‘Build to rent’ apartment complexes to solve Queensland’s housing crisis

Build to rent apartment complexes complete with cooking courses, gyms, theatres and yoga instructors are coming to Queensland to solve the state’s housing crisis.

‘Build to rent’ apartment complexes complete with concierges, yoga instructors, personal trainers, cooking courses, gyms and theatres are set to spring up in Queensland to help solve the state’s housing affordability and rental crisis, experts say.

The build to rent market, where large investors team up with developers to build ‘lifestyle communities’ aimed purely at renters, are huge overseas but are now only just taking off in Australia.

Experts say Queensland, particularly Brisbane and the Gold Coast, are prime areas for BTR projects.

BTR expert Andrew Purdon, of property giant CBRE, was in southeast Queensland this week to inspect possible sites.

He said millions of BTR units worth billions of dollars had been built in the US, UK and Europe but only a few thousand in Australia so far.

However, 30,000 new BTR apartments were in the pipeline in Australia, with Melbourne leading the way.

Build to rent expert Andrew Purdon.

Mr Purdon said Australia had one of the highest population growth rates in the world with an extra 2.9 million people by 2031 forecast, and southeast Queensland was one of the nation’s fastest-growing areas with more than 600,000 people tipped for Brisbane and the Gold Coast within a decade.

“That’s a lot of homes to build,” he said.

Mr Purdon said low housing affordability and a chronic shortage of rental properties made single ownership BTR projects an attractive alternative to standard apartment projects owned by a mix of investors and owner-occupiers.

Typically aimed at renters aged in their 20s to 40s, BTR complexes provided affordable living with a community lifestyle and facilities such as gyms, movie theatres and co-working spaces, Mr Purdon said.

“You might have a concierge, a person trainer on-site, yoga classes, car sharing, and bike sharing,” he said.

Mr Purdon said BTR complexes also featured events such as cooking classes, movie and TV sport nights and community barbecues.

“You might have a community manager to curate events and create a bit of a buzz around the building,” he said.

CBRE Gold Coast managing director Mark Witheriff said with a rental vacancy rate of less than 1 per cent and soaring house prices, the Glitter Strip was well-positioned for BTR developments, especially west of the Gold Coast Highway.

Developer Ron Bakir has teamed up with finance giant Morgan Stanley to build a $200 million, four tower BTR project at Varsity Lakes.