BUYING a Gold Coast apartment off-plan back in the day would have been considered an act of bravado.
Stories of people losing thousands in deposits to shady salesmen selling the dream of a holiday home in the sun, 30 years ago usually turned out to be just that, a dream.
Fast-forward to a Covid-19 world and no one seems too concerned with buying off the plan, with most new-build developments on the Coast partially or fully selling out before a single sod has been turned.
We’re not talking about $500,000 units here, we’re talking about multimillion-dollar luxury apartments.
Aerial shots of Sunland Group’s 272 Hedges Ave tower at Mermaid Beach during construction.
Demand for this type of housing is growing faster than developers can deliver projects, and savvy buyers who managed to pick up an apartment pre-Covid are now in a position to reap big rewards.
Anyone who has travelled through the central Gold Coast of late could not have failed to see 272 Hedges at Mermaid Beach, on track to becoming one of the city’s most iconic buildings.
The sold-out $250m tower, developed by Sunland Group, is being topped out ahead of schedule, with residents due to move in next year.
Artist impression of Sunland’s Hedges Avenue tower 272 Hedges Ave.
When the apartments hit the market in 2018, with price tags starting at $1.835m, they caused a stir because they were among the most expensive entry-level, off-the-plan apartments on the Coast, with the penthouses thought to be priced in the mid-$7 millions.
This week a couple of apartments in the building have been listed on realestate.com.au, including one of two sky homes for $8.5m.
The other is already under contract for an undisclosed price.
Artist impression of Sunland’s Hedges Avenue tower 272 Hedges Ave.
Earlier this year, interstate buyers rushed to put their name against one of the 24 half and full-floor residences in Ignite Projects’ Monaco building in Main Beach; the penthouse at the time was $8.9m, it is now listed as $9.5m.
There’s no doubt that prices for boutique properties are only going one way, up.
Prestige property agent Harry Kakavas said the apartment market had changed tremendously in recent years.
He said today’s buyers were looking at paying $15,000 to $20,000 a square metre for a boutique beachfront apartment, with increased demand, as well as Covid-related rises in material and labour costs, pushing prices ever higher.
Artist impression of Sunland’s Hedges Avenue tower 272 Hedges Ave.
“The market at the top end of town is extremely strong and buyers have an appetite to purchase high-end, new-build beachfront homes,” Mr Kakavas said.
“Buying in the right development, from a known developer, and in a good location can serve buyers well,” he said.
Amir Mian of Amir Prestige said sellers lucky enough to purchase an apartment off-plan 12 to 24 months ago were now reaping the rewards.
Based on recent sales in boutique developments such as 15 Jefferson Lane in Palm Beach, and Norfolk and Natura in Burleigh Heads, he said the original buyers in those developments are achieving resale profits of between 30 and 40 per cent.
Amir Mian of Amir Prestige.
“Of course no one has a crystal ball and we can’t predict what will happen with prices, but those who managed to buy off-plan have made substantial gains,” he said.
Given that prices have already jumped so much, buyers may feel the ship has sailed.
To some degree that may be true.
But as buyers’ mindsets about the apartment market shifts away from capital gains and more towards lifestyle and amenity, the demand for these boutique apartments will continue to grow.
Couple this with developers competing to come up with ever more luxurious and impressive projects and the flow of interstate and international buyers far from receding, it’s probably not a bad place to sink your money.
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