‘Ya dreaming mate’: Brisbane car space for rent at sharehouse price
A Brisbane unit owner trying to make some dosh off his parking space has triggered a potential body corporate battle, with renters also divided over whether his price is ‘cheap’ or ‘crazy’.
Property
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It may be the size of a room in a sharehouse but that’s where the similarities end for this Queensland car space which has split opinion over whether its rent price is “cheap” or “dreaming”.
The parking space in the Spire building in the Brisbane CBD hit the rental market priced just $10 per week less than cheapest sharehouse room listed for rent in the Queensland capital.
The cheapest share house room in Greater Brisbane right now is $120 a week with the next at $150 a week, with the pricing similarities not lost on those who saw the car space listing. One said “it’s pretty sad that a literal carparking spot is the same price that a room in a share house used to be”.
Several people made social media enquiries around living there at that price, George Wrong asking “can I bring a swag”, followed by Tim Tam Frend saying “was going to ask about a tent”, Kimberley Vick adding “can I bring my bed and sleep in the car spot!”
Other enquiries included “does it have water and electricity just asking for a freind (sic)” and “does it come with ac and heating?”.
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It was listed for rent at “$400 a month or $110 a week”, an amount some believed fair for a dedicated undercover car space in Brisbane’s inner city.
“Actually is a decent price for those working in the city,” Larry Crampton commented, while Michelle Karoline said “I know from direct experience that they are approximately anywhere from $420-620 in the city commercial buildings towards Roma Street at the moment”.
The Spire car space owner David Ke dropped his asking price to $300 a month within hours of uploading the listing after several people strongly disagreed with his pricing.
Kalib Nicholls of Surfers Paradise said “400 a month or 110 a week! Ya dreaming mate, there’s people renting there car spots for 50-70 a week”.
But he acknowledged “it’s honestly up to him what he wants to charge! Most I would pay if I was desperate would be 80 max but there are people out there that will pay that crazy amount! It’s just trying to find someone that will pay that”.
A Spire employee has told The Courier-Mail that private rental of car spaces were “not something we encourage”.
“Screenshots have been taken and we have let our managing director and body corporate know,” the employee said, with several listings apparently online.
In response to the question “can I rent my car parking space?”, lawyer Frank Higginson of Hynes Legal told Look Up Strata – a blog for strata living – “as long as it is to another resident in the building then it is usually not a breach of the town plan”.
“It will depend on the town plan, but my understanding has been that as long as it is to another resident in the building then it is usually not a breach of the town plan,” he said. “After that, it is not normally within the scope of the committee to address what an owner does with their private car space, provided that it is within the confines of the by-law granting that right. So, for example, if the by-law says it can be used for parking only, then it can’t be used for storage.”
Parking spots in the city have become a lucrative side hustle, with the highest price currently being charged via online car space booking firm Parkhound in Queen Street at $520 a month. That was for a space located “underneath Admiralty Park at the end of Howard Street”, with stairs that take you “straight up to Queen Street”.
The consensus though is that Brisbane’s car space prices were nowhere near the heights being charged in southern capitals with one person commenting he was “thankful it’s not like Sydney CBD prices”.
Mr Ke is now asking $270 a month for his car space. He has not responded to a query for comments.
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