APARTMENT BUILDING APPROVALS ON THE RISE AS SECTOR POWERS INTO 2023
Individual borrowers may be feeling the heat in Australia but the multi-res market is shaping up for a busy year
2 min
Approvals for apartment construction are responsible for an 18.5 percent increase in the total number of dwellings getting the green light during December, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reports.
In data released today, the figures are in contrast to the previous month where building approvals declined by 8.8 percent over November 2022.
“The increase in the total number of dwellings approved in December was led by a sharp rise in approvals for private sector dwellings excluding houses (+56.6 per cent),” said Daniel Rossi, ABS head of construction statistics. “The result was driven by a number of large apartment developments approved in New South Wales and Victoria.
“Approvals for private sector houses continued to track downwards, falling by 2.3 per cent.”
Private sector dwellings excluding houses includes semi detached, row or terrace houses, townhouses and apartments.
New South Wales saw the strongest increase, up 48.4 percent, followed by Victoria (up 20.7 percent), Queensland (up 8.3 percent) and Western Australia (up 6.4 percent). Tasmania and South Australia both recorded significant decreases, with overall approvals falling -49.7 percent and -24.6 percent respectively.
The strong performance in the apartment sector compared with private sector housing points to growing pressure on individual mortgage holders following a 3 percent rise in interest rates over 2022. The results for private sector housing were mixed, with some states recording rises, such as Western Australia (up 8.2 percent), Victoria (up 0.3 percent) and Queensland (up 0.2 percent) while others such as South Australia and New South Wales experiencing a drop, with approvals down -7.4 percent and -4.2 percent respectively.
This stylish family home combines a classic palette and finishes with a flexible floorplan
Just 55 minutes from Sydney, make this your creative getaway located in the majestic Hawkesbury region.
The four-bedroom home “blends historic architecture, soaring open-plan living spaces and every possible contemporary comfort”
2 min
A unique home on the outskirts of London within a former chapel that had a starring role in the hit TV series “Call the Midwife” is on the rental market for £39,000 (US$48,568) per month.
The four-bedroom home was carved out of St Joseph’s Missionary College, which, founded in 1871, trained young Catholic priests to work as missionaries abroad, according to listing agency Dexters.
Before its conversion to a lavish private residence, the college’s chapel had a starring role as nursing convent Nonnatus House in the first two seasons of the feel-good BBC show, which focuses on a church-funded midwifery in the 1950s and 1960s, based on the bestselling memoirs of Jennifer Worth, a former London nurse.
When the historic college was sold for redevelopment in 2013, and production of “Call The Midwife” transferred to a studio set, the chapel—along with the rest of the building—was born again.
Dexters
Still going by the apt moniker of the Chapel, the home is the centrepiece of the site, which is now a gated development known as St Joseph’s Gate, said Dexters, which brought the home to the market in late February.
The home spans almost 10,000 square feet and “blends historic architecture, soaring open plan living spaces and every possible contemporary comfort,” said Andy Christophi, director of Dexters Finchley.
The chapel’s nave is now the dramatic heart of the home, complete with a 45-foot high vaulted timber ceiling.
The vast open-plan area—which also has columns and gothic-style arches—has a handcrafted kitchen, temperature-controlled wine storage, a curved living area with Victorian windows and enough space to easily host 30 at a dinner table, the listing said.
Above, a mezzanine bedroom has been constructed to appear as though floating above the main living area below.
The home also has a gym, a spa area with a sauna and steam room, and a media room.
“Perfect for a family that loves to entertain, its use as a filming location…makes it particularly iconic, and means you’ll never run out of dinner party conversation,” Christophi said.
Just 55 minutes from Sydney, make this your creative getaway located in the majestic Hawkesbury region.
This stylish family home combines a classic palette and finishes with a flexible floorplan
