BRISBANE, 10 MARCH 2020
Frasers Property Australia has reported that more than 20 percent of December quarter sales for its Riverlight apartment project within the $700 million masterplanned waterfront community Hamilton Reach, have been made to “try before you buy” renters from within the precinct.
Riverlight East had the highest number of apartment sales in the December quarter1 within Hamilton Northshore, was the second highest selling project in Brisbane’s inner north and notched up six apartment sales in January alone leaving just a handful of its 155 apartments remaining for sale.
Arlene Bennett moved back to Brisbane from Sydney and was renting in Atria South – another apartment project within Hamilton Reach – for two years prior to deciding to buy a ground floor two bedroom, two bathroom garden apartment in Riverlight.
Arlene had spent six months searching to buy in the area because of its close proximity to her work at the airport. She became disheartened by what the market had to offer and subsequently decided to look at remaining within Hamilton Reach.
“I spent about six months looking around Hamilton – particularly Racecourse Road – because to be honest, I thought Riverlight was out of my league but I was thrilled when the sales team walked me through my options and I was able to buy a brand new, larger apartment than what I was renting and was able to stay within the Hamilton Reach precinct I’d grown so fond of,” Ms Bennett said.
“One of the big appeals for me of Hamilton Reach has been the abundance of people in their 40s or older who either don’t have kids or have older more mature children and are very like-minded and respectful of each other. It creates a shared understanding and sense of community and adds to the overall tranquillity of the area,” she said.
“I moved into my apartment in December and I couldn’t be happier.”
First home buyers, Gabriel and Thaisa Villareal were renting in Riverlight for a year before deciding to buy in November 2019 and are now the proud owners of a three bedroom, two bathroom apartment in the building.
“We decided we were ready to stop renting and buy and spent around six months looking in other parts of Hamilton, Ascot and Kangaroo Point but Hamilton Reach was always our first choice,” Mr Villareal said.
“Everyone in Riverlight and the Hamilton Reach community is friendly and some of our neighbours have become close friends, so the sense of community is quite unique and special,” he said.
“In addition to the location, lifestyle and design of Riverlight having significant appeal, another key factor was that Riverlight offered very competitive market value.”
Scott Ullman, General Manager Residential Queensland for Frasers Property Australia, says the appeal of the Hamilton Reach lifestyle and the value proposition of Riverlight apartments has made it popular with both renters from the precinct and first home buyers.
“Of the 14 sales made at Riverlight in the December quarter, three were people who had rented either in Riverlight or within Hamilton Reach,” Mr Ullman said.
“We attribute Riverlight’s popularity with those that rented here to them becoming at home within the community and wanting to secure the lifestyle they’ve enjoyed as well as valuing the quality, pricing and ease of the sales process we offer,” he said.
A CoreLogic Property Market Update2 prepared for the UDIA also recently reported that Brisbane was a great market for renters looking to buy because there was relatively low dwelling growth against mortgage rate reductions making it quite affordable to buy.
“The CoreLogic report also said that the previous over-supply concerns in Brisbane had been largely absorbed with population and employment conditions improving. This has no doubt also been a factor in our sales success at Hamilton Reach,” Mr Ullman said.
Hamilton Reach is located within Northshore, Queensland’s largest waterfront urban renewal project by the Queensland Government. Boasting enviable resident facilities including a pool, barbeque area, resident’s dining room and gym, there are limited complete two bedroom apartments in Riverlight East available from $525,000.
The residences are a superior lifestyle choice with over 1,700 sqm of landscaped gardens, spaces to explore, and apartments that offer premium views of the Brisbane River, Royal Queensland Golf Club and surrounding parklands.
The Hamilton Reach Sales and Display Centre is open every day from 10am until 5pm at 310 MacArthur Avenue, Hamilton. Call Frasers Property on 13 38 38 or visit https://www.frasersproperty.com.au/qld/hamilton-reach/ for more information.
1 Urbis Apartment Essentials Report – December 2019 quarter, Urbis Australia
2 CoreLogic Property Market Update, Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA).