<p>The residential transformation of St Kilda Road is set to continue into with more new apartment plans for the sought-after boulevard.</p>

<p>Wing Tai Asia has lodged plans for a major residential tower at 464-466 St Kilda Road, replacing the former VACC House with an 18-storey mixed-use development designed around a retained heritage podium and a sculpted contemporary tower.</p>

<p>The proposal, prepared under Victoria’s Significant Residential Development with Affordable Housing pathway, would deliver 325 apartments and ground-floor retail across the prominent 4,653 sqm boulevard site in Melbourne’s St Kilda Road North Precinct.</p>

<p>The project centres on the adaptive reuse of the site’s heritage-listed VACC Building, an eight-storey office designed by Bernard Evans that has occupied the address for decades. Planning documents state the development would involve “carefully dismantling and conserving off-site the original metal fabric of the podium visible from St Kilda Road,” before reinstating it as the defining frontage of the new scheme.</p>

<p>Above the restored podium, Wing Tai is proposing a curvilinear residential tower. The scheme includes 172 one-bedroom apartments, 63 two-bedroom apartments, 66 three-bedroom apartments, and 24 four-bedroom apartments, alongside two ground-floor food and beverage tenancies fronting St Kilda Road.</p>

<p>The tower has been designed with substantial articulation and variable setbacks to minimise perceived bulk and maintain view corridors along the boulevard. Urbis, which prepared the planning report, said the design “has been significantly articulated through a curvilinear design” with “an interplay with materials, façade expression and depth” to create visual separation and visual interest.</p>

<p>The proposal also includes 254 basement car spaces, landscaped pedestrian links connecting St Kilda Road and Queens Lane, and a biophilic landscape strategy featuring canopy trees, raised planters, cascading greenery and a glass oculus pool overlooking the eastern frontage.</p>

<p>Planning documents confirm the $270.1 million development will contribute 3 per cent of project costs to the Social Housing Growth Fund as part of the application process.</p>

<p>Wing Tai acquired the St Kilda Road property in 2018 alongside Abacus Property Group for $95.38 million, before later consolidating ownership of the site. The property previously served as the Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce headquarters for around 60 years.</p>

<p data-end="345" data-start="110">The transformation of the St Kilda Rd boulevard is already beginning to materialise, with a number of high-profile projects recently completed, launched, or approaching launch as developers continue to back the long-term appeal of the precinct.</p>

<p data-end="689" data-start="347">Among the most notable recent completions is Louise by Samuel Property Group, just off the strip on Queens Lane, the same pocket Hirsch &amp; Faigen recently launched The Queensbury. Mirvac is too on the same street with The Albertine, which is approaching completion.</p>

<p data-end="689" data-start="347">Dexus recently secured approval for its slice of St Kilda Road, while Gurner also has approved plans for the precinct.</p>


Joel Robinson

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

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


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

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


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

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


Bottega House secures landmark riverfront site in St Lucia 

<section data-scroll-anchor="false" data-testid="conversation-turn-6" data-turn="assistant" data-turn-id="request-WEB:84a2af5e-d7cf-4ddf-922a-f4d44d6c6caa-2" data-turn-id-container="request-WEB:84a2af5e-d7cf-4ddf-922a-f4d44d6c6caa-2" dir="auto">
<section data-scroll-anchor="false" data-testid="conversation-turn-2" data-turn="assistant" data-turn-id="request-WEB:5a5ab36c-8dd3-454c-b456-c501f22f0eb4-0" data-turn-id-container="request-WEB:5a5ab36c-8dd3-454c-b456-c501f22f0eb4-0" dir="auto">
<p data-end="157" data-start="0">The arrival of the first piling rig officially marks the commencement of construction at SIERA’s new beachside apartment development, Exhale, in Northcliffe.</p>

<p data-end="459" data-start="159"><a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/exhale-surfers-paradise-8-enderley-avenue-surfers-paradise-qld-4217">Exhale</a>, a glass-encased tower featuring 54 large-scale apartments at 8 Enderley Avenue, is SIERA’s third Gold Coast development. It follows the recently completed PIPIS Bilinga beachfront project, which achieved suburb-record prices, and the soon-to-be-completed Chevron Island development, Tapestry.</p>

<p data-end="459" data-start="159">[smartcode_project:default project_id=112661 project_image_fid=359603]</p>

<p data-end="651" data-start="461"><a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/siera">SIERA</a> Founder and Managing Director Brent Thompson said the arrival of the piling rig represented a significant milestone for the development, which is scheduled for completion in late 2028.</p>

<p data-end="950" data-start="653">Over the next month, around 260 piles are expected to be installed as work progresses on the basement structure. The building is anticipated to rise above ground level early next year, before unveiling its sculptural glass curtain wall, developed in collaboration with specialist façade engineers.</p>

<p data-end="1081" data-start="952">“The façade was designed to maximise panoramic coastal views while creating a distinctive architectural identity,” Thompson said.</p>

<p data-end="1081" data-start="952">[smartcode_project:default project_id=112661 project_image_fid=355935]</p>

<p data-end="1307" data-start="1083">Designed by BDA Architecture, Exhale will comprise just 54 two- and three-bedroom residences across 26 levels, a level of low-density living rarely delivered in this beachside pocket between Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach.</p>

<p data-end="1522" data-start="1309">The project has been conceived as a resident-only building, with no short-stay accommodation permitted. SIERA says the model is intended to appeal to long-term owner-occupiers rather than transient holiday demand.</p>

<p data-end="1522" data-start="1309">[smartcode_project:default project_id=112661 project_image_fid=361052]</p>

<p data-end="1714" data-start="1524">Residences have been designed with large-format layouts and expansive glazing, with most apartments featuring more than 30 metres of glass frontage to maximise natural light and ocean views.</p>

<p data-end="1945" data-start="1716">The amenity offering spans two levels and centres on wellness and lifestyle, including a heated magnesium pool, sauna, yoga and Pilates studio, gymnasium, private dining facilities, cinema lounge, and dedicated surfcraft storage.</p>

<p data-end="1945" data-start="1716">[smartcode_project:default project_id=112661 project_image_fid=359607]</p>

<p data-end="2220" data-is-last-node="" data-is-only-node="" data-start="1947">More than half of the apartments have already sold. SIERA has also opened a sales gallery for Exhale at its Chevron Island commercial premises, near its Tapestry tower and the site of its second Chevron Island apartment development, which is slated to launch in early 2027.</p>
</section>
</section>

<p>[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=112661]</p>


SIERA kicks off construction at Northcliffe tower Exhale

Sydney Apartments

<html><body>
<p>EXPERT OBSERVER </p>
<p>The Australian Bureau of Statistics published building activity data this week which showed there were 227,122 dwellings under construction nationally, only slightly lower (0.6%) than the record high set over the March quarter earlier this year.  </p>
<p>69% of these dwellings were classified as ‘other residential projects’ which are predominantly apartments. </p>
<p>Three quarters of these new apartment projects are located in New South Wales (66,511) and Victoria (50,085).</p>
<p>Click <a href="https://www.corelogic.com.au/sites/default/files/2018-10/2011012_settlement_risk_blog_0.jpg" target="_blank">here</a> to enlarge</p>
<p><img src="https://www.corelogic.com.au/sites/default/files/2018-10/2011012_settlement_risk_blog_0.jpg" alt="CoreLogic Settlement Risk Blog Graphs" width="2258" height="1192"></p>
<p>Many of these apartments would have been sold off the plan, at a time when housing conditions were much stronger and credit conditions weren’t as tight.  With so many units in the pipeline at a time when overall housing market conditions are weakening, settlement risk is heightened.  </p>
<p>Settlement risk refers to the risk that the purchaser of a property isn’t able to meet their settlement obligations and subsequently the contract for purchase may not settle.  Settlement risk is inherently higher for an off-the-plan purchase due to the long time period between signing the contract of sale and the completion of the project prior to settlement.  Market conditions and personal circumstances can change materially between these two dates.  Off-the-plan buyers would of course be hoping the value of property rises during the settlement period, and this has certainly been the case in Sydney and Melbourne during the growth phase.  </p>
<p>The unfortunate reality is that dwelling values are now falling and for some off-the-plan buyers, the value of their unit at the time of settlement could be lower than the contract price.  Metadata from CoreLogic’s Valex platform highlights this trend.  In Sydney, 30% of off-the-plan unit valuations were lower than the contract price at the time of settlement in September, double the percentage from a year ago.  In Melbourne, 28% of off-the-plan unit settlements received a valuation lower than the contract price.  In Brisbane, where unit values remain 10.5% below their 2008 peak, the proportion was substantially higher, at 48%, although the trend is easing due to the unit construction cycle peaking two years ago and much of the unit supply now absorbed.  </p>
<p>Off-the-plan buyers who find their valuation comes in lower than the contract price at the time of settlement could be in for a rude shock.  Lenders will generally be looking for a loan to valuation ratio of at least 90%, more often closer to 80% - meaning their deposit will need to be at least 10% and potentially closer to 20% of the property value.  If the valuation comes in lower than expected, the buyer may need to top up their deposit in order to meet the lenders loan to valuation criteria.   Some buyers may simply not have the funds to do so which could see the contract fail to settle. </p>
<p>Additionally, some buyers may simply be reluctant to settle on a property that is now worth less than what they originally thought.  Im not a lawyer, but contracts of sale are generally tight. Buyers who aren’t able to settle or choose not to settle would likely lose their deposit and could be sued by the developer to recover any costs incurred, including any difference between the contract price and ultimate selling price.  </p>
<p>With the unit construction cycle moving through an unprecedented peak, the settlement phase will be an important facet of the market to monitor.  </p>
<p>Markets where unit supply has been high and market conditions weak have seen a surge in loss making re-sales.  Brisbane and Perth are prime examples, with loss making apartment re-sales substantially outweighing loss making resales for houses.  An oversupply of inner city apartments has seen a divergence in Melbourne as well, however stronger housing market conditions across the city have helped to keep a lid on more substantial instances of loss as seen in Brisbane and Perth.  </p>
<p>Click <a href="https://www.corelogic.com.au/sites/default/files/2018-10/2011012_settlement_risk_blog_houses_v_units.jpg" target="_blank">here</a> to enlarge</p>
<p><img src="https://www.corelogic.com.au/sites/default/files/2018-10/2011012_settlement_risk_blog_houses_v_units.jpg" alt="CoreLogic Settlement Risk Blog Houses v Units" width="2116" height="642"></p>
<p>As new apartment supply reaching settlement peaks in Sydney and Melbourne, amidst weaker housing market conditions, tighter finance, fewer domestic and foreign investors and sublime rental conditions, we could see loss making resales across this sector trend higher as well.  </p>
<p><em>Tim Lawless is the national research director of CoreLogic RP Data</em></p>
</body></html>

tlawless-5VLUrbAk9s

A growing settlement risk across the Melbourne and Sydney unit markets: Tim Lawless

<html><body>
<div class="cq-article-content-paras section">
<p>Sydney-based developer Ceerose said the absence of foreign buyers had left it with unsold apartments.</p>
<p>Chinese buyers, including many local Chinese Australians with capital from mainland China, accounted in good times for up to half of Ceerose's clientele, the Australian Financial Review noted.</p>
<p>"This year the market's hit the handbrake," Ceerose director Edward Doueihi said.</p>
<p data-gtm-vis-first-on-screen-7770372_137="66719" data-gtm-vis-total-visible-time-7770372_137="4000" data-gtm-vis-has-fired-7770372_137="1">"It's really affected us.</p>
<p data-gtm-vis-first-on-screen-7770372_137="66719" data-gtm-vis-total-visible-time-7770372_137="4000" data-gtm-vis-has-fired-7770372_137="1">"We've taken our developments off the market now. We've stopped marketing. We've stopped buying sites. In Sydney it's very negative."</p>
<p>He was now renting 100 of his unsold apartments across Sydney's inner west, north shore and the CBD.</p>
</div>
<div class="cq-article-content-media section">"We're holding a lot of stock," he said. "We just rent them out now. We can't move them."</div>
<div class="cq-article-content-media section"> </div>
<div class="cq-article-content-media section">Doueihi said the role landlord was not one he'd traditionally played.</div>
<div class="cq-article-content-media section">
<p>Donehi noted a further complication was a simultaneous slowdown in the sales and rental markets.</p>
</div>
<div class="cq-article-content-paras section">
<p data-gtm-vis-first-on-screen-7770372_137="90738" data-gtm-vis-total-visible-time-7770372_137="4000" data-gtm-vis-has-fired-7770372_137="1">Doueihi added the weaker rental market meant his average rent across one, two and three-bedroom apartments was $650 per week, about $50 less than landlord investors secured a year ago.</p>
<p data-gtm-vis-first-on-screen-7770372_137="90738" data-gtm-vis-total-visible-time-7770372_137="4000" data-gtm-vis-has-fired-7770372_137="1">His units were all occupied, but it had taken an average six weeks.</p>
<p>"I've never seen markets in 32 years that the rental market's been affected and the residential sales have been affected," he said.</p>
<p>"It's scary."</p>
</div>
</body></html>

j.ballantyne1990-6AQqhLzZaK

Ceerose become landlords after Sydney apartment sales slowdown

<html><body>
<p>EXPERT OBSERVATION</p>
<p>Both new residential building and renovation activity declined significantly in 2017, with total seasonally adjusted dwelling starts down to 52,600 by the final quarter of the year, well down from the peak of 62,300 in the first quarter of calendar year 2016.</p>
<p>The drop was driven by a 17% year-on-year decline in attached dwellings, with Brisbane's inner city apartment market the prime culprit. </p>
<p><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Aqgce8eMVis/Ws3krKiHsuI/AAAAAAAApW4/hwxLmhWjgzMkCiXBwS61LwBb0e9cfsQXgCLcBGAs/s1600/3.jpg"><img src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Aqgce8eMVis/Ws3krKiHsuI/AAAAAAAApW4/hwxLmhWjgzMkCiXBwS61LwBb0e9cfsQXgCLcBGAs/s640/3.jpg" width="640" height="386" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="1346"></a></p>
<p>Sundry indicators suggest that activity across Queensland should now trend moderately upwards, spurred on by a healthier spread of boutique developments, 'plexes, and townhomes.</p>
<p>But inner Brisbane's new build high-rise sector is absolutely cactus as the renters move in. </p>
<p>Interestingly, despite the extremely high level of apartment starts through this cycle, total dwelling completions continued to decline for another quarter, suggesting that all is not well in developer-land. </p>
<p><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fxCJHA8tq6o/Ws3lYKrikcI/AAAAAAAApXY/P5ORNb1wvhQ0wojNqhZxHtnvOX-DwSl0gCLcBGAs/s1600/5.jpg"><img src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fxCJHA8tq6o/Ws3lYKrikcI/AAAAAAAApXY/P5ORNb1wvhQ0wojNqhZxHtnvOX-DwSl0gCLcBGAs/s640/5.jpg" width="640" height="386" data-original-height="808" data-original-width="1338"></a></p>
<p><strong>Crunch looms for developers</strong></p>
<p>By the end of the year there were still some 150,000 attached dwellings under construction. for the seventh consecutive quarter.</p>
<p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6uuK9Vf8lJw/Ws3uwfvG1oI/AAAAAAAApXs/hd3mUvlFK6wWWot_rbIw_LtZco3QyHtwgCLcBGAs/s1600/1.jpg"><img src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6uuK9Vf8lJw/Ws3uwfvG1oI/AAAAAAAApXs/hd3mUvlFK6wWWot_rbIw_LtZco3QyHtwgCLcBGAs/s640/1.jpg" width="640" height="382" data-original-height="825" data-original-width="1380"></a></p>
<p>Drilling down a level it's clear to see that while apartment activity was fading fast in Melbourne and Brisbane respectively, Sydney and the state New South Wales had more than 68,000 attached dwellings under construction.</p>
<p>To say that this is unprecedented would be an understatement; the numbers are off the charts!</p>
<p>Now it does take a long time to see apartment projects through from approval, but in Sydney the completions just haven't been hitting the market in the numbers expected.</p>
<p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Rq6BLQR7lGc/Ws3krLf7-rI/AAAAAAAApW0/FofyGN3Y-BEk1VE3yTRvzAk-EzbKXW1FQCLcBGAs/s1600/2.jpg"><img src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Rq6BLQR7lGc/Ws3krLf7-rI/AAAAAAAApW0/FofyGN3Y-BEk1VE3yTRvzAk-EzbKXW1FQCLcBGAs/s640/2.jpg" width="640" height="386" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="1352"></a></p>
<p>Total dwelling completions in 2017 for New South Wales were 61,600, with just over half of that total accounted for by attached dwellings, which on a net completions basis is barely keeping pace with demand. </p>
<p>Officially, of course, everything is fine.</p>
<p>There are few reported defaults, and settlement valuations are holding up reasonably well despite the softening of the resale market and the total evaporation of the offshore Chinese bid.</p>
<p>With pre-sales flagging it's certainly hard to envisage as many new projects getting off the ground, as investors grapple for finance in the midst of a Royal Commission into banking misconduct.</p>
<p>It's become a vicious circle, with nervous banks requiring higher pre-sales which developers are unable to achieve, and finance for construction thus not forthcoming. </p>
<p>In any case, a raft of actioned and proposed budgetary and regulatory macroprudential measures have made property investment less appealing at the margin (and totally unappealing for foreign investors). </p>
<p>Another compelling indicator of troubled times ahead for developers is the sheer number of dwellings approved but not commenced at 46,400, mostly accounted for by apartments and by far the highest figure in Australia's history. </p>
<p><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gUWVmdnHC2E/Ws3kr6g6XAI/AAAAAAAApW8/wcRYn02NKMIyys25qx5zJ4VRnBJ_JRaZQCLcBGAs/s1600/4.jpg"><img src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gUWVmdnHC2E/Ws3kr6g6XAI/AAAAAAAApW8/wcRYn02NKMIyys25qx5zJ4VRnBJ_JRaZQCLcBGAs/s640/4.jpg" width="640" height="380" data-original-height="825" data-original-width="1385"></a></p>
<p><strong>What happens next?</strong></p>
<p>Now sure, the plural of anecdote is not data, but I believe that we'll see many of Sydney's apartment projects running into trouble. </p>
<p>The official line is that defaults are low, and everything is going swimmingly, but I'm not so sure. </p>
<p>By the way, don't rely on anything you read here either, this is just my opinion.</p>
<p>Take a drive around, speak to a few sales staff, observe how apartment projects are progressing. </p>
<p>In addition to the astonishing boom and collapse of Chinese investors, another potentially unique aspect of this cycle is that construction and materials costs could remain high in Sydney, even in the face of a sharp drop in apartment activity.</p>
<p>Forged on the back of a stamp and transfer duty bonanza from both residential housing and asset sales, the state has embarked upon an overdue thrust at tackling its infrastructure deficit, in turn propelling total construction employment to even greater heights. </p>
<p>As a result construction employment surged higher than it had ever been before both in absolute terms and as a share of the workforce, squeezing developer margins.</p>
<p>Incidentally, I personally believe that most of the apartments approved in Sydney will be converted into dwelling starts in the fullness of time, but quite possibly at a different price and rate. </p>
<p>Receivers and cashed up opportunists will stand by at the ready. </p>
</body></html>

Receivers and cashed up opportunists are at the ready watching Sydney apartment prices: Pete Wargent

<html><body><div class="page" title="Page 1">
<div class="section">
<div class="section">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p>Sydney's apartment market has challenges emerging as new supply increasingly comes on line and banks continue to tighten funding to investors.</p>
<p>There was little potential for further unit price growth, according to BIS Oxford Economics.</p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Apartment development has increasingly moved from inner Sydney suburbs to the city’s middle ring, it noted.</span></p>
<p><span>After accounting for around 29% of total apartment building approvals in 2010/11, middle ring Sydney suburbs comprised 40% of apartment building approvals in 2016/17.</span></p>
<p><span>Two bedroom apartments account for most of the Sydney stock.</span></p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Suburbs </span><span>report, which covers the Local Government Areas of Sydney (below), and profiles indicators relating to demand, supply, rents and prices. </span></p>
<p><span><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/2018/2/15/SUBURBS.jpg" alt=""></span></p>
<div class="page" title="Page 1">
<div class="section">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>STOCK DEFICIENCY </span></p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="page" title="Page 1">
<div class="section">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Underlying demand for dwellings increased over the four years to June 2017 on the back of strong population growth. Low interest rates have allowed pent up demand to be </span>released into the market.</p>
<p>Underlying demand rose to an estimated peak of 42,500 dwellings over 2016/17, well above the average of 32,600 dwellings pa over the previous five years.</p>
<p>However, dwelling completions surged far ahead of underlying demand. Annual completions doubled from 23,100 starts in 2012/13 to an estimated 47,200 starts in 2016/17.</p>
<p>This has seen the underlying dwelling deficiency slowly eroded since 2014/15.</p>
<p>Over 2017/18, completions are forecast to remain strong while underlying demand is expected to ease as net interstate outflows rise. This will lead to a further decline in the level of stock deficiency </p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="page" title="Page 1">
<div class="section">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>APARTMENT OCCUPIERS </span></p>
<p><span>Two bedroom apartments account for the majority of the Sydney apartment stock, at 56% of occupied apartments at the 2016 Census. Moreover, studios and one bedroom apartments account for another 29% of Sydney’s occupied apartment stock, with the remaining 15% containing three or more bedrooms. </span></p>
<p>Click here <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/images/2018/2/15/BEDROOM%20TYPE.jpg" target="_blank">to enlarge.</a></p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<p><span><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/2018/2/15/BEDROOM%20TYPE.jpg" alt=""></span></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Click here <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/images/2018/2/15/DEMAND.jpg" target="_blank">to enlarge.</a></p>
<p><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/2018/2/15/DEMAND.jpg" alt=""></p>
<div class="page" title="Page 1">
<div class="section">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>The households occupying apartments are reflective of the composition of the apartment stock. Studio and one bedroom apartments are dominated by lone person households (who accounted for 55% of total studio and one bedroom apartments), while two bedroom apartments have a more even split of lone person, couple without children and family with children households, at around 25-30% each. </span></p>
<p><span>In comparison, family with children households were the most prevalent household type in three bedroom apartments (40% of households). </span></p>
<p>Click here <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/images/2018/2/15/APARTMENT%20HOUSES.jpg" target="_blank">to enlarge.</a></p>
<p><span><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/2018/2/15/APARTMENT%20HOUSES.jpg" alt=""></span></p>
<div class="page" title="Page 2">
<div class="section">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Studio and one bedroom apartments are dominated by rental tenants, who account for 76% of households. In contrast, only 12% were fully owned suggesting that studio and one bedroom apartments are not attracting downsizers. Around 74% of two bedroom apartments were renting. Households with a mortgage accounted for the larger share at 18%. In contrast, a high share of three bedroom apartments were owner occupied (43%), with a high percentage (18%) being fully owned. This suggests that many owner occupiers in three bedroom apartments are downsizers and are buying with full equity. </span></p>
<p><span>APARTMENT SUPPLY </span></p>
<p><span>The high density sector has benefited most in this upturn in the Sydney market. High density building approvals more than doubled from 13,500 approvals in 2012/13 to 30,100 approvals in 2016/17. While there has also been a moderate upswing in house approvals, the medium density sector has remained flat. Inner Sydney has traditionally attracted the greatest amount of high density activity, although the middle ring has begun to account for a greater share of high density dwelling approvals. The deterioration of affordability in Sydney has encouraged a shift towards both apartments over houses, and also activity from inner to middle regions.</span></p>
<p>Click here <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/images/2018/2/15/tenure.jpg" target="_blank">to enlarge.</a></p>
<p><span><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/2018/2/15/tenure.jpg" alt=""></span></p>
<p><span>RENTS, PRICES AND YIELDS </span></p>
<p><span>As the market picked up, median price growth for units averaged 9.1% per annum between 2012 and 2017. This price growth was fairly even geographically across the Inner and Middle regions of Sydney, ranging from 10.8% per annum in Eastern Suburbs to 7.3% in the Middle West.</span></p>
<p>Click here <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/images/2018/2/15/approvals.jpg" target="_blank">to enlarge.</a></p>
<p><span><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/2018/2/15/approvals.jpg" alt=""></span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span>The result has been that indicative unit yields have now fallen below their previous lows of 2005, to be 3.6% in June 2017. This would suggest little potential for further unit price growth (and eventually the possibility of price declines), as occurred during the mid-2000s. A smaller dwelling deficiency and tightening restrictions on investor activity will also add drag to market sentiment. </span></p>
<p>Click here <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/images/2018/2/15/greater.jpg" target="_blank">to enlarge.</a></p>
<p><span><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/2018/2/15/greater.jpg" alt=""></span></p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<p><span> </span></p>
<div class="section">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p> </p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div></body></html>

jrobinson-rf4aSBido9

Little potential for further Sydney unit price growth: BIS 

<html><body>
<div class="cq-article-content-paras section">
<p>Melbourne house prices will outpace the Sydney market with 10 percent growth over the next three years, QBE's latest Australian Housing Outlook report forecasts.</p>
<p>Investor lending curbs will hit Sydney more heavily pulling its median house price down 0.2 percent to $1,150,000 by 2020 from the current $1,178,000, according to the report by QBE's Lenders Mortgage Insurance unit produced with consultancy BIS Oxford Economics.</p>
<p>House prices in Melbourne will rise from $852,700 to $940,000 by 2020, the report predicts.</p>
<p>The Sydney dip would be limited to just the two next years, with a 1.1 percent fall in the year to June 2018 and a 2.6 percent decline the next year before recovering to post a 1.3 per cent increase in the year to June 2020, the report predicts.</p>
<p>QBE’s Housing Outlook 2017-20 reveals the majority of Australia’s cities will experience house price growth with Canberra house prices to rise 16%, Hobart to 11%, Melbourne to 10%, Brisbane to 7%, Adelaide to 7% and Perth to 3% over the next three years.</p>
<p>The picture is less rosy for apartment owners, with unit prices set to fall for Brisbane 7%, Melbourne 5%, and Sydney 4%. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/images/2017/10/25/QBEForecast.png" target="_blank">Click to enlarge</a></p>
<p><img src="https://www.urban.com.au/images/2017/10/25/QBEForecast.png" alt=""></p>
<p>QBE Lenders’ Mortgage Insurance CEO Phil White said that while unit prices will soften, the sector will play a growing influence on the nation’s property market over the coming decades. </p>
<p>“With so many Australians priced out of the housing market, the Australian Dream of owning property is increasingly turning to high and medium density apartments,” he said. </p>
<p>“Units contribute to a greater share of the market as changing lifestyles and affordability dictate property choices. </p>
<p>“Encouragingly, that dream should become a reality for more Australians, with improving affordability overall.” </p>
<p>Units now account for 46 per cent of all residential construction across the country. </p>
<p>The report forecasts Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Darwin to become more affordable in the next three years. Hobart and Canberra are expected to become less affordable to June 2020. </p>
<p>“Recent low affordability in Sydney and Melbourne should stop purchasers from taking larger mortgages and bidding up prices even more,” he said. </p>
<p>“With more lending restrictions impacting investors, it could be good news for owner occupiers as they should find less competition from investors.”</p>
</div>
<div class="cq-article-content-media section">The report also predicts the benchmark cash rate will rise just 25 basis points higher to 1.75 per cent by 2020.</div>
</body></html>

Sydney prices to fall slightly over next three years with Melbourne's surge continuing

<html><body>
<p>While the September results had dwelling values edging 0.2% higher across Australia over the month, Sydney dwelling values slipped 0.1% lower over the month.</p>
<p>Sydney’s quarterly result was the slowest since values declined by 2.2% over the March quarter of 2016 and it’s the first month-on-month decline after 17 months of consistent capital gains, CoreLogic advised.</p>
<p>"Interestingly, across the Sydney housing market, it was the detached housing sector that pulled the monthly and quarterly growth rates lower," Tim Lawless, CoreLogic head of research said.</p>
<p>"While unit values are also appreciating at a slower rate, detached housing values were 0.3% lower over the month of September and 0.2% lower over the quarter while unit values recorded a subtle rise.</p>
<p>"For the Sydney housing market, concerns around unit oversupply is less evident compared with the Brisbane unit sector, or to a lesser extent with Melbourne," Mr Lawless said.</p>
<p>“Potentially the affordability challenges facing Sydney buyers within the detached housing sector are pushing more demand towards the medium to high density sector, where, based on median values, houses are almost $290,000 more expensive than units.”</p>
<div class="page" title="Page 1">
<div class="section">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Index results as at September 30, 2017</span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Change in dwelling values Month Quarter Annual Median value</span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Sydney                 -0.1% 0.2% 10.5%             $909,613 </span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Melbourne             0.9% 2.0% 12.1%             $703,816</span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Brisbane                0.3% 0.5% 2.9%               $490,208 </span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Adelaide                0.0% 0.3% 5.0%               $429,583</span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Perth                    0.1% -1.3% -2.9%              $462,783 </span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Hobart                 1.7% 3.4% 14.3%               $391,618</span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Darwin                -0.7% -4.0% -4.7%              $445,516 </span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Canberra             0.6% 1.3% 7.8%                  $580,043</span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Combined capitals 0.3% 0.7% 8.5%                 $648,845 </span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>Combined regional 0.1% 0.0% 5.6%                $350,471</span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p><span>National              0.2% 0.5% 8.0%                  $540,647 </span></p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<p>Melbourne’s housing market is also showing slower growth conditions, however growth remains relatively resilient compared with Sydney. Dwelling values were almost 1% higher over the month of September and rose by 2.0% over the September quarter.</p>
<p>Mr Lawless said the stronger housing market conditions in Melbourne are supported by auction clearance rates which have consistently remained above 70%.</p>
<p>"Additionally, advertised stock levels remain remarkably low and private treaty sales continue to sell rapidly, averaging 30 days on market.”</p>
<p>The remaining capital cities have shown a diverse performance over recent months.</p>
<p>Perth dwelling values look to be moving through the bottom of the cycle, with values edging 0.1% higher over the month, however values remain down over the quarter and year.</p>
<p>For Darwin, the housing market isn’t showing the same signs of bottoming out with dwelling values slipping 0.7% lower over the month and 4% lower over the September quarter.</p>
<p>In Brisbane, the market has seen a growing divergence between the performances of houses compared with units; house values were 0.2% higher over the month to be 4.0% higher over the year, while unit values showed an increase over the month but remain 2.5% lower over the past year.</p>
<p>Adelaide dwelling values held firm over the month but have shown a 5.0% rise over the year.</p>
<p>Hobart further cemented its position as the best performing housing market after a recent history of sluggish growth conditions.</p>
<p>The past twelve months has seen Hobart dwelling values surge 14.3% higher; the highest annual growth rate since 2004.</p>
<p>Despite the strong capital gains, the cost of housing remains substantially lower than any other capital city with a typical house value of $412,340 and a median unit value of just under $320,000.</p>
</body></html>

Sydney dwelling values slip in September, but apartments aren't the current weakness

<html><body>
<p>Sydney’s apartment boom has been more evenly spread than Brisbane and Melbourne, and fears that oversupply will cause a fall in prices are overblown, says a senior Reserve Bank official.</p>
<p>RBA’s assistant governor of economics, Luci Ellis, noted that while growth in the building of new Australian homes had been outpacing population growth, Sydney was not expected to suffer a big price fall. </p>
<p>Brisbane was the real risk, Dr Ellis said.</p>
<p>"It's a truism that the more supply you have, the weaker prices are going to be relative to what would have happened if supply had been lower," Dr Ellis told a lunch of the Women In Economics Network and the Australian Business Economists in Sydney on Wednesday.</p>
<p>"But, at this stage, we're not seeing that ... that supply, in and of itself, is going to create a big fall in prices and certainly not in Sydney."</p>
<p>Instead, Dr Ellis singled out Brisbane, pointing to the high geographic clustering of the new developments set to hit the market this year.</p>
<p>"This year is crunch time" for Brisbane, she said.</p>
<p>"Over the years, we've pointed more to Melbourne and to Brisbane as where that's more likely to cause trouble in terms of concentrated increases in supply resulting in lower prices and therefore potentially distress,” Fairfax Media quoted Dr Ellis as saying.</p>
<p>Sydney was a different story though, she said. </p>
<p>“Whereas, in Sydney, it's sort of all over the city, so it's much more evenly spread and so less likely to create a really concentrated local price effect."</p>
<p>And while new construction was running ahead of population demand, that was unlikely to last as a “point of peak” for building approvals had been reached. </p>
<p>“Building approvals have stepped down to a new level. The backlog of work in residential property is now starting to decline, even in NSW and Victoria, but particularly in Queensland,” she said.</p>
<p>"So in some sense, this is a phase that will eventually end and we won't be building more than the population requires."</p>
<p>On the demand side, Dr Ellis said Melbourne's surprisingly strong population growth gave strong cause for belief that prices would not fall there.</p>
<p>"Similarly, population growth remains fairly strong in Sydney, so it's not clear to me that we end up with a serious problem here."</p>
<p>Home price figures released by the Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday showed Australian home prices rose 10.3 per cent last financial year and 13.8 per cent in Sydney and Melbourne. But price growth has slowed in Sydney,  with just 2.3 per cent increase in the final quarter.</p>
<p>According to a CommSec analysis of the Bureau's data, the median price of houses transacted in Sydney in the June quarter was $1.02 million, $110,000 more than a year ago.</p>
</body></html>

jonathanchancellor-7SQnKwU6yx

RBA official fears for Brisbane apartment prices

<html><body>
<p>Prominent art collector John Schaeffer is selling the whole-floor Darling Point apartment he bought only last year.</p>
<p>It is full of his 19th-century Pre-Raphaelite works of art which will follow him to his next home.</p>
<p>The apartment in the Manor development on Darling Point Road cost Schaeffer $4.25 million in March 2016.</p>
<p>Offering harbour views, the 322sqm apartment is described as house-size in its marketing.</p>
<p>It has three bedrooms, three balconies, a glass-enclosed sunroom and a new kitchen. The master suite comes with a balcony, walk-in wardrobe and marble ensuite.</p>
<p>Paul Biller and Ronan Chastain at Biller Property Double Bay have the listing.</p>
<p>Schaeffer is known in the east for his passion for prize property, having once owned the Bellevue Hill trophy home, Rona, before selling it for $20.5 million in 2005 to developer Terry Agnew and wife Kyril.</p>
<p>Collector John Schaeffer with a statue by Frederic Leighton from Schaeffer’s collection of Victorian art, on show at the Art Gallery of NSW.</p>
<p>He also sold the Spanish Mission trophy home Boomerang in Elizabeth Bay the same year for $20 million to the Fox trucking family. It was the first property in Australia to crack $20 million.</p>
<p>Schaeffer sold in Dover Heights in 2015, selling his 1958 Harry Seidler designed Lyons Street home, but then spent $4.85 million on his soon-to-be home.</p>
<p>The former contract cleaning entrepreneur owns at Bondi Beach in the Bondi Pacific.</p>
<p>This article first appeared in the Sunday Telegraph.</p>
</body></html>

firstname1-iYD4UYzvBa

Art collector John Schaeffer selling whole-floor Darling Point apartment

<html><body><div class="page" title="Page 1">
<div class="section">
<div class="layoutArea">
<div class="column">
<p>The Housing Industry Association's recent Stamp Duty Watch report claims foreign investors now pay nearly $100,000 in taxes to buy a Sydney unit, almost four times as much as local buyers.</p>
<p>Shane Garrett, HIA Senior Economist said the average stamp duty bill in Australia paid by resident owner occupiers is also up by 16.4 percent over the year to $20,725, even though dwelling prices increased by just 10.5 percent.</p>
<p>Shane Garrett, HIA Senior Economist said recent changes to stamp duty in NSW mean that foreign investors now pay almost $100,000 in transaction taxes to acquire a standard apartment in Sydney – almost four times as much as local buyers.</p>
<p>“Foreign investors are a vital component of rental supply in cities like Sydney and Melbourne," he said.</p>
<p>"With rental market conditions now so tight in Australia’s two biggest cities, should we really be placing more and more barriers in the way of new supply. </p>
<p>“On the owner occupier side, stamp duty drains family coffers of $107 each and every month over a 30- year mortgage term.</p>
<p>“For owner occupiers, the typical stamp duty bill now amounts to $20,725 – an increase of some 16.4 percent on a year ago.</p>
<p>“Shelling out so much in stamp duty drains the household piggy bank of vital funds for their home deposit. Families are then forced to take out larger mortgages and incur heavier mortgage insurance premiums."</p>
<p><a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/images/2017/08/04/Screen%20Shot%202017-08-04%20at%2011.13.27%20AM.png" target="_blank"><span>Click to enlarge</span></a></p>
<p><span><img src="https://www.urban.com.au/images/2017/08/04/Screen%20Shot%202017-08-04%20at%2011.13.27%20AM.png" alt=""></span></p>
<p> </p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div></body></html>

Foreign investors slugged with taxes on Sydney apartment sales

<html><body>
<p>Stricter regulation around lending and more levies on foreign buyers was likely to impact apartment demand in inner Sydney, according to BIS Oxford Economics.</p>
<p>Surging prices had also pushed yields to long-term lows, but this price growth is now slowing, the economic forecaster suggested. f</p>
<p>Foreign buyers still however prefer to invest in Australia given the stable political environment, while local investors still benefit from low interest rates, said BIS. </p>
<p>It noted that while oversupply concerns had been voiced for Melbourne and Brisbane, Sydney’s new apartment supply had already peaked at 3,698 completions in 2015, falling to 2,521 last year, and it was likely to remain largely steady at 2352 in 2016-17.</p>
<p>Though demand is expected to be weaker ahead, new Sydney supply is set to surge over the three years to 2019-20, with completions averaging 4,650 apartments a year over the period.</p>
<p>About 2,800 units were already under construction, with other large projects locked in and pre-selling, the research said.</p>
<p>Occupier demand mainly came from three groups — students, particularly overseas, young adults in white-collar employment, and empty nesters. </p>
<p>Vacancy rates have been tight for more than a decade, after falling below the balanced market rate of 3 per cent in inner Sydney in June 2005, as demand outstripped construction for much of this time, The Australian reported.</p>
<p>Vacancy rates also tightened to 1.7 per cent in February 2017 after rising to 2.6 per cent in June 2015. </p>
<p>Meanwhile with price increases, yields on the median two-bedroom apartment dropped to an estimated 4.17 per cent at June 2017. The median two-bedroom unit rent in inner Sydney was an estimated $745 in June, with the median price at $930,000, said BIS.</p>
</body></html>

Sydney Apartments

Editor's Picks

Have something to contribute?

Developments

New apartments

New townhouses

News

Sydney Apartments

Editor's Picks

Receive the latest news stories to your inbox

Have something to contribute?

Developments

New apartments

New townhouses

News