Showing posts with label brisbane river. Show all posts
Showing posts with label brisbane river. Show all posts

Monday, October 27, 2014

Admiralty Towers 2 sales

Some recent sales in Admiralty Two, a tower on the Brisbane riverfront, at 501 Queen Street.  One of the better buildings in the city, which large apartments all with riverfront views that cannot be built out.  The building has two swimming pools, and direct access to the river boardwalk.

Reported sales since January 2014, with most recent sales listed first.

Apt 166, about level 29, 3 bedrooms, $979,900
Apt 58, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms (116 sqm) - $785,000
Apt 19, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms (116 sqm) - $770,000
Apt 115, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms (116 sqm) - $755,000
Apt 127, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms (116 sqm) - $750,000

The average price so far this year for the larger two bedroom apartment in this building is $765,000, or $6,594 a sqm.  If you are buying off the plan, you may wish to measure against this sqm price for comparison.

Sunday, September 14, 2014

Spice Apartments at South Brisbane

The Spice Apartments development at South Brisbane is currently being sold off-the-plan.  According to the agents selling these apartments, most have sold.

It is a 14 level development, with two towers sharing a common podium.  The complex overlooks the onramp and tolling infrastructure for the Go-Between Bridge.  It is river front, sort of, with trees and and bikeway between the apartments and the river.  Many of the apartments will have no views, or will only have views of a busy road or industrial buildings (that will probably get redeveloped into apartment or office towers.)  Any city views are likely to be built out.



Example prices:
  • One bedroom on level 2 with car space, 54 sqm internal, with balcony and court yard, so total 78 sqm.  No view.  $429,000.
  • One bed, one bath, level 2, 49 sqm internal, with balcony and court yard, total 77 sqm, $420,000.
  • Two bed, one bath, 1 car, level 12, internal - 63 sqm, total 76 sqm, one bedroom is internal with no windows (so this is really a one bed plus study) - $526,000
  • Two bed, two bath, 1 car, level 3, internal - 83 sqm, total 101 sqm - $585,000
In my opinion, these are expensive prices for small apartments that are in a poor location.  Even though only 15 minutes walk to the city, there is not much currently in this area.  It is a long walk to South Bank, even though the sale brochure for the development has lots of South Bank photos.

The body corp fees for the first year are low, around the $3,000 a year mark.  My guess is that these are likely to increase substantially in subsequent years.

Rents for unfurnished apartments are provided by the developer:
  • 1 bed - $410 to $480 a week
  • 2 bed, 2 bath - $550 to $640 a week
  • 3 bed, 2 bath - $850 to $950 a week.
It will be interesting to see if these rents are actually achieved.  You can rent a 110 sqm two bed, two bath apartment at South Bank, with river and park views, fully furnished for $690, so it is hard to see how these rents are possible.

Before buying, I would suggest looking at Vue Apartments, which are diagonally opposite the bridge and river.  Compare actual sales prices and actual rents for similar apartments, and look at this building's financial performance.


Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Another Pradella West End Development

Pradella has started marketing a new development on the large parcel of land it has accumulated in West End.  This development is being promoted as Gardens Riverside West End (although it is not river front, and has a road and the Waters Edge buildings between it and the river, and it is a long walk from the main shopping and restaurant street in West End).

There appear to be many more Pradella buildings planned for this plot of land in West End.


Thursday, January 30, 2014

Walter Taylor Bridge

An interesting article about the Walter Taylor Bridge at Indooroopilly, by a real estate agent, sent to me by a reader.
See here

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Recent Sales in Brisbane's Admiralty Precinct


Admiralty Towers One (35 Howard Street)
  • Apt 93, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2 car parks - sold in September for $880,000
  • Apt 58, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1 car park - sold in September for $900,000
Admiralty Towers Two (501 Queen Street)
  • Apt 108, 3 bedrooms - sold in September for $938,000
  • Apt 132, 2 bedrooms - sold in August for $760,000
  • Apt 26, 2 bedrooms - sold in July for $662,000
Admiralty Quays (32 Macrossan Street)
  • Apt 100, 2 bedroom 2 bathroom - sold in October for $800,000
  • Apt 12, 1 bedroom - sold in August for $590,000
Skyline (30 Macrossan Street - not riverfront)
  • Apt 125, 1 bedroom, 1 car - sold in December for $347,000
  • Apt 13, 3 bedroom - sold in October for $1,131,000
  • Apt 172 - 2 bedrooms - sold in July for $590,000
Riverplace (82 Boundary St)
  • Apt 215, 1 bedroom - sold in December for $510,000
  • Apt 140, 1 bedroom - sold in November for $435,000
  • Apt 316, 2 bedrooms - sold in October for $750,000
  • Apt 54, 2 bedrooms - sold in October for $647,000
  • Apt 146, 1 bedroom - sold in September for $370,000

Saturday, November 2, 2013

Recent Brisbane City Apartment Sales

A list of some recent reported apartment sales in Brisbane CBD area, since June 2013.

Admiralty One
- Apt 93, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, direct river views, large 132 sqm - $880,000
- Apt 125, 2 bedrooms, side river views - $600,000

Admiralty Towers Two
- Apt 132 - 2 bedrooms, direct river views, 116 sqm - $760,000
- Apt 26 - 2 bedrooms, direct river views - $662,000
- Apt 124 - 2 bedrooms, direct river views - $705,000

Admiralty Quays
- Apt 104 - 3 bedrooms - $960,000

Riverplace
- Apt 146, 1 bedroom - $370,000
- Apt 82 - 2 bedrooms - $750,000
- Apt 165 - 1 bedroom - $500,000
- Apt 31 - 2 bedrooms - $650,000

Metro 21
- Apt 283, 1 bedroom on level 28, no carpark - $307,000
- Apt 301, 2 bedroom on level 30 - $553,500

Felix
- Apt 312, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms - $555,000
- Apt 294, 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom - $485,000
- Apt 324, 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom - $475,000

Quay West - construction starting next door, and disharmony in building
- Apt 86, 2 bedrooms - $655,000
- Apt 129, 3 bedrooms - $1M

Saville South Bank - reports of two bedroom apartments selling above $900,000.

It appears that pricing is picking up.  In some instances, apartments are selling for record highs.  In other instances, prices are still below the 2007/2008 peak.  Volumes of sales in the period June to September do not appear to be high, although in recent weeks, this may have changed.  The high end sales appear to be to owner occupiers.

Saturday, September 14, 2013

I just don't understand

It seems to me that newer apartments are overpriced.  One example.
You can buy a year old apartment in Meriton's Soleil as follows:
  • 93 sqm internal
  • No balconey
  • Air conditioning not ducted
  • 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms
  • Facing West, so hot in the summer
  • General views of an ugly part of Brisbane
  • Large, impersonal building, used as a hotel
  • Your neighbour may be an Eastern European hooker or a football team on tour
  • Price = $629,000 (apartment 4403) - $6,763 a sqm
Or you could buy an apartment in River Place:
  • 113 sqm total
  • Massive balconey
  • Riverfront
  • 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms
  • Outdoor pool overlooking the river
  • Price - $659,000 (apartment 54) - $5,831 a sqm
Or you could buy an apartment in Quay West:
  • 130 sqm total
  • Two balconies
  • Ducted air-conditioning
  • About 130 apartments in building
  • Views of botanical gardens
  • 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms
  • Price - about $600,000 - $4,615 a sqm
It will be interesting to see what this apartment sells for in Admiralty One:
  • 130 sqm in total
  • Balconey
  • Direct riverfront
  • Ducted air-conditioning
  • 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, separate laundry room
  • North Eastern view
  • About 120 apartments in the building
  • Auction -- there has not been a similar apartment sold in this building for years.
Why would you buy in Soleil?  Or in some of the currently marketed off-the-plan developments, when some of the "older" apartments are cheaper on the price per sqm basis, and in better locations?

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Sunday, May 26, 2013

Vida West End

PointCorp is developing an apartment complex at 101 Riverside Drive, West End.  This is next door to Pradella's Left Bank development, and near to Pradella's Tempo development.

This new development is being marketed as Vida.  It consists of two towers of about 10 floors each, with about 150 apartments.  Some apartments will look West across the river.  About half the apartments will look East towards West End.

The Courier Mail says that for the apartments on the riverside, 1 bedrooms will be from $460,000; 2 bedrooms from $660,000; and three bedrooms from $1.2 million.  It will be interesting to see how expensive the apartments on the higher floors will be.

Compare a recent listing in Left Bank next door -- two bedrooms on a lower floor with river views for $599,000.

Saturday, November 12, 2011

New William Street Building

Echo Entertainment, who operate the Treasury Casino and nearby Treasury Hotel, are planning a new 5 star hotel at 159 William Street.  The published renders show Casino Towers in the background.  It appears that Oaks Casino Towers will have some of its river views blocked by this 400 room hotel.


Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Developments at Portside

The photo shows development sites by Devine, Citimark, Mirvac and Brookfield Multiplex. (Double click on photo for larger view.) An endless supply of apartments, which means values are unlikely to rise significantly.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Flood Clean Up Costs

A number of buildings are now realising the costs of flood clean up. I have heard of costs ranging from $400,000 to $10M, depending on the damage. Even buildings with slight damage appear to have huge clean up costs.

Body corporate committees are discussing special levies, in the thousands, for each unit owner.

From what I have heard, some unit owners are obtaining legal advice. Often, the body corporate manager recommends the insurance policy (and takes a large commission). So there is talk of suing the body corporate manager for the loss. In many cases, the developers appear to have been negligent as to where they placed critical equipment. So there may be lawsuits against developers and body corporate managers.

See this article about the Tennyson Reach flood cleanup costs.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Flood Update

When driving down Coronation Drive tonight (Monday), some apartment buildings were dark and empty. This included Coronation Residences. Koko apartments at West End were dark, but I understand only the basement was flooded. (Update: As at Australia Day, Koko Apartments were still evacuated; and Pradella's Left Bank carpark was still closed.)
Koko video one, two and river

Friday, January 21, 2011

When the Water Recedes....

Extract from Brisbane Times article:

The flagging Brisbane property market was not forecast to make substantial gains in 2011. Optimistic forecasts pinned rises at less than five per cent. Property analyst Michael Matusik said the flood was a "game-changer", one that would place a hold on normal market conditions, but only temporarily.

He said the properties completely inundated in low-lying suburbs away from the river, including Rocklea, Oxley and Archerfield, would see a substantial decline in value, but only if they were put on the market before being totally restored.

Meanwhile, the value of the 850-odd exclusive riverfront properties would remain largely unchanged, he said.

"This property is tightly held and most owners are likely to renovate and stay put. Values along the Brisbane River, I don't think are likely to change much," he said.

Still a target

RP Data analyst Cameron Kusher believes future buyers would be motivated by "lifestyle choices" in suburbs including Rosalie, Paddington, Milton, Chelmer and Graceville.

"Buyers will still aspire to buy in these suburbs," he said. "I believe many residents will decide to stay put and rebuild their lives. If people do decide to up and sell they will be in the minority."

Immediately after the 1974 flood many cashed-up investors bought distressed stock, renovated and sold for massive profits after construction of the dam began, Mr Matusik said.

"It does involve risk, but [a risky] investment often means high rewards," he said.

Bargain buying

Mr Matusik said dwellings partially flooded last week, which were put on the market at a 15 to 20 per cent discount from 2010 prices, made for a wise buy.

"For fully flooded homes, discounts over 30 per cent would be worth looking at. This assumes that improvements are actually made, via physical barriers and improvement management systems to help alleviate future flooding."

Mr Molloy warned the financial sector's value of flood-damaged properties was yet to be determined.

However, Mr Matusik said he suspected interest rates would fall by 25 basis points in the coming months, "correcting the unnecessary hike last November".

Rental woes

The rental outlook for tenants and recently displaced flood victims is bleak. Up to 10,000 flood-damaged households are estimated to be looking for temporary accommodation. This combined with the annual influx of university students hunting for rental accommodation will surely push up rents.

"Those investors without landlord insurance might elect to sell their properties, which presents an opportunity for those willing to take a risk.

"A mass investor sell-off, however, could have a marked negative impact on values across the city, making [predicted rent rises] of five to eight per cent very bullish."

Sales to sink

The volume of sales is expected to decline, contrary to last year's predictions.

"The overly negative commentary about the flood's impact on property across the region is likely to batter confidence, which in turn could see inquiry and sales decline further," Mr Matusik said.

Yet Mr Molloy said buyers on the ground were expected to be forgiving.

"The outpouring of community spirit has restored a social confidence in our suburbs. People will remember that for many, many years to come," he said.

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Tennyson Reach Flooded

Extracts from Story from The Australian:

"Yesterday, as the smell in the luxury dwellings at Tennyson Reach, home to tennis greats including Ashley Cooper, rose with the temperature and humidity, owners wondered how the planning controls that were meant to regulate development could have gone so wrong.

Several said they were assured before buying that the ground level would not flood unless the Brisbane River reached a mark of 8.4m, well above the 4.46m at which it peaked last Thursday after a massive discharge of 645,000 megalitres from Wivenhoe Dam on Tuesday.

Between cleaning up and moving out yesterday, several owners said they needed explanations from Mirvac and the council about their true flood immunity and whether the development, completed less than two years ago, should have been approved, given its history of inundation.

The flooding at Tennyson Reach is one small part of a major problem for Brisbane City Council and the Queensland government, as the losses of owners, the liability of developers, and the policies of governments combine in a perfect storm of recrimination and confusion. The residential precinct went through all the council's usual approvals process after the Beattie government sought tenders to make something glorious from the site of the abandoned and obsolete power station.

Apartment owner Chrissie Buchanan, who bought in June 2009 with her husband, Sam, who is a quadriplegic, has had damaged floors, walls and cabinets. She said she was fortunate to have insurance and was in a lot better position than many in Brisbane.

"The things that have been damaged are easily replaced," Ms Buchanan said. "There are people who have lost their businesses and houses. I feel for people who are a lot worse off than ourselves."

She said flooding risk was "not an issue" that was canvassed when she and her husband bought the property. "You never believe it's going to happen to you," she said.

Keith George, who paid $2.25 million for his ground-floor apartment 18 months ago, said he had waist-level water throughout his property. As a result, he will have to rip up floors and carpets, rebuild walls, and most of the apartment's cabinets will have to be replaced. "I'm going to have to spend at least $100,000 to replace the cabinetry," he said. "We won't be back in here for months."

Mr George said the flood risk never came up when he was buying the property, partly because City Hall had approved the development.

"And I always believed the Wivenhoe would not let the Brisbane River come up," he said.

Another resident, Julie Savage, said most people living in the complex were not too concerned on Tuesday night when other parts of the city started to evacuate their homes.

"I got the impression everyone was relaxed because it could withstand a flood of 8.4m, so it would all be fine," she said.

It is not only residents on the ground floor who are affected, with those on the many levels above unable to return home because there is no power and no lifts working. "They were saying 12 weeks until they can return, but it might be eight," Mr George said.

...

Mirvac Development Queensland chief executive Matthew Wallace, who inspected the development yesterday, said the priority was to work with the body corporate to get the buildings reinstated, and "get peoples' lives and properties back together".

The flooding hit the apartments 12 hours before the peak in Brisbane of 4.46m. It is believed the body corporate does not have flood insurance.

Several owners who bought their apartments before the global financial crisis had looked for loopholes to litigate a way out of their contracts before settlement, but failed after filing actions in the District Court. The irony is that being misled over the level of their flood immunity might have provided a perfect exit.

After successfully defending itself against some residents' claims that it misrepresented the quality of the river views, as well as a host of technical legal arguments surrounding the contract documents, Mirvac said the original buyers had to meet, in some cases, hundreds of thousands of dollars in default interest and associated costs."

Mirvac Group said its Waterfront Newstead development had experienced some basement flooding, while its Tennyson Reach building had basement and ground floor inundation.

Mirvac added that the Brisbane floods were having a limited impact on its residential projects.

Sunday, January 16, 2011

How will the flood impact property prices in Brisbane?

See this story from Bloomberg. Some extracts:

Property sales will slow significantly over the next month as residents focus on assessing damage and put purchase decisions on hold, said Rod Cornish, Sydney-based head of property research at Macquarie Group Ltd. Buyers are also likely to turn more selective about where they buy properties, avoiding low-lying areas that have been particularly hard hit, he said.

The property market in Brisbane will take some time to rebalance prices, said Gerard Baden, principal at a Century21 Australia real estate franchise in West End, a southwestern suburb of Brisbane that’s bounded by the river on three sides.

“If someone’s selling, what the neighbors’ house sold for last month wouldn’t matter,” Baden said. “And we’ll have a two-speed market. Those properties affected by water, and those that aren’t.”

Brisbane-based Ray White Group has seen “hundreds” of tenants evacuated from properties it manages in the state, said Tony Warland, Queensland chief executive officer for the group.

The Australia also has a story. Some extracts:

The floods are expected to further slash property prices in the southeast, with more than 26,000 homes in Brisbane damaged and the rebuilding process expected to take months. SQM Research managing director Louis Christopher said the residential market in the state's capital was already weak and would be damaged by the worst floods in nearly three decades.

Most property experts said yesterday that it was too early to estimate the exact effect on prices, but all agreed there would be a negative impact on values.

"The immediate impact is going to be that houses which have been impacted directly by the floods that require repairs will likely be taken off the market," Mr Christopher said.

"The floods are going to remind buyers of the risks of buying near the floodplains. There is the risk some of the most prestige areas are going to take a hit because buyers are aware of the risks now of buying there."

Some of the most affluent suburbs in Brisbane -- New Farm, West End, St Lucia, Indooroopilly, Graceville and Chelmer -- have been the most severely affected by the floodwaters. Residex managing director John Edwards said the higher-priced areas would suffer a greater price hit compared with flooded suburbs in Brisbane's outer west and close to Ipswich.

"I think we are going to find that the big pricing adjustments will be the higher-cost areas that are along the river's edge," he said.

Property consultant Michael Matusik agreed in this story that the prestige riverfront market would recover fairly quickly, but said the markets most affected would be low-lying suburbs close to the river that were flooded.

HiDef Aerial Photos of Brisbane 2011 Floods

NearMaps took hidef aerial photographs ("photomaps") of the 2011 Brisbane floods on 13 January 2011. Some examples:

Friday, January 14, 2011

Brisbane Floods

With the flood water going down, the clean up is starting. Many Brisbane apartment buildings were impacted by the floods -- basement carparks full of water and mud; no electricity; residents evacuated.

Some of the buildings that have significant water in their basements include:
  • Admiralty Towers
  • Admiralty Two
  • Admiralty Quays "we only had minor flooding in the lower level of the basement (about 50cm deep)"
  • Riverplace
  • Riparian (access tunnel to carparks - carparks are above ground level)
  • Felix
  • 212 Margaret
  • Festival Towers
  • River City
  • Vue at Milton
  • Water's Edge
  • Flow
  • SL8
  • Parklands Sherwood
  • Fresh Toowong
  • Encore Toowong
  • Arbour on Grey at South Bank
  • Tennyson Reach
  • Most apartments on the river at St Lucia
  • the list goes on
Pradella writes about Parklands at Sherwood: "Sadly this site has experienced quite a lot of damage. The Outlook – which are the entertainment facilities has been completely submerged by water. The car park under Jacaranda and Brookline is also completely submerged. Whilst floodwaters did not reach the interior of the apartment buildings, it did however breach a number of houses and townhouses. The entire complex was evacuated late on Wednesday afternoon. Power has been cut and access to the property restricted."

and about Waters Edge:

"There has been significant damage to the pool and the grounds however the water from the river has NOT entered the building. The car park under the building has flooded, and all residents evacuated. Power has been cut."

Admiralty Towers has it status (current evacuated) on its website.

I am amazed that the Council allows buildings to be built with basements that flood, forcing loss of power and residents to be evacuated. See also this article.

I am not sure how the floods will impact property prices in Queensland. After the 1974 floods, the prices of impacted houses decreased for a period. There will be a shortage of rental accommodation, as many people are looking for places to live. Foreign press is reporting on its nationals being evacuated -- see for example, this article from Singapore and Malaysia -- and QUT and UQ were flooded, which will not be good news for those trying to attract foreign students to Brisbane.

On the positive side, it could have been much worse. Only one person died in Brisbane, and the flood levels were lower than initially expected.

Friday, December 17, 2010

Admiralty Apartment Report

Colin Walsh from Ray White issued a report recently about the Admiralty Precinct. Here are some extracts:

Admiralty Quays

  • "one of the most sought after residences within the Brisbane CBD"
  • three bedroom sale for $1,350,000
  • 2 bed type C average price 2010 = $780,000

Admiralty Towers I

  • "Brisbane CBD's most tightly held residential apartment building"
  • 5 sales recorded this year
  • 2 bedroom sold for $750,000

Admiralty Towers II

  • "one of the most prestigious and desirable buildings in the Brisbane CBD"
  • 8 sales recorded this year
  • 3 bedroom sold for $1,063,800
  • 2 bed type C average price 2010 = $718,000
  • 2 bed type B average price 2010 = $838,000

Skyline

  • 15 sales recorded this year
  • 2 bed type J average price 2010 = $582,500
  • 2 bed type I average price 2010 = $647,100

Riverplace

  • "most affordable riverfront residential building in the Brisbane CBD"
  • 14 sales recorded this year
  • 2 bed type E average price 2010 = $527,500
  • 2 bed type B average price 2010 = $720,000

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Casino Towers to Loose River Views

A new highrise hotel is to be built on the old State library site will block out river views from Casino Towers. So take care when buying in Casino Towers!

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Top End Heading Towards The Bottom

Here is evidence that, despite what real estate agents and developers tell you, the top end apartment market is not going great. Many people have overpaid in the past 4 years.

Apt 80 in Flow, at West End, now listed for $1,850,000. This is a massive 4 bedroom, 3.5 bathrooms, 4 car, riverview penthouse apartment. It is 272 sqm internal, and 370 sqm total floor space. It has been for sale for a while. It went to auction in March 2009 and did not sell. (It was purchased off-the-plan in 2006 for over $2.3M. I think a real estate agent's investment company purchased it, but am not sure. So with stamp duty and interest, a loss over well over half a million bucks!)

By comparison, Apt 23, on a lower floor (3rd floor -- partial river views) - 3 bedrooms, was listed for sale by the developer for $1.4M in November 2007.

Or the same developer, Pradella, was selling apartments off-the-plan in Waters Edge next door in May 2008 which are not as good for $1.9M to $2.2M (these are A1 and A2 apartments, 159 sqm, 3 bedrooms).

So you can see that prices being paid for expensive apartments have not held up. (Flow and Waters Edge and Riverpoint are not the greatest locations, looking west, in a semi-industrial area a long walk from any facilities. Infrastructure touted by developers 4 years ago has not arrived.)

If Flow has been a bad investment for some, what about a $4.5M capital loss. See this story.