Rising property prices, a move to end negative gearing and Nimby’s firing up to block medium-rise developments in the “nice” parts of NSW and Victoria all feature in this week’s wrap-up of free online apartment stories from our friends at Left Field Communications.

Interest rates are also creating a lot of … well… interest and the naysayers and gloomsters are all convinced the government can’t possibly reach its new home building targets.

Here is your weekly roundup of the hottest apartment stories from all the free resources in the past week. To find out how to get even more property news for free in your email inbox every day, scroll down to the end of the story.

ABC ONLINE

One in five residents displaced by Melbourne public towers demolition plans relocated to homes purchased from private market
Almost one in five households who had to move out of Melbourne public housing towers due to their planned demolition have been relocated to properties purchased or leased from the private market, a state parliamentary inquiry has been told.
Leanne Wong
 
Cotality warns building industry cannot keep pace with building approvals in race to fix housing crisis
A property data specialist says the building industry is stretched too thin to meet the federal government’s target of 1.2 million homes by 2029. Eliza Owen, from property research firm Cotality, says the focus on accelerating building approvals ignores the problem of completing those dwellings.
Emilia Terzon
 
Rooming houses frustrate some Victorians who want more say on developments
Victorian residents are petitioning to have more say on rooming houses being developed in their areas. Rooming houses can be built without a permit in the state if they do not exceed nine bedrooms.
Erin Somerville
 
Locals angered over green-lit plans for new suburb in outer northern Melbourne area already under strain
The government has approved the construction of a large housing precinct in Melbourne’s outer north, which it says will see 15,000 new homes, four town centres, and eight schools built south of Wallan. Locals from nearby communities have raised concerns over the approval of a new quarry for the area as part of the plans.
 
Australia’s housing market would crash if these factors aligned
An Australian property market crash may be laughable, but it’s conceivable. Housing is politically sensitive because access to it influences our lives enormously.
David Taylor

Negative gearing reform is back on the agenda, but younger voters now hold the power
It’s time to put the 2019 election to bed, along with the messages we pretend were sent from voters from that disastrous campaign for Labor.
Patricia Karvelas

DOMAIN 

Melbourne v Sydney: What you get for the median price will break your heart
Despite Melbourne and Sydney being similar in terms of population and employment opportunities, Melbourne’s median house price of $1.06 million is a stark $658,000 less than Sydney’s $1.72 million median, according to Domain data.
Maria Gil
  
The 8 best luxury properties on the market right now
From bold lines to subtle finishes, we’ve rounded up the best of the luxury property market in Australia right now.
Kate Farrelly and Lou Sweeney
 
Agents reveal: My funniest open home and auction moments
It turns out the wildest part of real estate isn’t always the market – it’s the stories behind the sold stickers. Five top agents share the weirdest and wackiest moments in their careers.
Kylie Dulhunty

‘Two young fellas’ team up to buy $1.4m Kogarah townhouse
A pair of “rent-vestors” splashed $1.4 million on a worn townhouse in Kogarah on Saturday, surpassing the reserve by $350,000.
Sarah Webb

REALESTATE.COM.AU 

Affordable and premium suburbs lead buyer interest surge
Both pricey and inexpensive pockets of the capitals are drawing the attention of buyers as rate cuts drive improved confidence.
Eleanor Creagh
 
Is housing on the agenda at the treasurer’s economic reform roundtable?
In Australia, the cost of housing is one of the country’s biggest priorities, as was well documented during the 2025 federal election. So will the government be making it a focus as it pursues economic reform?
Juliet Helmke

Affordable hotspots where homeowners made $100k+ in 12 months
Prices have increased rapidly in many affordable parts of the capitals, but a typical home in many of these areas won’t break the bank.
Daniel Butkovich
 
Australia has its first ‘sky garage’ – but it won’t be the last
In ultra-luxe apartments in cities around the world, the ultimate amenity for car collectors is a sky garage. But no Australian building has boasted this extravagant feature – until now.
Vivien Topalovic
 
Why the RBA has been letting us down on cash rate calls
Costly delays on key cash rate decisions have raised questions as to whether the Reserve Bank should have spoken up sooner about substandard data.
Hope Coumbe
 
Aus banks slash interest rates early as RBA showdown looms
Seven Aussie banks have slashed interest rates early in a race to beat rivals ahead of next week’s Reserve Bank decision, as a drop in inflation fuels a rate-cutting competition.
Sophie Foster
 
Soaring house prices may be locking people into marriages
House prices continued to rise across Australia in June, recent data shows. Nationally, prices have risen about 38% in the past five years.
Stephen Whelan
  
High-end project luring billionaires and celebs
Billionaires and celebrities who want the space of a mansion without the maintenance, are expected to lead the demand for a one-of-a-kind project in southeast Queensland.
Aleisha Dawson – Gold Coast
  
Explained: How negative gearing affects Aus property market
Calls are growing louder for bold reform on negative gearing in a bid to open the door to the Australian housing market for young Aussies currently locked out.
Kate McIntyre
 
‘Dishonest’ property spruiker Dominique Grubisa collapses into bankruptcy
Investment property spruiker Dominique Grubisa has gone into voluntary bankruptcy. Grubisa blamed it on “unemployment, marriage/relationship breakdown, business failure and legal action”.
Jonathan Chancellor – Sydney
 
Drive and dine: Where your luxury car can come to dinner
Positioned between the ocean and the village heart of Rose Bay the crowning penthouse in the Villia collection is ready for its first owner.
Kathryn Welling – Sydney
 
Black Friday home sales, $48k discounts on land | Oliver Hume
Black Friday sales are coming to Victoria’s housing estates, with a major land sales group planning discounts up to $48,000 in an August campaign named for the US bargain bonanza.
Nathan Mawby – Melbourne
 
Brisbane leading home auction clearance rates nationwide during Winter season
Brisbane auctions have been found to lead the nation’s home auctions during the winter season, with experts suggesting seasonal bidding may be a thing of the past for Queensland.
Nicholas Finch – Brisbane
 
Renter’s cat wins property lotto
A Gold Coast renter says her cat is the real winner after a $1.4m windfall means she no longer has to hide the pet from her landlord.
Viva Hyde – Gold Coast
 
ABS data: New build costs surge, but data points to rate cut
The cost of Australia’s average new home build has surged more than $22,500 to $492,410 in the past financial year.
Nathan Mawby
 
Unions back explosive new crackdown on property tax breaks
Tax perks for landlords with multiple homes could soon be scrapped under explosive new reforms backed by Australia’s unions.
Sophie Foster
 
‘It can happen to anyone’: One in ten Aussies on the cusp of losing their home
Most Australians think of homelessness as a person sleeping rough on the street, but this picture only captures a fraction of those doing it tough. In reality, rough sleepers make up just 6% of the total homeless population.
Benn Dorrington
 
Record sums: Sudden rise in Aussie homeowner wealth stuns experts
Panicked home seekers have been splashing out more money than ever before for properties, smashing longstanding price records across multiple suburbs – often by millions.
Aidan Devine
 
Viral ‘kitchen toilet’ apartment seized in messy debt dispute
You might remember the viral apartment that had the internet in a spin – the one with the, ahem, conveniently located toilet right in the kitchen.
Lydia Kellner
 
Celebrity interior designer reveals bathroom mistakes that can destroy a home sale
A badly presented bathroom can sabotage the entire sale of a home, regardless of the state of its other rooms.
Kaylee Cranley
 
Sydney price gap: chance to buy units for half cost of houses
New data has revealed the price chasm between units and houses in Sydney, flagging units to be the next growth frontier in Sydney’s property cycle.
Kaylee Cranley – Sydney
 
Revealed: Rapid rate of Sydney’s most in-demand suburbs
Homes have begun to sell at an extraordinary pace across parts of Sydney as buyers gear up for further interest rate cuts.
Kaylee Cranley – Sydney

Wrecking crew and 70 pigeons crush slumlord’s derelict home
He fought council over unpaid rates for decades but in the end it was a wrecking crew and as many as 70 pigeons that crushed the derelict home of an infamous Aussie slumlord.
Sophie Foster – Brisbane
 
Body corp cops 312 ‘nuisance’ email barrage from owner
A unit owner accused of sending an “excessive” amount of threatening and insulting emails has been ordered to submit correspondence no longer than 1000 words.
Samantha Healy – Queensland

APRA’s refusal to revise the 3 per cent stress test keeps Aussies locked in mortgage prison
If you’re in mortgage prison, you just had a parole hearing. That was the outcome when the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) announced recently that it would be keeping the 3 per cent mortgage repayment ‘stress test’ buffer in place.
Tim McIntyre
 
Record-breaking home prices edge higher as FOMO creeps in
The latest data confirms it’s never been more expensive to buy a home in Australia, with rising demand and shrinking supply pushing prices to new highs.
Daniel Butkovich
 
Shock cost of living in Australia’s cities revealed
Queensland is home to both the nation’s most and least affordable cities, according to a new cost of living study.
Viva Hyde
 
RBA fallout: shock twist as home prices surge to record high nationally
Australian property prices have climbed again to another record high over the past month as buyers capitalising on interest rate cuts slug it out over a dwindling pool of fresh real estate listings.
Aidan Devine
 
Warning: How Labor’s 5% deposit promise may also hurt first-home buyers
Labor’s pledge to help more first-home buyers enter the market by way of a 5% could also make things tougher for them.
Caroline Riches
 
Rental crisis drives surge in inspection outsourcing demand
There has been growing demand in outsourcing rental inspections with prospective tenants hoping to combat the strain of Australia’s rental crisis.
Kaylee Cranley

URBAN DEVELOPER

‘Tiny Tower’ Plans for Gold Coast’s Rising Riverfront Strip
The tide of development keeps rising along a riverfront strip in Surfers Paradise with a six-storey tiny tower the latest addition to its booming pipeline.
Phil Bartsch

Bob Ell Sells Kings Forest Estate to Stockland for $620m
Billionaire property developer Bob Ell has agreed to sell his Kings Forest residential development site near Kingscliff in northern NSW to Stockland for $620 million, marking one of the largest land transactions in the region.
Leon Della Bosca

Singapore Hotel Group Files Perth Arena-side Tower Plans
Singapore-listed Bonvest Holdings Limited is planning to build two residential towers and refurbish the Sheraton Hotel at the western corner of Perth CBD.
Renee McKeown
 
Dirt Turns on Crows Nest Tower After Five-Year Wait
Deicorp continues converting approvals into construction at speed, breaking ground on a $640-million residential tower on Sydney’s Lower North Shore.
Vanessa Croll
 
How Designing for Connection is Creating Highrise Returns
Highrise living is reshaping Australia’s future, but human connection is falling behind. Fence-line chats have given way to silent rides in lobby lifts, changing how we meet, mingle and feel part of a neighbourhood.
Vanessa Croll

APARTMENTS.COM.AU 

First look: Urban Property Group plans 15-building precinct near Edmondson Park Station with over 1,800 apartments
Development around Edmondson Park Station has been under consideration since 2010, when Landcom lodged a concept plan for the Edmondson Park South Precinct
Joel Robinson
 
Cube secures Golden Beach site amid fierce development demand
Strong developer appetite for Sunshine Coast continues as Colliers transact another Caloundra site, cementing the area’s status as a growth hotspot
Joel Robinson
 
McNab secures approval to transform West End’s Dixon’s Tannery into The Tannery Residences
Builder-developer McNab has received development approval for The Tannery Residences in Brisbane’s West End – a project that will set a new benchmark for integrating heritage preservation with modern wellness-focused living.
Joel Robinson
 
Sherpa sells out Perspective Nexus, Palm Beach apartment development
Leading Gold Coast developer Sherpa Property Group has sold all of the 35 apartments in their coastal Palm Beach apartment development, Perspective Nexus, ahead of its September completion.
Joel Robinson
 
Leeka Group to welcome buyers to Ashburton’s Burton Place next month
Residents will soon be handed the keys to the boutique collection of four-bedroom townhomes at Burton Place, with move-ins expected in just three weeks.
Joel Robinson
 
TOGA to push on with Five Dock mixed-use masterplan
Reputable builder-developer TOGA is reviving its mixed-use masterplan precinct in Sydney’s Five Dock. The new State Significant Development Application and rezoning proposal is for nearly 700 dwellings across four buildings on the prime Parramatta Road site.
Joel Robinson

GREEN STREET NEWS

Fragrance Group looks to offload Tasmania development site
The site has been approved for a range of residential and hotel options
Layton Holley – Tasmania
    
Chinese developer pulls plug on Melbourne site sale
Dahua was unable to capitalise on demand for development sites in Clyde North
Nelson Yap – Melbourne
 
Suleman family testing market with Melbourne BTR listing
The Spotswood offering comes as local and Japanese investor interest in the Build To Rent sector gains momentum
Nelson Yap – Melbourne

ST GEORGE & SUTHERLAND LEADER

Business case for Brighton-Le-Sands carpark’s $56 million redevelopment
A preliminary business case for the $56 million redevelopment of The Boulevarde Car Park, Brighton-Le-Sands will be presented to Bayside Council this month.
Jim Gainsford

ILLAWARRA MERCURY

First look: The ‘Infinity’ apartments at Wollongong’s former BMW site
Buyers in a new Wollongong apartment complex are set to move into their homes in the coming weeks.
Brendan Crabb
 
The Illawarra suburbs where home buyer FOMO is on the rise
Fear of missing out (FOMO) was rampant among home buyers during the COVID-influenced property boom. Prices went up, and homes were selling more quickly throughout the Illawarra and beyond.
Brendan Crabb

VIEW.COM.AU

The best free design apps for creating your dream home like a pro
Gone are the days of second-guessing a room plan, a furniture purchase or the colour of your walls.
Rachel Wells
 
What would it take for house prices to drop in Australia?
Homeowners and property investors may rub their hands together at Australia’s ever-increasing house prices.
Rachel Wells

WEIRD AND (NOT SO) WONDERFUL

New York mansion hits market with awkward photos
A lavish resort-style New York mansion is attracting attention after hitting the market – but for all the wrong reasons.
Jessica Brown

Ex-police station with a backyard jail cell sells for $1m+
A former cop shop in Melbourne’s south east featuring a backyard jail cell locked in a seven-figure sale yesterday.
Alesha Capone – Melbourne

Rent influencer Troy Candy’s ultimate party house for $11k/week
A grand Gold Coast mansion and scene of a wild bash complete with red carpet, onsite tattoos, a jet ski stunt show and fireworks is up for rent at an eye-popping price.
Viva Hyde – Gold Coast

‘Ruined our retirement’: Couple bought a mansion for $18K, now they can’t sell it
When Charles and Patricia Lester bought an historic mansion in Wales they had high hopes for their retirement years.
Kate Kachor

Victorian courts ill-equipped to help people who build houses on wrong blocks
Melanie and David Moor are fighting a legal battle in south-west Victoria to keep their home after they mistakenly moved a house onto the wrong block. Victorian laws effectively state that the house belongs to the landowner.
Matt Neal

WANT MORE?

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