Australia Joins Global Surge in Branded Residences
Australia’s luxury apartment sector is tipped for expansion, with developers and global brands eyeing opportunities as demand for prestige living rises.
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Australia’s fledgling branded residences sector is poised for growth, according to McGrath Estate Agents and Knight Frank’s newly launched Residence Report.
The global branded residences market has surged from 169 schemes in 2011 to 611 today, with forecasts of more than 1,000 by 2030. Locally, the concept gained prominence with Crown Residences at One Barangaroo in Sydney.
Adam Ross, Associate Director of Prestige and International Sales at McGrath Estate Agents, said developers and buyers alike were showing strong interest.
“We have seen strong interest among developers to deliver branded schemes as well as huge demand from buyers off the back of the Crown Residences sales at One Barangaroo in Sydney,” he said.
Ross noted that design, identity and services are key.
“While an emphasis remains on providing a range of services and amenities to serve wealthy but time-poor individuals, developers are investing in globally renowned architects, place makers and interior designers to create an identity for their project, community and the surrounding environment,” he said.
Michelle Ciesielski, Head of Residential Research at McGrath Estate Agents, said demand is building.
“There’s growing demand in Australia, but nothing comparable to One Barangaroo has been greenlit yet. For developers, it’s that ideal combination of timing, cost and the right site,” she said.
Ciesielski added that the sector is expanding beyond hotels.
“Today, hotel serviceability only forms part of the branded residence concept. As this market has evolved, developers have widened their scope with brand collaboration with increasingly more being delivered with non-hotel brands.”
Brisbane, Melbourne and the Gold Coast are emerging hotspots. Projects such as Seafarers by Riverlee in Melbourne and the Mondrian Residences on the Gold Coast highlight the sector’s potential.
“The sites are there, the desire and demand are there; the only uncertainty lies with finding builders with space on the books to deliver. The race is on,” Ross said, pointing to activity in South-East Queensland ahead of the 2032 Brisbane Olympics.
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The oceanfront house at the northern end of the affluent barrier island was a longtime vacation home of late Prince Albrecht of Oettingen-Spielberg.
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The 11th-generation heir of a German royal family has sold an oceanfront mansion in Palm Beach, Florida, for $30.27 million.
The 4,675-square-foot home on East Inlet Drive was built in 1960 and stands on 1.24 acres of oceanfront land, one lot away from the northern border of the Palm Beach barrier island.
It has six bedrooms, an ocean-facing veranda and pool deck and a direct path to the white-sand beachfront through lush greenery.
The property was purchased in 1987 by the late Prince Albrecht of Oettingen-Spielberg—10th in the line of a noble German dynasty that traces back to the 17th century—for $1.75 million, according to property records.
The German prince died in November, and the property was sold by his son and heir, Prince Franz-Albrecht of Oettingten-Spielberg, according to the deed recorded with Palm Beach County on Monday.
The buyer was a Florida-based LLC, managed by a law firm in East Hampton, New York, and represented by Island Realty PB.
“The new buyer is going to renovate the existing structure and breathe more life into it,” said listing agent Whitney McGurk, who represented the seller alongside Lisa Pulitzer, both of Brown Harris Stevens. “It was seldom used by the former owner.”
The aristocrat’s home was first listed for $45 million in 2024 and was reduced over the years as it cycled through different brokers and was also offered to rent. It was reduced for the final time to $32.9 million in February of this year.
Because of the property’s proximity to the Palm Beach Inlet, which divides the Palm Beach island from the barrier island to the north, it is close to great snorkelling and fishing along the jetty, as well as one of the best surf breaks in Palm Beach, according to McGurk.
“The house was always the ultimate beach house,” said McGurk. “Snorkelling, fishing, surfing, relaxing on the beach—it’s all right at your doorstep.”
The late owner’s son Prince Franz-Albrecht is the 11th-generation head of the family, as well as a hunter and conservationist married to model and socialite Baroness Cleo von Adelsheim.
His full name is Franz-Albrecht Alois Christian Ferdinand Maria Notger, Prince of Oettingen-Oettingen and Oettingen-Spielberg. He couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.
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