to Brisbane.
The five adjoining freehold titles all have road and creek frontage with each tile fenced with new 4 barbs, wooden posts, and steel gates and corners.
The creek runs most, if not all, of the year, with waterholes and billabongs are available as well.
The property has 350 acres of Pangola pasture and 450 acres of Callide and Katambora Rhodes grass.
There is a three bedroom brick home.
Two large rainwater tanks are also available as are the 190 cows that are present on the farm.
The property was offered through Bambling Property agent John Bambling.
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