Rents soar at Philip Usher Constructions owned Sky Broadwater in Southport

Rents have been hiked by eye-watering amounts at a Gold Coast tower owned by one of Australia’s richest men, with his company promising to ‘work with’ residents wanting to relocate. Full story.

Tenants at a Gold Coast tower have been hit with eye-watering rent hikes of up to almost 40 per cent.

But the building’s owner says the rents are “fair” and “give residents security”, while they will “work with residents who decide to relocate”.

In a lease renewal notice sent to a tenant of Sky Broadwater in Southport earlier this year, management wrote they were “pleased to advise” the renter was being offered a new 12-month lease. The catch was rent for the two-bed unit would rise from $580 per week to $795 per week – a jump of 37 per cent.

The Sky Broadwater building in Southport. Picture: Keith Woods.

“I was shocked. I nearly had a heart attack,” the tenant said.

“I expected it to go up fifty bucks. I didn’t think they could increase it more than 10 per cent.

“We can’t afford such a high increase.

“I rang the (Residential Tenancies Authority) RTA and they told me that Queensland is behind other states and they can charge whatever they like for rent.”

The tenant, who did not wish to be named, said the monster hike was a tough pill to swallow in the midst of a cost of living crisis.

“We’re being ripped off. People are struggling to pay for their groceries,” they said.

“People can’t get homes, it’s a rental crisis, and because of that they can charge an extra $215. That’s more than $11,000 a year in rent.”

Sky Broadwater is the second largest rental complex on the Gold Coast after the Smith Collective.

It is owned by Philip Usher Constructions, which also owns nearby H20 Broadwater.

The company was founded in 1987 by reclusive rich lister Philip Usher, 58, who was reckoned in 2022 to be one of Australia’s wealthiest people with a fortune of $624 million.

Phil Usher of Philip Usher Constructions.

Philip Usher Constructions operations manager Justin Dixon defended the hefty rent hikes at Sky Broadwater.

“Rising rents are a widespread issue across the Gold Coast, and beyond, and we take our residents’ concerns seriously when reviewing rents at Sky Broadwater,” Mr Dixon said.

“After extensive reviews of comparable properties, we’ve settled on apartment rents that are fair in the marketplace and give residents security in the rent they are paying for a premium home through the coming lease period.”

Mr Dixon said after considering their options most residents decided to renew.

“In most cases after tenants review similar properties in the marketplace, they renew with us,” he said.

“We proactively work with residents that decide to relocate.

“Where tenancies have increased significantly, many of these residents have benefited from less than market rent over the preceding rental period.”

According to PropTrack data, the cost of renting a unit in Southport is up 9.1 per cent in the 12 months to February, with the median price of a two-bed unit now $640 per week.

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