Tenants’ tower:Another build-to-rent highrise planned for Valley fringe

Development company Lendlease has chosen a site on the border of Fortitude Valley and Bowen Hills for its first build-to-rent project in Australia.

Lendlease already has a stake in thetransformation of the Brisbane Showgrounds precinct and,with QuadReal Property Group,now plans a 37-level tower with 443 units.

The latest build-to-rent tower proposed for Fortitude Valley.

The latest build-to-rent tower proposed for Fortitude Valley.Supplied

The tower is planned for 498 St Pauls Terrace,opposite Fortitude Valley State Secondary College and on the other side of the showgrounds fromthe upgraded Exhibition train station.

Lendlease hopes to start construction this year,and will offer tenants communal spaces including a lap pool with beach edge,podcast and music recording studio,dog wash facilities,yoga room,co-working facilities,yoga lounge,gym and resident lounges.

“In the Australian market we believe there’s strong demand for long-term,premium rentals in quality locations,” Lendlease CEO Dale Connor said in a statement.

Build-to-rent projects have becomeincreasingly popular in Australia and are being pushed by developers amid concern about access to,and the affordability of,housing.

With rental vacancy rates of under one per cent in Brisbane,and relatively high returns,investors are expected to return to the softening property market in 2023.

The Queensland government last year held a housing summit to continue the debate. This week,after it emerged the state had thelowest per-capita investment in social housing,the government announced it had purchased a 30-unit property at Clayfield to be repurposed.

Sean Parnell is the Editor of Brisbane Times. He has won journalism awards for analysis,investigations,news and sport,written a biography,and has a Graduate Certificate in (Digital) Business Administration. Sean lives in Brisbane with his family.

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