29-08-2015, 12:07 AM
New-home ballots offering a chance just to bid for property
Samantha Hutchinson
[Image: sam_hutchinson.png]
Property Writer
[Image: 579082-f7973ebc-4d4b-11e5-bcd5-11e18b06f3ff.jpg]
Mirvac’s John Carfi picks out prospective buyers’ ballot numbers yesterday. Picture: Quentin JonesSource: Supplied
[b]Property companies are turning to raffle-style ballot systems in a bid to whittle down the soaring number of hopefuls vying to buy homes in new masterplanned developments.[/b]
Mirvac drew 150 names out of a barrel yesterday, in front of a crowd of about 100 people, for a chance to bid for a home in the first release of 44 homes at the Brighton Lakes development at Moorebank in Sydney’s west.
More than 500 people registered and paid a deposit for the ballot, the first sales release almost 12 months after the group first started advertising upcoming sales at the site.
“Our greatest challenge has been dealing with the huge volume of people who want to buy,” Mirvac residential head John Carfi said, of the ballot he drew himself. “We’re seeing demand in pockets come on in such strength that our normal sales process with our VIP database could leave customers dissatisfied ... we figured that, for the volume, the fairest and most transparent system we could do would be the ballot.”
The ballot comes as detached homes emerge as the powerhouse within new home construction, after 18 months dominated by apartment projects.
Detached home approvals grew by 4.3 per cent in seasonally adjusted terms last month to 9661 houses, according to ABS calculations, while apartment and townhouse approvals plummeted 8.2 per cent to 17,868 homes. Detached home approvals have maintained an average of 9650 per month since January last year, representing its highest point in a decade.
Developers claim that they are releasing homes to market as soon as they receive development approval, even as new planning rules mean they can build 22 homes per hectare, up from previous levels of about 15. In Mirvac’s case, Brighton Lakes received approval less than two weeks ago.
“This is the strongest demand I have seen in my working career,” Mr Carfi said.
The release comes as several large-scale communities in Sydney’s west, such as Australand and Urban Growth’s The Ponds project, approach completion, while a swag of new developments by the likes of Stockland and Australand at Willowdale and Edmondson Park and others are just getting started.
Most are recording pre-sales on release dates of more than 90 per cent.
Rival developer Stockland, which is developing large-scale sites at Willowdale near Leppington and Elara in Marsden Park, deliberately avoids the ballot system in favour of an automated process that gives preference to potential buyers the longer they have been on the group’s waitlist for properties.
“We don’t do ballots, we don’t force buyers to camp out either,” a spokesperson said.
“It's a bit of theatre, but it (can be) inconvenient for customers ... we’ve got the technology and we’re happy to use it.”
- THE AUSTRALIAN
- AUGUST 29, 2015 12:00AM
Samantha Hutchinson
[Image: sam_hutchinson.png]
Property Writer
[Image: 579082-f7973ebc-4d4b-11e5-bcd5-11e18b06f3ff.jpg]
Mirvac’s John Carfi picks out prospective buyers’ ballot numbers yesterday. Picture: Quentin JonesSource: Supplied
[b]Property companies are turning to raffle-style ballot systems in a bid to whittle down the soaring number of hopefuls vying to buy homes in new masterplanned developments.[/b]
Mirvac drew 150 names out of a barrel yesterday, in front of a crowd of about 100 people, for a chance to bid for a home in the first release of 44 homes at the Brighton Lakes development at Moorebank in Sydney’s west.
More than 500 people registered and paid a deposit for the ballot, the first sales release almost 12 months after the group first started advertising upcoming sales at the site.
“Our greatest challenge has been dealing with the huge volume of people who want to buy,” Mirvac residential head John Carfi said, of the ballot he drew himself. “We’re seeing demand in pockets come on in such strength that our normal sales process with our VIP database could leave customers dissatisfied ... we figured that, for the volume, the fairest and most transparent system we could do would be the ballot.”
The ballot comes as detached homes emerge as the powerhouse within new home construction, after 18 months dominated by apartment projects.
Detached home approvals grew by 4.3 per cent in seasonally adjusted terms last month to 9661 houses, according to ABS calculations, while apartment and townhouse approvals plummeted 8.2 per cent to 17,868 homes. Detached home approvals have maintained an average of 9650 per month since January last year, representing its highest point in a decade.
Developers claim that they are releasing homes to market as soon as they receive development approval, even as new planning rules mean they can build 22 homes per hectare, up from previous levels of about 15. In Mirvac’s case, Brighton Lakes received approval less than two weeks ago.
“This is the strongest demand I have seen in my working career,” Mr Carfi said.
The release comes as several large-scale communities in Sydney’s west, such as Australand and Urban Growth’s The Ponds project, approach completion, while a swag of new developments by the likes of Stockland and Australand at Willowdale and Edmondson Park and others are just getting started.
Most are recording pre-sales on release dates of more than 90 per cent.
Rival developer Stockland, which is developing large-scale sites at Willowdale near Leppington and Elara in Marsden Park, deliberately avoids the ballot system in favour of an automated process that gives preference to potential buyers the longer they have been on the group’s waitlist for properties.
“We don’t do ballots, we don’t force buyers to camp out either,” a spokesperson said.
“It's a bit of theatre, but it (can be) inconvenient for customers ... we’ve got the technology and we’re happy to use it.”