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Garden Towers to revitalise the East Perth precinct

Render of Garden Towers by Finbar.
Camera IconRender of Garden Towers by Finbar. Credit: Supplied.

The myriad benefits of apartment living – convenience of location, lifestyle, low maintenance and lock-up-and-leave security – has seen the Western Australian market remain strong.

Finbar Director and Chief Operations Officer Ronald Chan said purchasing an apartment was an appealing option for both owner-occupier or investor, with a marked increase in activity from the latter.

“For owner-occupiers, we find the common reasons for buying into apartments is the location, lock-up-and-leave lifestyle and the facilities within the development,” he said.

“For investors, it’s foreseeing the current rental shortages and higher yields, as well as diversifying their property portfolio.

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“We also see investors buying for the current rental income but also the possibility of the apartment being their future home.”

One such opportunity is Finbar’s Garden Towers. Revitalising the East Perth precinct and blending decades gone by with the future, Mr Chan said Garden Towers would breathe new life into the setting.

“Garden Towers is located opposite Queens Gardens on the former heritage Materials Science Building,” he said.

“The building’s position fronting Queens Gardens and views on the higher floors across the Swan River, Optus Stadium and the Perth CBD is the drawcard for buyers.

“The East Perth fringe is perfect for residential living, yet close enough to the offerings of the city.”

The development features high-end amenities, including a ground-floor commercial space with a proposed providore-style cafe.

Mr Chan said the development was witnessing a healthy assortment of buyers interested in calling the building home.

“We have seen a good mix of people buying into Garden Towers, from first homebuyers to downsizers and upgraders,” he said.

“First homebuyers are wanting to get into the market, as well as take advantage of government grants such as the First Home Owner Grant and the current stamp duty relief.”

Spanning across two towers and comprising 331 apartments, Mr Chan said there had been an overwhelming response to the development.

“We have already sold 92 apartments in just 12 weeks since the launch, which is equivalent to one sale a day,” he said.

“What is interesting to note is the proportion of investors coming back into the market, with investors making up 63 per cent of the sales.

“Perth’s median unit and house prices remain the cheapest in the country, and international investors and eastern state buyers form 22 per cent of the sales.

“A sign of a robust and improved market is when the percentage of investors exceeds owner-occupiers, as well as when international and eastern state buyers start flocking in.”

Mr Chan said he expected Garden Towers to continue to sell strongly due to Perth’s current construction and property market.

“We will see sales continue at a faster than normal rate, as Perth will see a shortage of future supply due to the challenges of the construction sector and a heated rental market,” he said.

Mr Chan said Perth’s apartment market was facing a few challenges that might impact future developments.

“The current labour shortages and material price escalation have put pressure on developers’ ability to make a project viable,” he said.

“Plans have been shelved until the median unit price increases or we see the construction costs stabilise.

“Due to these factors, future supply of new apartments will be impacted.”

Mr Chan said Perth’s unit prices were still the lowest in the country despite seeing a 24 per cent uptick since June 2020.

He said the main reason people were looking at apartments as a viable option currently was the financial benefit it presented.

“There is simply not a lot of availability in the marketplace and future supply of new apartments will not be enough to cater for the growing demand due to low rental vacancy rates and the heated construction sector putting pressure on costs,” Mr Chan said.

“The general public realises this and foresees that prices will continue to climb, resulting in the benefit of capital appreciation.”

Garden Towers by Finbar is due for completion in 2025.

Garden Towers is an incredible East Perth investment – luxurious apartments overlooking the city and river, world-class amenities and a future ground-floor plaza.

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