Inner cities to continue to perform
Australia’s inner-city suburbs will remain a strong prospect for investors as both young families and downsizers gravitate towards apartment living, according to a 2014 property market forecast.
At the Property Council of Australia Residential Outlook 2014 yesterday, Brian White, chairman of Ray White, said the biggest recent property market trend in Australia was the move towards inner-city areas.
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“We have such buoyant inner cities in Australia. I think that’s one of the biggest features that’s happened in my career, seeing the health, the vibrancy, the youth that’s come in, the families that are coming in. They’re making do with the smaller accommodation," he said.
“There’s this huge appeal now of inner cities in Australia that is in massive contrast to some of the greatest cities in the United States.”
Mr White said Australia’s inner cities were vastly different to those in the United States due to their health and education facilities and appeal to owners, investors and tenants alike.
Iwan Sunito, CEO of Crown Group, said the trend was part of a wider shift towards apartment living.
“I think we’re seeing a shift in the way that we live,” he said. “It’s a tipping point because I see a lot of the younger generations actually preferring to live in a unit.”
Mr Sunito said with Australia’s ageing population, the move to the inner city and apartment living would only intensify as baby boomers sell the family home and downsize.
Rod Fehring, executive manager, residential at Australand, said there had been a renaissance of inner-city urban areas on the back of planning and cultural changes which began in Australia in the 1980s.
