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Lendlease and Armani/Casa Unveil Cove at One Circular Quay

In a landmark moment for Australian luxury real estate, Lendlease and Armani/Casa have unveiled the Cove Residence, Australia’s first private residence by a global design house and the first private home in the country to be developed in collaboration with Armani/Casa. Occupying an entire floor on level 53 of One Circular Quay, the 537-square-metre sub penthouse places Sydney alongside New York, Miami, London and Dubai in a category long defined by the world’s most storied design houses.

Branded residences are among the fastest-growing segments in global luxury real estate, with the number of branded developments worldwide forecast to rise by 59 per cent in the five years to 2029, according to Knight Frank’s Global Branded Residence Survey 2025. Cove marks Armani/Casa’s first collaboration in Australia, joining a global portfolio of residences in cities including New York, Miami, Dubai, Istanbul, Mexico City, Rio de Janeiro and Beijing.

The commission also builds on a long-standing working relationship between the two houses. In 2009, Lendlease delivered the Armani Hotel Milano in the Palazzo on Via Manzoni on behalf of Emaar Hotels & Resorts. Cove brings that collaboration to Sydney in residential form.

According to John Taylor, Head of Product & Design at Lendlease, Cove represents a defining chapter in the One Circular Quay story.

“Lendlease and Armani/Casa share a conviction that true luxury is quiet, considered and made to last. To introduce for the first time in Australia a property fully furnished in collaboration with Armani/Casa, in a single whole-floor residence at One Circular Quay, is a moment of real significance for Sydney and for the branded residences category in this country,” he said.

Cove sits within an architectural envelope designed by Kerry Hill Architects, with interiors by Daniel Goldberg and furniture selection and styling by Armani/Casa. The palette is drawn from the tonal register Giorgio Armani described as greige, a term for the space between grey and beige, layered with sand, off-white, Canaletto Walnut and Satin Light Brass. Precious materials and finishes are made in Italy by artisans using traditional techniques, including hand-applied finishes exclusively developed by Armani/Casa such as Brass Carved Liquid Metal and White Gold Drafted Stucco.

The residence has been composed around the four pillars that guide Armani/Casa as a design house: Art, Fashion, Nature and The Orient. A 165-centimetre column lamp in Onyx-Textured Metal, the Nema floor lamp, greets residents at the entry, with the lighting throughout the residence creating a warm and tranquil atmosphere.

In the principal suite, the Morfeo bed, a celebrated, softly curved floating design finished in Canaletto Walnut and Majilite Chinchilla upholstery, anchors the room. In the formal living room, a five by five and a half metre-square silk and wool rug carries the canneté stripe, a three-dimensional woven texture that has run through Giorgio Armani’s fashion collections since the very beginning, flanked by timber lattice screens drawn from the geometry of Japanese shoji and torii.

On the desk of the study rests the Limited Edition Logo lamp with a dimmable function, shade in Methacrylate and Copper Mesh, base in Satin Light Brass and Canaletto Wood, now a collectors item and no longer available to purchase around the globe.

The Logo lamp was designed by Giorgio Armani in 1982 for his own Milan stores to cast even light on his collections, and adopted soon after as the emblem of Armani/Casa itself.

Whole-floor living sits at the heart of the proposition. Residents arrive via a private lift lobby that opens directly into the home, with no shared corridors and no compromise on privacy. The principal living and entertaining volumes are oriented to frame an uninterrupted sweep across the Sydney Opera House, the Harbour Bridge and the harbour beyond. A primary suite anchors one end of the floor with its own boutique-inspired dressing room and a private spa ensuite, while secondary bedrooms and a study are grouped at the opposite end for privacy. Generous proportions throughout allow each space to breathe, and a terrace extends the living areas into the harbour air.

The owner of Cove will be welcomed into the world of Armani. The invitation begins with a private stay at the Armani Hotel Milano and a personal design experience at the Armani/Casa flagship in Corso Venezia, granting the owner a behind the scenes look at the craft and creation of the Armani/Casa products.

One Circular Quay is more than 90 per cent sold and is due to complete later this year. With its harbourfront position, the building has already established itself as the benchmark address for a new generation of Sydney residents.

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How to Outsmart AI When It’s Tracking Your Workday

What’s more important than being a good employee right now? Looking like a good employee in the eyes of AI productivity trackers that more managers are using to evaluate their teams.

Employee-monitoring systems are especially popular at tech companies and are also used by other white-collar firms that want to probe how people spend company time. The scary thing: You might not even know you’re being watched because many states don’t require disclosure.

Metrics can include performance data that is undoubtedly relevant, such as sales results. But it also can employ dubious proxies like keyboard strokes and how often your computer screen goes into sleep mode.

We generally accepted, or at least understood, heightened surveillance during the work-from-home era. Back then it seemed reasonable for bosses to keep tabs on employees they couldn’t see.

Yet the oversight has only escalated, and tensions are rising, too.

A group of former Meta Platforms employees alleges in a lawsuit that the company used a “constellation of internal artificial-intelligence systems” when it began laying off about 10% of its workforce in May. Meta says humans make termination calls.

However that case shakes out, a couple of things are clear. Companies eager to gauge which employees are locked in now have sophisticated AI monitoring systems at their disposal. And they believe they have leverage in a tepid labor market.

So while we may chafe at having our worth reduced to numbers on the boss’s productivity dashboard, we have to play the game as it’s being played. Here are some tips, based on conversations with people who make employee monitoring systems—and others who game the systems.

Be meticulous about your calendar

Calendar integration is one way that productivity trackers have gotten more advanced and, ostensibly, fairer.

Let’s say you make an old-fashioned phone call or attend an in-person meeting. Your Outlook or Slack status may switch to “away,” making you appear as inactive as if you were taking an extended coffee break.

Employee monitors like one made by a company called Insightful cross-check your online status with your calendar to see whether there is a valid reason for your apparent inactivity. If that call or meeting is on your schedule, then the system will recognize that you are busy offline. If nothing is on the books, it could look like you’re slacking off.

Hit the activity sweet spot, around 80%

Let’s not go any further without addressing the underlying question: How much downtime is permissible during the workday? After all, people have been scared to let managers see anything non-work-related on their screens since personal computers first arrived in offices.

No one knows this better than Roger Wagner, who is widely credited with creating the first “boss button” in the early 1980s. He designed a keyboard shortcut to instantly display a spreadsheet if the boss walked by your cubicle while you were playing a computer game. Boss buttons have been features of countless diversions since. (I confess to using one built into a March Madness streaming app.)

Wagner, the founder of computer-education company 1010 Technologies, says his original design was a joke—more of a commentary on overbearing managers than a cover for lazy employees. Good bosses understand workers need mental breaks throughout the day, he says.

This matches what I heard from Insightful Chief Executive Ivan Petrovic. He says customers that use his company’s workforce-management platform don’t expect employees to stay on task 100% of the time.

“On average companies are aiming for 60% to 80% of your time being utilized for work during the day,” he says.

Go ahead and exhale. It’s probably OK to watch an occasional YouTube video at your desk.

And if you’re going to artificially inflate your activity level, be careful. Hitting 90% could look suspicious.

Get physical

So don’t leave your mouse jiggler on all day. Choose the right one if you must resort to shenanigans.

There are lots of software applications that mimic the movements of a computer mouse, so you can appear to be working while away from your desk. There are also devices that plug into computer ports and do the same thing.

Corporate cybersecurity systems increasingly block these apps and devices, and productivity trackers claim to be able to detect them. But some workers swear by mouse docks, like one made by Tech8 USA, that keep cursors moving. The company originally made mouse-moving software but now focuses on physical jigglers.

“People are drawn to mechanical solutions because they’re so simple and don’t require software,” says Tech8 Marketing Director Sam Matthews. “As monitoring technology becomes more sophisticated, that distinction has become even more relevant.”

Use AI, but not too much

Another popular metric for employee-monitoring systems is AI usage. Companies want to know who is embracing new tools, and it can be tempting to think more is better.

“There’s a performative aspect where employees overblow their usage of AI so that they appear relevant in the organization,” says Andrea Derler, principal researcher at Visier, which helps companies track and analyze employee work habits.

In a recent Visier survey of 1,000 U.S. workers, 48% admitted to exaggerating their AI usage.

This is already an outdated strategy. Using AI for everything used to score points for experimentation. Now it can seem wasteful because many companies are watching AI token spending more carefully.

Look, productivity theater has always been part of work. Most of us aren’t trying to cheat the system, but expectations are changing so quickly that we need to be savvy about what the latest employee trackers are looking for.

Sometimes it takes a little gamesmanship to get full credit for our contributions.

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Point Piper Trophy Home Market Fires Up With Second $85 Million-Plus Listing

Point Piper’s tightly held trophy-home market is beginning to stir.

Only days after Radford in Point Piper arrived with an $85 million price guide, one of the peninsula’s best-known waterfront estates has returned to the market.

Set directly above Lady Martins Beach at 16 Longworth Avenue, Deauville occupies one of the rare positions where the boundary between private residence and Sydney Harbour feels almost indistinguishable.

The property’s north-easterly orientation opens it towards the harbour, with views stretching across the water towards Sydney Heads. More importantly, its beachfront setting offers direct access to the harbour from the lower reaches of the estate — an attribute that places it within Point Piper’s most tightly held category of homes.

Deauville has long been associated with the Mediterranean architecture of the French Riviera. Its pale exterior, deep terraces and arched openings give the house a distinctly European presence, while its progression down towards the water is characteristic of Sydney’s great harbour estates.

The residence was originally built around 1935 and has undergone extensive alterations during its long history. A major rebuilding program commissioned during the 2010s substantially reconsidered the four-level property, with approved plans including a new pool, larger garaging, landscaped grounds and a new boatshed.

Earlier plans also involved landscaping by celebrated garden designer Paul Bangay.

The result is a home in which its historic Mediterranean character is paired with the scale, amenity and infrastructure expected of a contemporary Point Piper residence.

At the centre of the property is a sequence of formal and informal living spaces oriented towards the harbour. The progression from the principal rooms to terraces, gardens and the waterfront gives Deauville the relaxed rhythm of a European coastal villa, despite its location only kilometres from Sydney’s CBD.

Accommodation is arranged across multiple levels, creating separation between private bedroom quarters, entertaining rooms and the lower waterfront spaces. The home’s elevation allows harbour views to remain present throughout much of the interior, while the lower level establishes a more direct connection with the beach and water.

The waterfront position is complemented by a swimming pool and boatshed, allowing the property to function as both a substantial family residence and a base for life on Sydney Harbour.

Lady Martins Beach is one of Point Piper’s most discreet stretches of shoreline. The Royal Prince Edward Yacht Club and Royal Motor Yacht Club are nearby, reinforcing the neighbourhood’s unusually close relationship with sailing and boating.

Deauville also carries a notable ownership and sales history.

The property sold for $13.5 million in 2012, when it was marketed as a five-bedroom Mediterranean-inspired home on approximately 800 square metres. It was subsequently acquired during a major rebuilding program by luxury-car importer and yachtsman Neville Crichton.

Contemporary reports placed that 2017 transaction at $39 million, although some coverage cited a value of approximately $45 million for the completed residence. Given the private nature of Point Piper transactions, both figures have appeared regularly in accounts of the sale.

That history places Deauville among a small group of Sydney homes whose value cannot be understood solely through bedroom numbers or land area. Direct waterfront access, orientation, harbour frontage and the scarcity of comparable properties carry far greater weight.

Point Piper contains only a few hundred homes and records remarkably little turnover. Cotality placed its median house value at more than $17 million in early 2026, although that figure tells only part of the story. Waterfront estates occupy a market of their own, with landmark sales reaching up to $130 million in recent years.

Fact box

  • Property: Deauville
  • Address: 16 Longworth Avenue, Point Piper, NSW
  • Position: Directly on Lady Martins Beach
  • Orientation: North-east
  • Land: Around 800 sqm
  • Residence: Multi-level Mediterranean-inspired waterfront home
  • Key features: Harbour views, swimming pool, landscaped grounds, boatshed, garaging and direct beach access
  • Previous sale: Reported at $39 million in 2017, with some contemporary reports citing approximately $45 million upon completion
  • Current campaign: Ken Jacobs, Forbes Global Properties
  • Price: $85m – $90m
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Australia’s Newest Luxury Hotel Brand Arrives in Sydney as Elysium Manly Opens

Elysium Manly has officially opened its doors, welcoming its first guests and bringing a new calibre of contemporary luxury to one of Australia’s most recognisable beachfront destinations.

Formerly Manly Pacific, the 213-room hotel is now Elysium Manly, marking a definitive new identity for the landmark beachfront property and the Sydney arrival of Elysium Hotels. Occupying a prime position opposite Manly Beach, around 20 minutes by ferry from Sydney’s CBD, the hotel brings together contemporary coastal rooms and suites, destination dining, integrated wellness and a heightened level of service and generosity.

Following the launch of Elysium Noosa Resort in December, Elysium Manly establishes the Australian luxury hotel brand across two of the country’s most sought-after coastal destinations, arriving in Sydney just in time for summer. Here, the Elysium experience is distinctly of its place: the sand and surf of Manly Beach directly opposite, the harbour and ferry only a short walk away, and Sydney remarkably close. Yet from an ocean-facing terrace, the rooftop pool or over dinner at Cibaria, it can feel a world away.

The transition to Elysium follows a $40 million investment in the property, including a $30 million refurbishment of rooms and suites by Coco Republic and the $8.5 million creation of acclaimed restaurant Cibaria, designed by Luchetti Krelle. Now, a new layer of accommodation, wellness, service and guest experience completes its transition to Elysium Manly.

Elysium Manly’s most elevated expression is the 167sqm Elysium Suite: a one-bedroom penthouse overlooking Manly Beach and the Pacific Ocean. An expansive private terrace now features a full-spectrum infrared barrel sauna by Nimbus alongside outdoor dining and sun loungers, creating a private vantage point above one of Sydney’s most famous stretches of coastline.

Inside, generous living and entertaining spaces include a fireplace, eight-seat dining table with private dining available on request, a freestanding bath and curated wine fridge. Hermès bathroom amenities are exclusive to the suite. Breakfast is served in-suite daily, while a dedicated VIP Host, valet parking and priority dining at Cibaria and 55 North extend the experience beyond the room. A Peloton bike can also be arranged on request.

Among the most significant additions are six new Wellness Suites. Each suite opens onto an ocean-facing private terrace with its own full-spectrum Nimbus infrared barrel sauna, allowing guests to move between the warmth of the sauna and the fresh sea air beyond.

Rather than prescribing how a wellness stay should look, Elysium’s Wellness Suites give guests the freedom to incorporate it as much or as little as they choose. A wellness tonic on arrival, in-room fitness equipment, LED face mask, compression boots, Peloton access and a complimentary BodyLove Pilates class are among the inclusions, alongside a minibar stocked with juices and electrolytes. A dedicated wellness breakfast can be served in-suite, while IKKARI bathroom amenities and signature Elysium robes complete the experience.

A further nine Coastal Two-Bedroom Suites broaden the hotel’s appeal for families and longer stays, offering expansive, residential-style accommodation. At 73sqm, each features a private ocean-facing balcony, two bedrooms and two bathrooms, alongside a generous contemporary living area, comfortable lounge, kitchenette and sit-down dining space. A dedicated VIP Host, ESPA bathroom amenities, valet parking and a complimentary one-hour infrared sauna experience are also included.

On level six, the new Elysium Floor introduces an additional layer of personalised service. The experience begins before arrival, with guest preferences informing the stay and a dedicated VIP Host available to assist with dining reservations, in-room arrangements, local recommendations and individual requests. Personalised room preparation and evening turndown are among the service rituals designed to make the experience feel intuitive and personal.

The hallmarks of an Elysium stay are equally apparent in the smaller details, with a tiered collection of bathroom amenities across room and suite categories: Grown Alchemist throughout hotel rooms, ESPA across suites, and Hermès reserved exclusively for the Elysium Suite. New photographic works by Australian photographer Elise Hassey, shot for Elysium Manly, are being introduced to selected rooms, joining the contemporary coastal interiors by Coco Republic and further connecting the hotel to its beachfront setting.

Beyond the rooms, Elysium’s sensory signatures have been layered throughout the property.

Bespoke floral installations by celebrated florist Saskia Havekes of Grandiflora, a signature Elysium fragrance and an evolving soundscape by music curator Mitchell Wicks bring scent, sound and nature into the guest experience.

Crowning the hotel is the rooftop magnesium mineral pool with a sweeping panorama of Manly Beach and the Pacific Ocean. High above the beachfront and framed by the tops of Manly’s Norfolk pines, the brilliant blue of the pool meets the ocean beyond, creating a striking vantage point from which to swim, sun and take in the coastline. It’s a perspective few hotels can match.

An infrared sauna is available to in-house guests by arrangement, with complimentary access included for Elysium Suite and Coastal Two-Bedroom Suite guests.

Dining remains central to the Elysium experience. Cibaria, the acclaimed Italian restaurant by Alessandro and Anna Pavoni, has already earned a Chef Hat and anchors the hotel’s food and beverage offering, bringing the warmth and energy of Italian dining to the Manly beachfront through handmade pasta, seafood, wood-fired cooking and a generous approach to hospitality.

At 55 North, cocktails, an extensive wine list and a Cibaria bar menu carry the hotel from morning into evening, while Bistro Manly begins the day with an elevated breakfast facing the beachfront.

Elysium Manly General Manager, Dylan Cole, said the official transition marks the culmination of several years of investment in the property, while introducing a new level of service and experience not previously available at the hotel:

“Elysium is about looking at every part of the guest experience and asking what more we can give, from the way we welcome people and anticipate what they might need, to the quality of the amenities in their room and the details they encounter throughout their stay. We have an extraordinary location in Manly and the ambition is to create a hotel experience that genuinely lives up to it.”

“There is a generosity to Elysium that goes beyond the physical hotel. It’s the freedom to have breakfast brought to your suite after a sauna, knowing your favourite bottle is waiting in the wine fridge, having your dining reservations taken care of, or simply being recognised and looked after by someone who understands how you want to spend your time with us,” said Cole.

With its first guests now checked in, one of Australia’s most iconic beachside destinations has a hotel experience to match the beauty of its setting, bringing together contemporary coastal design, destination dining, integrated wellness and highly personalised service just 20 minutes by ferry from Sydney’s CBD.

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Kanebridge Property of the Week: $85 million Radford Point Piper Comes With Remarkable Past

At the northern tip of Point Piper, hidden from the street and positioned directly on Sydney Harbour, “Radford” combines cinematic views, rare waterfront access and a fascinating connection to one of Australia’s most storied estates.

The five-bedroom residence occupies land once belonging to Paradis Sur Mer, the celebrated three-block waterfront estate that made Australian property history in 1982. The original mansion became the country’s first home reported to have sold for more than $5 million—and may also have inspired one of its fastest and most profitable resales.

Property developer and yachtsman Bernard Lewis purchased the estate at auction for $5.25 million, only to sell it within hours to English betting magnate and thoroughbred breeder Robert Sangster. Lewis reportedly made a $500,000 profit in the process.

Sangster renamed the property Toison D’Or—French for “Golden Fleece” and the name of one of his racehorses—and established it as a Sydney base with his then-wife, Susan. The estate subsequently changed hands and identities again, becoming Paradis Sur Mer, or “Paradise on the Sea”, during Susan’s marriage to financier Sir Frank Renouf.

After another headline-making sale near the peak of Sydney’s late-1980s property boom, the original mansion was eventually demolished and the waterfront holding subdivided. “Radford” now stands on one of those prized parcels, carrying a thread of that extraordinary history into the present day.

Harbour views take centre stage

Designed by award-winning architect Victor Berk and constructed in the early 1990s, the three-level modernist residence has been planned around its exceptional position.

Panoramic views stretch from the Sydney Harbour Bridge across Shark Island and Rose Bay to Manly. A prized northerly aspect fills the home with natural light, while bedrooms and living spaces open to decks, balconies and terraces overlooking the water.

The main living areas flow to a broad alfresco entertaining terrace, sunny swimming pool and level harbourfront lawn. Beyond the garden, a private jetty completes the quintessential Sydney waterfront lifestyle.

Inside, generous proportions make the home equally suited to private family life and large-scale entertaining. The formal dining area can accommodate up to 14 guests, while a Gaggenau-appointed kitchen incorporates an island, walk-in pantry and casual breakfast area opening to the poolside deck.

A fireplace anchors the principal living space, complemented by high ceilings, travertine floors and expansive glazing that keeps the harbour present throughout the home.

A private sanctuary on every level

The main bedroom is accompanied by two walk-in wardrobes, a sitting area and an ensuite featuring a spa bath, separate shower and twin basins. Three further bedrooms each have an ensuite, while a gym with its own kitchenette, built-in storage and bathroom can serve as a fifth bedroom or private guest retreat.

Additional spaces include a fitted home office, an upper-level family area, sauna, two powder rooms and a substantial laundry. A lift connects all three levels, and the central staircase sits beneath an atrium-style glass roof fitted with an electric retractable blind.

Ducted and zoned air-conditioning, extensive storage and a security alarm add everyday practicality. Internal access leads to an oversized secure double garage, with additional driveway parking.

Set in an elite cul-de-sac on one of Australia’s most prestigious waterfront streets, “Radford” is close to Lady Martins Beach, Prince Edward Yacht Club, the Royal Motor Yacht Club, Rose Bay’s marinas and leading schools. Double Bay’s restaurants, boutiques and village amenities are only minutes away.

It is an exceptional harbourfront residence in its own right—but its connection to the record-breaking Paradis Sur Mer estate gives it a place within the wider story of Sydney real estate.

Property details

Address: Wolseley Road, Point Piper, NSW
Bedrooms: Five, including a flexible gym or guest suite
Bathrooms: Five, plus two powder rooms
Parking: Oversized double garage and additional driveway space
Key features: Northerly aspect, panoramic harbour views, private jetty, swimming pool, level waterfront lawn, lift, sauna, home office and Gaggenau kitchen
Architect: Victor Berk
Agents: Michael Pallier, Sydney Sotheby’s & Brad Pillinger, Pillinger

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China Is Opening the First Regular Cargo Route Through the Arctic

Note: Usual Northern Sea Route shown for illustrative purposes Source: Sea Legend Daniel Kiss/WSJ

Shipping cargo through an Arctic shortcut never made economic sense—until now.

Climate change and war in the Middle East are flipping the math that previously kept ships plying longer routes from Asia to Europe. A Chinese company on Saturday is starting the first regular cargo service to Europe through Arctic waters, seeking to reap the benefits of quicker travel time and less fuel use.

The shipper Sea Legend will dispatch the Dubai Tower from Ningbo, China, to Felixstowe in the U.K. on what it calls the Arctic Express, following a route along Russia’s north coast. The voyage by the vessel, which is capable of carrying 1,740 20-foot containers, is the biggest commercial step in the Arctic since a Maersk containership first completed the route in 2018.

Global warming is a big factor behind the new route, but it is not the only one. Nearly half the Arctic region’s summer ice—an area four times the size of Texas—has melted over five decades, clearing a fairly reliable path in the summer months. Meanwhile, high oil prices and attacks by Houthi rebels in the Red Sea have made the traditional routes costlier and more dangerous.

Members of China's 16th Arctic Ocean scientific expedition team take selfies on the ice surface.
Members of a Chinese scientific expedition team on surface ice in the Arctic Ocean this week. Wen Jinghua/Xinhua/ZUMA Press

Beyond that, Beijing has ambitions to play a role in the Arctic’s future, lending a geopolitical dimension to the Chinese company’s shipping route.

Last year Sea Legend completed a trial run from Asia to Europe in a record 20 days. That is roughly half the time of a voyage via Africa’s Cape of Good Hope that many carriers now take because of the Red Sea uncertainty.

Fuel accounts for 70% or more of the costs while at sea, said Alan Murphy, a former Maersk analyst who runs research firm Sea-Intelligence.

Saving fuel by shortening the journey doesn’t automatically make a route profitable. Insurance premiums for the Arctic are 40% higher than the Cape of Good Hope route, said Jonathan Steenberg, an economist at credit insurer Coface. Sea Legend’s Arctic vessels are relatively small. And even after warming, an icebreaker is still sometimes needed to help the cargo ship.

But if the ship can go without an icebreaker, Coface said the Arctic route is now cheaper than a Cape of Good Hope voyage in some circumstances. It estimated that at current oil prices of around $90, the cost of shipping liquid bulk such as liquefied natural gas could drop roughly 33% compared with the Cape of Good Hope route, while dry bulk goods such as cereals would cost about 8% less.

The container ship Istanbul Bridge being unloaded by large blue and red cranes at the port of Gdansk.
A containership operated by Sea Legend in the port of Gdansk, Poland. jackowski/epa/Shutterstock

The route is only passable in the summer and fall. Sea Legend plans eight voyages between August and late October, before conditions get too icy.

“It’s not the Suez Canal but it’s a significant number for the Arctic. It shows there is potential,” said Malte Humpert, founder of the U.S.-based Arctic Institute and author of a book on Chinese shipping in the Arctic.

Even in summer, ships have to navigate around dangerous ice floes and deal with rapidly changing weather. By the end of the shipping season in October, the sky is dark most of the time.

A Russian tanker suffered serious damage to its hull while sailing along the Arctic route despite being assisted by an icebreaker, its insurer, AlfaStrakhovanie, said Thursday, adding that it paid out roughly $650,000.

Coface estimates 3.5% of trade among East Asia, Europe and North America will be able to use Arctic routes within the next five years, representing $64 billion in goods.

Last summer, a record 23 cargo ships transited the Northern Sea Route, which hugs Russia’s north coast. That is tiny compared with the Suez Canal, where more than 30 ships transited daily.

Western companies that want to follow in Sea Legend’s path have to navigate treacherous politics. Russia claims sovereignty over the entire Northern Sea Route and permits for ship traffic are issued by its state-controlled nuclear operator, Rosatom.

Aerial view of a port with many cargo ships, red cranes, and rows of stacked shipping containers.
The Dubai Tower’s route will begin in the Chinese port of Ningbo. Huang Zongzhi/ZUMA Press

“Western companies are in a tricky position,” said Humpert of the Arctic Institute. “At what point do they jump back in the water? When does it become economically necessary, and how do you weigh that against environmental risks and the political dimension?”

An alternative Arctic route, the Northwest Passage that connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans via the Canadian Arctic, is less passable because it is dominated by narrow waterways where ice gets bunched up. The highest number of cargo ships completing the passage in a year was 13, in 2023.

China has declared itself a near-Arctic state despite not having access to Arctic waters. It depends on Russia’s goodwill to use the Northern Sea Route.

“Beijing is concerned that if they don’t establish a significant strategic presence in the Arctic now, it’s going to be more difficult in the future,” said Marc Lanteigne, expert in polar geopolitics at the Arctic University of Norway in Tromsø. However, he said, “China needs to be careful not to give the impression that they are trying to challenge the strategic order in the Arctic.”

Sea Legend didn’t respond to requests for comment.

Any polar venture contributes to China’s quest to master Arctic travel. The country also has three icebreakers and a support vessel currently on a monthslong scientific expedition north of Greenland. Scientific and commercial voyages can yield data about natural resources awaiting below melting ice caps and information for positioning nuclear-armed submarines.

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RARE DIAMOND BAY FRONT-ROW HOME HITS MARKET

Considered one of Sydney’s coastal gems, Vaucluse is famous for its multimillion-dollar water views. Only a handful of homes, however, have the luxury of an uninterrupted panorama over Diamond Bay Reserve looking directly out to the Pacific Ocean horizon.

The dramatic cliff-top park is a sought-after neighbour and a popular spot among locals, thanks to its breathtaking boardwalk that snakes through the exclusive suburb.

Once home to a dairy depot, the green space was formerly frequented by horse-drawn carts rather than today’s SUVs. It was gazetted to be a public space by the mid-1800s.

Craig Ave is a rare slice of Eastern Suburbs real estate bordering the elevated Diamond Bay parkland, where just half a dozen residences can claim that never-to-be-built-out front row position.

Back in 2015, the original bungalow at number five was replaced with a contemporary pair of residences, allowing for a duo of homeowners to lay claim to the enviable outlook.

On the ground floor, the three-storey property is freestanding to the north and has a spacious, free-flowing living zone that combines a more formal front lounge room with a state-of-the-art gas kitchen featuring induction cooking and a vast eat-at island bench.

A dining area and casual living space spill out via sliding doors to a covered barbecue deck and private lap pool surrounded by established gardens.

Up via an internal lift, the accommodation level houses four bedrooms with built-ins, including two with integrated desks. In the primary suite, there is a palatial ensuite featuring a bidet, bathtub and twin vanities.

This main bedroom also opens onto a full-width balcony, with the ocean outlook primed for picturesque sunrises.

Built with entertaining in mind, the Vaucluse home also has a lower ground-floor breakout space for teenagers or movie nights for the parents. The large rumpus room adjoins a combined bathroom and laundry with loads of additional under-house storage and direct access to the double lockup garage.

Added extras at the Craig Ave home include a fireplace in the family room, tiled living areas, floorboards in the bedrooms, bespoke joinery throughout and ducted air-conditioning.

The Vaucluse duplex is not only sitting opposite a stunning cliff-side reserve, but is within walking distance of Christison Park, Diamond Bay Bowling Club and the Macquarie Lighthouse, with Vaucluse boutiques and eateries just 750 metres away.

For more information email propertyconcierge@kanebridge.com.au

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Central Banks Are Stuck in a Rinse-and-Repeat Cycle of Crises

Central banks may be accidentally subsidizing government borrowing through their efforts to prevent a repeat of past market blowups, and policymakers are starting to worry that anticrisis lending facilities could even be interfering with their own monetary policy.

The source of the problem is the switch from central banks being the lender of last resort to, in 2008 and 2020, also being market makers of last resort, ensuring corporate—and government—debt markets keep functioning. During a crisis, support is often essential to prevent a downward spiral that destroys the financial system.

But backstopping markets removes a key risk and encourages more borrowing—especially for the hedge funds that now own trillions of dollars of U.S. Treasurys.

“Ironically, vulnerability is created by mechanisms that were introduced to reduce vulnerability,” said Huw Pill, the Bank of England’s chief economist, one of those growing concerned, in an interview. “So, it’s a bit like a whack-a-mole kind of story.”

Offering either an explicit or implied guarantee that government-funding markets will remain open and liquid means hedge funds have less risk of being unable to finance highly leveraged trades. This is particularly true for the overnight repurchase, or repo, market, where borrowers pledge bonds for cash. The result has been a huge expansion of two popular government bond trades, arbitraging Treasurys or British gilts against bond futures or swaps.

The scale is extraordinary: The Dallas Fed estimates hedge funds ended last year with $2.4 trillion of Treasurys, up from $600 billion a decade earlier. Because the profits on each trade are tiny, hedge funds have to leverage as much as 100 times to get worthwhile returns, creating new risks.

This might sound abstruse. But in 2020, it was the Treasury basis trade blowing up that forced the Fed to intervene. In 2025, signs of trouble in the swap trade pushed President Trump to retreat from his tariff plan.

Pill worries that the reassurance central-bank policy provides bleeds into monetary policy by boosting borrowing. This, in turn, keeps government-debt yields lower than they otherwise would be.

“There’s lots of gilts to be bought,” he says. “How do you support that buying of gilts? You make it attractive. How do you make it attractive? Well, there are some imperfections in the market. So those imperfections create profit opportunities, but they’re not very big. So how do you make them more meaningful? You allow leverage to build up.”

“That’s good for the government because it gets to sell the gilts at a lower [yield] than it otherwise would. It’s good for the financial sector because they’re able to extract these rents effectively. And it’s good for the central bank because the market seems to be liquid and functioning. But all of those things are true until they’re not true.”

When it goes wrong, the more leverage, the worse the problem. And the worse the problem, the more likely it becomes that central banks have to create yet more special tools to address it. That then spurs the next buildup of leverage.

Pill thinks more effort is needed to come up with a modern version of the Bagehot Doctrine. Walter Bagehot, the 19th-century editor of the Economist magazine, summed up the role of the central bank as being to lend to banks freely, against good collateral, at a penalty rate. Access to instant cash helps banks withstand runs. The fact the central bank is offering a backstop should make the run less likely, and shareholders are penalized, through the penalty rate, if it is used.

Illustration of economist and journalist Walter Bagehot in profile.
English economist and journalist Walter Bagehot. Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Tools for saving markets from drying up are more haphazard. In 2020 the Fed, BOE and others just bought lots of government debt to inject liquidity into markets. That worked because, even though quantitative easing is also a monetary policy tool, they also wanted easier money.

Unfortunately, that created what Pill described as a tinderbox, ignited by the energy crisis after Russia invaded Ukraine. The excess money creation from left over from emergency QE then fanned the flames of inflation. This made it much harder to calibrate monetary policy when central banks decided to tighten (although policymakers were also, in my view, far too slow to recognize inflation).

Pill points to the “temporary, targeted” BOE buying of gilts amid the forced selling by leveraged pension funds after Britain’s botched tax-cut plan in September 2022 as a successful model. At a time when the BOE was trying to tighten monetary policy, it intervened in a way that stopped the pension fund selling spiral and stabilized gilts. Yet the central bank maintained tight monetary policy.

Bagehot would recognize the goal: Reduce the encouragement to take risk, known as moral hazard, that offering guarantees in advance creates, but retain the ability to mount a rescue in a crisis.

Unfortunately, much of central banking is going backward on this. Moral hazard is increasing, even for banks. In the 2023 bank bailout, the Fed accepted less-than-full collateral, recognizing Treasury bonds at face value rather than their (much lower) market value.

The emergency rescue facility then became a funding facility that even healthy banks chose to tap—in effect easing monetary policy by the back door and prompting the Fed to tighten the terms before it ended. Something similar could be under way with Japan’s plans to use an emergency Fed loan facility to raise cash to prop up the yen without having to sell its hoard of Treasurys.

I don’t know how to break the cycle of crises needing rescues that lead to more leverage and new crises. And I’m concerned we’re firmly into the added-leverage phase of the latest cycle.

At least central bankers are still thinking about it, even if they don’t, so far, have good answers.

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Rolex Opens Boutique in Redeveloped Chatswood Chase

Sydney watch collectors can now explore the world of Rolex at the dedicated Rolex boutique inside Chatswood Chase, one of the North Shore’s best-known luxury shopping destinations.

Operated in partnership with specialist watch retailer The Hour Glass, the boutique is located on Level 1 of the redeveloped Chatswood retail precinct. It is the eighth dedicated Rolex boutique in Australia and forms part of the Swiss watchmaker’s growing presence across Oceania.

More than simply a place to view watches, the Rolex boutique at Chatswood Chase Sydney has been designed as an immersive environment. Its architecture, materials and private consultation spaces create a setting in which visitors can learn about Rolex watches, their craftsmanship and the history behind the brand.

A Rolex boutique inspired by an iconic design

The boutique’s exterior draws inspiration from one of the most recognisable details in Rolex watchmaking: the fluted bezel.

Originally developed to help seal the Oyster case, the fluted bezel has evolved into a signature Rolex design element. At Chatswood Chase, this familiar motif is translated into a façade of vertically fluted travertine stone.

The architectural reference is subtle but distinctive, connecting the boutique’s physical design with the watches displayed inside.

Travertine continues throughout the interior, where it is paired with walnut accents, deep green upholstery and sculptural lighting. Together, these materials create a sophisticated but comfortable atmosphere suited to both experienced collectors and people exploring Rolex for the first time.

A personalised experience for watch collectors

The layout has been developed to support a more personal approach to choosing and learning about a Rolex watch.

Generously sized consultation tables provide space to examine individual timepieces closely, while two private VIP rooms accommodate more detailed appointments. The boutique can welcome individual clients, couples and larger groups without losing its sense of privacy.

Specialist staff from The Hour Glass are available to explain the features, materials and heritage of the Rolex collection. This expert guidance is particularly valuable given the breadth of Rolex watches and the technical differences between models.

Displays and photography throughout the boutique offer additional context, connecting the watches with the brand’s wider history of precision, performance and exploration.

Rolex and the world of sport

Visitors will also find references to Rolex’s longstanding relationships with leading international sports.

The brand has established strong connections with tennis, yachting and motor sport, supporting major competitions and prominent athletes across each discipline. Imagery inside the Chatswood boutique highlights these partnerships and features selected Rolex Testimonees—the champions and leading figures who represent the brand.

These displays place Rolex watches within a broader story of achievement and endurance. They also demonstrate how the brand has built an identity that extends beyond traditional Swiss watchmaking into sport, culture and exploration.

Rolex watchmaking and the pursuit of precision

Rolex is an independent Swiss watch manufacturer headquartered in Geneva. The company designs, develops and produces most of its watch components at its own facilities in Switzerland.

Its manufacturing capabilities cover numerous stages of production, from casting proprietary gold alloys to machining and finishing cases, dials, bracelets and mechanical movements. This integrated approach gives Rolex close control over the quality and performance of its watches.

The movements used in Rolex Oyster Perpetual and Perpetual watches are tested and certified in-house for precision, reliability and performance. Watches that meet the company’s criteria receive its Superlative Chronometer certification, represented by the green seal.

The word “Superlative”, inscribed on every Rolex Oyster watch, expresses the brand’s pursuit of continual improvement. That philosophy can be traced to founder Hans Wilsdorf and the innovations that shaped the modern wristwatch.

Among the company’s best-known milestones are the Rolex Oyster, introduced in 1926 as the first waterproof wristwatch, and the Perpetual rotor self-winding mechanism, developed in 1931. Rolex has registered more than 700 patents over the course of its history.

The Hour Glass and Rolex in Oceania

The Chatswood Chase location is operated by The Hour Glass, a specialist luxury watch retailer with an established Rolex presence across Oceania.

The company represents Rolex through 10 regional points of sale, comprising five dedicated boutiques and five authorised dealerships. Its stores combine carefully designed retail environments with teams of specialists who assist watch enthusiasts and collectors.

For The Hour Glass, the Chatswood boutique expands access to Rolex for clients on Sydney’s North Shore. Its location within Chatswood Chase also places the brand alongside a curated selection of premium fashion, lifestyle and dining businesses.

Rolex recently celebrated 100 years since it introduced its Rolex Oyster watch back in 1926. To celebrate the milestone they released the Oyster Perpetual 41, which pays homage to the historic original.

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Development of the Week: Otium Brings a New Level of Calm to Bellevue Hill

Luxury in Bellevue Hill has traditionally been measured through land, elevation and harbour outlooks. At Ōtium, a boutique residential development taking shape at 206B Victoria Road, the defining quality is quieter: a sense of separation from the city without leaving Sydney’s eastern suburbs.

Positioned above Cooper Park, the development turns away from the movement of Victoria Road and towards the reserve’s dense green canopy. Its north-western rear orientation has been designed to capture natural light, parkland views and the Sydney skyline beyond.

The result is a collection of residences conceived around privacy, space and a close connection with the surrounding landscape.

Award-winning architecture practice MHN Design Union has designed the building, using its elevated setting to establish a distinctly different outlook from many of Bellevue Hill’s apartment developments. Rather than treating the park as a distant backdrop, the architecture draws it into the residences through broad openings, private terraces and living spaces oriented towards the trees.

The Victoria Road elevation uses brickwork to give the building a grounded, enduring street presence. To the rear, the architecture becomes more open, with the residences extending towards private outdoor areas overlooking Cooper Park.

Inside, Ennen & Co has developed a warm and restrained material palette influenced by the building’s architectural forms and natural setting. Clean lines are offset by stronger moments of colour and texture, including deep green tiling, natural stone, marble and bespoke joinery.

The approach is deliberately understated. Instead of relying on conspicuous finishes, the interiors have been designed as a flexible backdrop for furniture, art and the individual preferences of each owner.

Ōtium comprises just eight homes; a garden residence, six upper-level residences and an expansive penthouse. The garden residence offers the most direct relationship with the landscaping, while the penthouse takes advantage of the development’s elevation with views across the parkland canopy towards the city.

A communal rooftop terrace provides another perspective over Bellevue Hill and Sydney. The space has been planned for quiet morning use as well as private gatherings, giving residents access to an elevated outdoor area beyond their individual terraces.

Construction is being undertaken by Ultra Building Co for developer Concretive. Ultra describes the development as a $16 million project and says its work has focused on natural stone, custom joinery, bespoke tiling, acoustic and thermal performance, and carefully resolved transitions between indoor and outdoor spaces.

The location places residents close to several distinct neighbourhood centres. Bellevue Road Village provides local cafés, shops and daily services, while Plumer Road, Double Bay and Bondi Junction extend the dining, retail and transport options. Cooper Park itself offers walking trails and tennis courts, with Sydney’s eastern beaches and the Royal Sydney Golf Club also within easy reach.

It is a location that allows daily life to remain highly connected while creating a more secluded atmosphere at home.

Ōtium is being marketed by Ray White Double Bay Projects, with agent Daniel Ungar noting the development’s strong appeal among buyers.

“Ōtium has resonated strongly with buyers because it offers a combination that is increasingly difficult to find in Bellevue Hill, generous, house-like proportions, privacy and a genuine connection to nature, without the maintenance of a freestanding home,” Ungar says

Above Cooper Park, Ōtium makes stillness itself part of the proposition, an increasingly valuable quality in one of Sydney’s most tightly held residential markets. It offers the security and lower-maintenance qualities of apartment living, but with larger interiors, private terraces and a natural outlook more commonly associated with a freestanding home.

Project details

  • Project: Ōtium
  • Address: 206B Victoria Road, Bellevue Hill, NSW
  • Developer: Concretive
  • Architect: MHN Design Union
  • Interior design: Ennen & Co
  • Builder: Ultra Building Co
  • Status: Under construction
  • Selling agents: Daniel Ungar & Zorick Toltsan | Ray White Double Bay Projects
  • Contact: 0400 112 202 | 0411 227 784
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Series by Marriott Debuts in New Caledonia With Three Resorts

Series by Marriott, part of Marriott Bonvoy’s global portfolio of more than 30 hotel brands, has announced its debut in New Caledonia through a collaboration with Société Hôtelière de Nouméa (SHN).

The agreement marks a new chapter in a relationship spanning more than three decades and is expected to strengthen the tourism offering of New Caledonia’s Southern Province.

SHN’s three flagship Le Domaine du Pacifique resorts—in Nouméa, on the Isle of Pines and in Déva—will join the Series by Marriott portfolio.

Marriott International’s newest collection brand is designed to celebrate regional character while providing the consistency associated with Marriott’s global standards. Each resort showcases a different aspect of New Caledonia’s natural beauty, from lagoons and pristine beaches to protected forests.

The properties also reflect the destination’s blend of Oceanian, French and Asian influences through their art, cuisine, heritage and traditions. Each resort will retain its individual identity and sense of place while becoming part of Marriott’s global network.

Key highlights

  • Brand milestone: The first Series by Marriott properties in the Pacific region.
  • Combined capacity: 375 guestrooms and suites—120 at Le Domaine Déva, 48 at Le Domaine Oro and 207 at Le Domaine Nouméa.
  • Resort facilities: Beachfront and lagoon settings, restaurants and bars, outdoor pools, fitness centres, Deep Nature Spa facilities, direct beach access and water-based recreation.
  • Events and recreation: Meeting and event spaces in Nouméa and Déva, plus access to Golf de Déva in Bourail.

“We are delighted to strengthen our longstanding relationship with Société Hôtelière de Nouméa and introduce Series by Marriott to New Caledonia,” said Jason Nuell, Regional Vice President, Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific, Marriott International.

“These distinctive resorts reflect the character, culture and natural beauty of New Caledonia and embody the vision of Series by Marriott: regionally created and globally connected.

“Through this collaboration, guests will be able to enjoy memorable local experiences with modern design and warm hospitality, alongside the trusted consistency and Marriott Bonvoy member benefits they know from Marriott across the globe.”

Le Domaine Déva, Series by Marriott

Located in Bourail within the Déva Domain nature reserve, Le Domaine Déva is a beachfront resort beside a UNESCO World Heritage-listed barrier reef.

The resort offers 176 Melanesian-inspired guestrooms, including 40 suites and 56 bungalows. Its Kanak-inspired architecture features high, thatched roofs, with a choice of garden or beach views.

Designed for leisure, special events and nature-focused stays, the resort features direct beach access, an outdoor pool, whirlpool, fitness centre, games room, business centre and meeting facilities. Guests also have access to Golf de Déva.

Dining options include Reef, a signature restaurant showcasing local ingredients, and Sand Beach Grill, which serves freshly prepared French cuisine with ocean views. Creek Bar offers local cocktails beside the beachfront infinity pool.

The Deep Nature Spa includes a jacuzzi, sauna and treatment rooms set among the trees, with lagoon or forest views.

Guests can also explore cycling and horse-riding trails in the surrounding reserve. The Domaine de Déva offers 158 kilometres of marked hiking trails across 7,800 hectares of protected dry forest, with views of the UNESCO World Heritage lagoon.

Le Domaine Oro, Series by Marriott

Set on Oro Bay on the Isle of Pines, Le Domaine Oro is an intimate island resort surrounded by white-sand beaches, coconut groves, pine trees and lagoon scenery.

The resort offers 48 guestrooms, including 28 bungalow suites. Rooms feature private balconies or terraces overlooking the gardens, pool, beach or lagoon.

Facilities include an outdoor infinity pool, fitness centre, bar and games room. The iconic Baie d’Oro is within walking distance, offering a natural coral lagoon widely regarded as one of the South Pacific’s most beautiful swimming and snorkelling locations.

Guests can dine at La Pirogue, the resort’s signature restaurant overlooking Oro Bay, which serves French-inspired cuisine with local flavours. Longitude 167 Bar offers a relaxed setting with lagoon views.

The resort also features a Deep Nature Spa and a range of recreational equipment and activities, including canoeing, snorkelling, paddleboarding, table tennis, pétanque, cycling, beach volleyball and beach tennis.

Le Domaine Nouméa, Series by Marriott

Located on Anse Vata Bay, Le Domaine Nouméa combines French-influenced style with Pacific Island hospitality.

Positioned opposite the world’s largest lagoon, which is UNESCO-listed, the landscaped beachfront resort offers 207 guestrooms, including 34 suites. Each room features a private balcony with garden or lagoon views.

Dining options include Le Sextant, the signature restaurant serving buffet breakfast and a popular weekend brunch; Le Faré, a relaxed beachfront bar and lounge; and Latitude 22, a casual café and grab-and-go venue with a garden-facing terrace.

The resort is adjacent to the Grand Casino and within easy reach of Anse Vata Beach.

Facilities include direct beach access, an outdoor pool, fitness centre, business centre and Deep Nature Spa with water views. The property also has seven meeting rooms, including the Laperouse Ballroom, which can accommodate up to 400 guests.

Marriott Bonvoy benefits

All three Le Domaine du Pacifique properties will participate in Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott International’s travel program.

Members will be able to earn points during stays at the resorts and across Marriott Bonvoy’s wider portfolio. Through the Marriott Bonvoy app, members can also access personalised services and contactless features.

“With these new agreements, we are opening a new page in our relationship with Marriott International,” said Brieuc Frogier, President of Promosud, SHN Administrator and Second Vice-President of the Southern Province in charge of tourism.

“They allow us to strengthen the specific identity of each of our establishments while continuing to benefit from the power and expertise of a world leader in the hotel industry.

“This is an evolution that fully meets our ambition: to promote New Caledonia through an authentic, demanding and resolutely internationally oriented hotel offering.”

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Australia’s Top 10 Property Influencers of 2026

Australian property has always been a national obsession, but the way Australians learn about it has changed fundamentally. Where previous generations relied on a real estate agent’s advice and a bank manager’s approval, today’s buyers and investors are walking into the market with suburb-by-suburb data, auction strategy insights and valuation knowledge that would have required a professional consultation five years ago.

The ten creators on this list are the reason why. What distinguishes them from the broader landscape of property content is not their following size but the professional substance behind what they publish. Most have spent years doing the work, valuing, buying, negotiating, financing, before they ever picked up a camera. The audience can feel that difference, even when they cannot articulate it.

Today’s buyers are walking into the market with knowledge that would have required a professional consultation five years ago. These ten creators are the reason why.

1 –Tom Panos: Founder, Real Estate Gym

Photo: Tom Panos

Tom Panos is the highest-profile real estate trainer in Australia, which is a distinction earned over more than two decades of working directly with agents, auctioneers and principals across the country. The content he publishes, on auction strategy, market psychology, agent mindset and the mechanics of negotiation, is backed by a career that predates social media by years.

What makes his presence exceptional is that he speaks to both sides of the transaction simultaneously. Agents follow him for craft. Buyers and investors follow him for intelligence. It is a rare position, and it explains why his audience has grown consistently through every market condition since he began publishing.

2 – Belinda Botzolis: Certified Practising Valuer; Founder, “The Valuer”

Photo: Belinda Botzolis, Add Valuer

The gap that Belinda Botzolis identified and occupied is one that, in retrospect, seems obvious: professional property valuation, made accessible on social media. With seventeen years of practice as a Certified Practising Valuer, more than 15,000 individual property valuations completed, and over $12 billion in real estate assessed, she brought to social media something most content creators in this space cannot fake, a professional opinion.

The response has been significant. Over 20 million TikTok views for valuation content is not an accident. It reflects an audience that has long wanted access to qualified property analysis and found it, for the first time, without having to pay for a report.

3 – George Markoski: Founder, Positive Property

Photo: George Markoski, Positive Property

The credibility order matters in property investment content. George Markoski built a portfolio of more than 100 investment properties and retired at thirty-seven on passive income before he built a social media following. That sequencing, wealth first, content second, is the foundation of why his audience trusts him with decisions that carry six and seven-figure consequences.

His content covers RBA decisions, APRA changes and property cycles with the kind of strategic depth that comes from having navigated them personally. He is not forecasting the market from a position of theory. He is reporting from a position of ownership.

4 – Ravi Sharma: Founder, Search Property

Photo: Ravi Sharma, Finance with Ravi

Ravi Sharma‘s differentiator is structural: he runs an actual buyer’s agency. The suburb analyses, growth projections and investment frameworks he publishes on YouTube and social media are not constructed for content, they are the methodology his business uses to advise paying clients on real transactions. With more than 114,000 YouTube subscribers and a Bachelor of Business in Real Estate, his content sits at the intersection of professional advice and public education.

The result is content that reads like genuine analysis rather than commentary, because in most cases it is.

5 – Damien Cooley: Director, Cooley Auctions

Photo: Damian Cooley, Cooley Auctions

Damien Cooley has called more auctions on live television than almost anyone in the country, a five-time premiere auctioneer on The Block, and 2015 Auctioneer of the Year. As Director of Cooley Auctions, his authority comes from decades on the rostrum in front of real buyers and real stakes, not from a studio.

His social presence extends that same on-the-ground credibility online, breaking down auction strategy and market sentiment for an audience that wants to understand the mechanics of a sale, not just the result.

6 – Ella Cas: Buyer’s Agent

Photo: Ella Cas

As a buyer’s agent operating across Melbourne and its surrounding suburbs, Ella Cas brings professional transaction experience to a TikTok presence that covers market trends, price predictions and first home buyer strategy in the Victorian market. What distinguishes her content from general property commentary is its specificity: she is talking about markets she works in, for outcomes she is paid to deliver.

For Melbourne buyers navigating one of Australia’s most competitive property environments, that local professional knowledge, delivered in an accessible format, is exactly the kind of content that earns genuine audience loyalty.

7 – Gavin Rubinstein: Founder, The Rubinstein Group at Ray White TPG

Photo: Gavin Rubeinstein, The Rubeinstein Group

Gavin Rubinstein built The Rubinstein Group at Ray White TPG into one of Sydney’s highest-performing individual real estate practices, and his Instagram engagement outranks every major franchise account in the country. That distinction matters: he is not a media personality who sells property, he is a top-performing agent whose content reflects live transactions in one of Australia’s most competitive markets.

For buyers and sellers trying to understand how Sydney’s top end actually moves, his day-to-day content is closer to a transaction diary than a highlight reel.

8 – Robbo Roper: Mortgage expert & home buyer connector

Photo: Robbo Roper

Robbo Roper‘s content sits at the junction of property aspiration and mortgage reality, which is precisely where most first home buyers get stuck. As a mortgage expert and home buyer connector, he publishes short-form video that walks Australian buyers through the finance side of property ownership: what to expect from a broker, how to prepare for a loan application, what the common mistakes look like.

His placement in Favikon’s Top 20 Australian real estate influencers for 2025 reflects an audience that is not just watching but acting, the kind of content engagement that distinguishes an education account from an entertainment one.

9 – Michael Biviano: Property developer; business coach & real estate strategist

Photo: Michael Biviano, Bivcorp

Michael Biviano built his platform on the strategy side of the business, working as a speaker, business coach and property developer before turning that experience into content for agents and investors navigating the industry. His focus sits less on individual listings and more on the frameworks behind sustainable success in real estate.

That distinction, teaching the business of property rather than just showcasing it, is what places him among the professionals worth following rather than just watching.

10 – Consulting by PK: Investment property educator

The property content space has no shortage of people telling audiences what to buy. What is rarer, and more valuable, is someone teaching them how to decide. Consulting by PK builds investment theses from actual data: top 5 per cent growth property analysis, cashflow modelling, suburb research methodology, the frameworks behind the conclusions rather than just the conclusions themselves.

With more than 60,000 YouTube subscribers, the audience that follows this content is a specific and self-selecting one, investors who want to understand the process, not just receive the output. That is a harder audience to build and a more durable one.

What this list reflects, taken together, is a professionalisation of property content in Australia. The era of anonymous property spruikers making market predictions without credentials or accountability is being displaced, slowly, but measurably, by practitioners who are willing to put their professional reputation behind what they publish. That is good for the industry. It is better for the buyers.

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Property of the Week: Belongil Boom Drives $15 million Luxury Listing

Byron Bay’s most compelling homes have always taken their cues from the climate. They open to the breeze, dissolve the boundary between inside and out and use tropical landscaping to create privacy without shutting out the natural world.

At 17 Kendall Street, those familiar coastal ideas have been elevated into something more architectural.

The five-bedroom residence is designed around a spectacular open-air courtyard, creating a private internal landscape where glass, stone, timber and water meet. Floor-to-ceiling glazing draws natural light into the interiors while framing the heated swimming pool and established tropical gardens from multiple points within the home.

The home was originally built in 2016, but underwent a major renovation last year following its $5.3 million sale in 2023. Sotheby’s Byron Bay agent Will Phillips has a $15 million price guide.

The transformation focused on both the home’s scale and its level of detail. Soaring voids and bold architectural forms create drama, but the material palette keeps the atmosphere warm. Rich timber, natural stone and handcrafted finishes temper the contemporary lines, allowing the residence to feel calm rather than imposing.

A sculptural spiral staircase forms the architectural centrepiece, connecting the home’s different spaces while providing a strong visual counterpoint to the horizontal lines of the courtyard and pool.

The planning is centred on connection. Multiple living and entertaining areas open to covered terraces, enabling the house to expand and contract according to the occasion. Smaller spaces support quiet family life, while the principal living zones and alfresco areas can accommodate considerably larger gatherings.

At the centre, the courtyard operates as more than an impressive arrival feature. It brings light and garden views deep into the plan, provides separation between the home’s different wings and creates a protected outdoor environment for year-round living.

Accommodation comprises five generously proportioned bedroom suites supported by five designer bathrooms. Their distribution through the residence gives family members and guests a greater sense of privacy, while the tropical outlook maintains a consistent connection between rooms.

Wellness Wing

The home’s most distinctive inclusion may be its dedicated wellness wing.

A private sauna, gym, Zen room and traditional Japanese soaking bath combine to create a retreat within the retreat. Rather than treating wellness as a single-purpose gym placed in a leftover room, the design gives it a dedicated sequence of spaces intended to support exercise, recovery and quiet.

The Japanese soaking bath is especially appropriate to the home’s broader architecture. Compact, deep and designed for immersion rather than conventional bathing, it complements the restraint of the Zen room and the calming views into the garden.

Outside, the heated pool and covered dining terraces provide the more social side of resort living. Tropical landscaping creates privacy around the residence, while the courtyard design allows greenery to remain visible throughout much of the interior.

Belongil Boom

The location adds another dimension to the property. Kendall Street sits near the Belongil side of Byron Bay, within walking distance of Belongil Beach and local dining including Belongil Bistro, Treehouse, Féu and the town centre’s broader collection of cafés, restaurants and boutiques.

That northern pocket is increasingly emerging as a prestige counterweight to Wategos and the tightly held Marine Parade strip at the opposite end of Byron Bay.

Much of the most visible investment has centred on nearby Border Street and the Belongil beachfront. Hospitality billionaire Justin Hemmes has assembled four residential holdings in the neighbourhood at a reported combined cost of about $45 million. His acquisitions include a beachfront holding bought for $16 million in 2023 and a subsequent creek-front purchase.

The Block judge and interior designer Darren Palmer and his husband, Olivier Duvillard, have also moved into the precinct, paying $4.2 million for an original home with creek views.

Luxury developer and builder GRAYA has made an even larger commitment. The Brisbane group acquired a substantial Border Street beachfront site for about $20.65 million in 2024, with plans for a major trophy-home project. Part of that holding was subsequently sold in a transaction that underlined how dramatically land values have moved.

The strongest evidence came from Chemist Warehouse director Damien Gance and his wife, Sasha Robertson. The couple paid $33.5 million in cash for the beachfront residence Malia, setting a Byron Bay house-price record and surpassing the $30 million sale of Watermark at Wategos in 2023. They then reportedly spent another $20 million securing the neighbouring vacant parcel, taking their combined Belongil investment to $53.5 million.

Those transactions do not make Kendall Street directly comparable with absolute beachfront property. They do, however, illustrate the growing weight of capital and attention shifting towards Byron Bay’s northern edge.

For decades, Marine Parade at Wategos has been the region’s clearest shorthand for trophy property. Border Street and the wider Belongil precinct are now building a comparable identity, supported by larger holdings, beachfront scarcity and an expanding concentration of prominent owners.

Property details

  • Address: 17 Kendall Street, Byron Bay, NSW
  • Location: Near Belongil Beach and Byron Bay town centre
  • Original construction: 2016
  • Last sale: $5.3 million in 2023
  • Renovation: Major renovation completed in 2025
  • Current price guide: $15 million
  • Bedrooms: Five
  • Bathrooms: Five
  • Key features: Central open-air courtyard, heated swimming pool, tropical landscaping and multiple indoor-outdoor living areas
  • Wellness facilities: Sauna, Zen room, gym and traditional Japanese soaking bath
  • Nearby: Belongil Beach, Belongil Bistro, Féu and Treehouse
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Lamborghini gives the Temerario its most tailored treatment yet

Exotic-car buyers increasingly expect exclusivity to begin after the model allocation is secured. Lamborghini’s two Temerario Ad Personam cars make that idea explicit, using colour, materials and fine detailing to give the same electrified super-sports platform two distinct personalities.

Presented publicly at the 2026 Goodwood Festival of Speed, the pair are not a conventional numbered special edition. They are demonstrations of Lamborghini’s Ad Personam program — effectively rolling portfolios showing how deeply an owner can shape a Temerario beyond the standard configurator.

That distinction matters in a segment where rarity is relative. A new Lamborghini remains scarce in ordinary traffic, but at major collector gatherings similar specifications can cluster quickly. Bespoke colour and material choices give an owner a more defensible form of individuality, particularly when the combination has a coherent narrative rather than simply collecting expensive options.

Lamborghini describes the two cars as contrasting interpretations of sportiness and Italian tailoring. The work extends across paint, exterior accents, upholstery and small cabin details, showing how texture and tone can alter the character of an aggressively shaped car without changing its fundamental form.

Beneath the tailoring is the Temerario’s High Performance Electrified Vehicle architecture. Its electrified powertrain marks a new chapter for Lamborghini, but personalisation helps preserve the emotional, object-like quality expected by clients. Technology may define how the car performs; Ad Personam defines how it belongs to one owner.

There is also a commercial logic. Bespoke programs deepen relationships between brands and collectors, increase transaction value and make delivery feel like the end of a creative process rather than a retail purchase. The client is encouraged to think as a patron and collaborator, even while working within the manufacturer’s engineering and homologation limits.

Restraint remains the real skill. A vast options palette can produce a spectacular car or an incoherent one. The strongest commissions repeat a small number of colours and materials, respect the body’s lines and use unusual details where they will reward close inspection.

As electrification makes the engineering beneath high-performance cars more complex and potentially more shared, manufacturers are placing greater value on the layer owners can see and touch. The Temerario Ad Personam pair argues that the future of the supercar will be measured not only by speed, but by how personally it can be made.

Fact box

– Model: Lamborghini Temerario
– Program: Ad Personam
– Display cars: Two contrasting bespoke configurations
– Public debut: 2026 Goodwood Festival of Speed
– Powertrain category: High Performance Electrified Vehicle
– Purpose: Demonstrate bespoke exterior and interior personalisation

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Heesen’s 57-metre Project Setteesettanta puts the owner on a deck of their own

When experienced owners return to the same shipyard, the brief often becomes more exacting. Heesen’s Project Setteesettanta, a 57-metre full-custom aluminium yacht built for returning clients, reflects that progression: greater privacy, cleaner circulation and the freedom to reach shallower anchorages.

The yacht, known by its build number YN 20857, has launched at Heesen’s Oss shipyard in the Netherlands. Exterior design is by Omega Architects, with interiors by Cristiano Gatto Design. Across four decks, the defining decision is to dedicate an entire level to the owners.

That layout changes the social hierarchy on board. Rather than placing an owner’s suite within a shared accommodation deck, it creates a private domain removed from guest circulation. For long periods aboard, particularly with family or charter-style entertaining, that separation can be more valuable than simply increasing cabin dimensions.

Aluminium construction supports the yacht’s relatively light, performance-oriented character. Heesen lists a maximum speed of 18 knots — enough to shorten passages between destinations while preserving the refinement expected of a 57-metre vessel. A draught of about 2.3 metres expands potential cruising grounds and anchoring choices compared with deeper yachts of similar volume.

The shallow draught is not merely a technical statistic. It can materially affect how owners experience a coastline, allowing closer approaches to beaches, islands and bays that would otherwise require a long tender transfer. For a yacht designed around private use, that flexibility makes the platform feel more connected to the water.

Omega Architects’ exterior work gives the vessel a long, low visual line, while Gatto’s interiors remain largely a private matter until fuller photography is released. The most successful custom yachts use design to make complex crew, service and guest movements appear effortless. Project Setteesettanta’s four-deck plan will be judged on precisely that balance.

Its launch begins another intensive phase rather than marking completion. Outfitting, commissioning, trials and final delivery remain, and performance claims should be treated as shipyard targets until verified in operation.

For prospective owners, the project’s relevance lies in its priorities. The industry often celebrates length, but Setteesettanta shows a more mature form of luxury: privacy through planning, cruising access through naval architecture and a highly specific response to how repeat owners actually spend time aboard.

Fact box

– Yacht: Project Setteesettanta, YN 20857
– Builder: Heesen Yachts
– Length: 57 metres
– Construction: Full-custom aluminium
– Exterior: Omega Architects
– Interior: Cristiano Gatto Design
– Decks: Four, including private owner’s deck
– Maximum speed: 18 knots stated
– Draught: Approximately 2.3 metres stated