Developer LUXCON on The Look-Out For ‘Trophy’ Melbourne Sites
Developer LUXCON on The Look-Out For ‘Trophy’ Melbourne Sites
Sydney based developer ‘Luxcon’, who acquired the old office building in East Melbourne in May 2020 with plans for a $120 million luxury apartment project, is in negotiation for two more inner-Melbourne sites after seeing strong early demand for his first project.
The 10-storey development of just 24 high-end apartments – all with park and city views – secured a permit from the Melbourne City Council in December and settled on nine-level office building transaction last month.
Mr Melnikoff stated that he was getting a lot of inquiries from nearby residents and East Melbourne locals ever since signage for the project, known as The Address, went up, ahead of its official launch at the end of February. He told Australian Financial Review that they have sold some apartments through their internal team before the official launch and are very happy with the level of interest.
Prices of the apartments start from $2.5 million for a two-bedroom apartment and go up to $25 million for the top-floor penthouse which has its lap pool, gymnasium and sauna. All residences will have views over Fitzroy Gardens and the Melbourne CBD which is just a short stroll away. They will also enjoy the never-to-be built-out park.
“Luxcon’s approved scheme for The Address will see the office building replaced by a 10-storey development designed by architects Woods Bagot”. Keeping up with the growing demand for privacy and exclusivity from prospective buyers, there will be only two or three apartments on each floor. Most of them will have direct lift access – an appealing feature in the post-COVID-19 era.
Mr Melknioff said sites that offer features like this is extremely difficult to find and their first inquirers understood how exclusive it is.
Luxcon has also set up a Melbourne office in a bid to expand its pipeline in the Victorian capital. Mr Melnikoff said the focus was on acquiring trophy sites that cater to the owner-occupier market. He also stated that they are negotiating on two sites in Melbourne. “We want more positions in Melbourne, which we believe will be a strong market for us.”
The Address will join some luxury apartments built around Fitzroy Gardens on the south-eastern edge of Melbourne CBD. A block away from The Address is The Eastbourne, a sold-out $454 million apartment project completed by Mirvac in 2019. Also, around the corner is one of Melbourne’s most exclusive apartment buildings, 150 Clarendon Street, developed by Salta Properties.
Mr Melnikoff said the project would be funded through a mix of private equity and senior debt. Construction is due to kick off in June and the project will take about 18 months to complete.“We have a relationship with a long-standing financier whose pre-sale requirements are very low. Construction finance would not be an issue,”
References:
- Developer on the hunt for more ‘trophy’ Melbourne sites
by Larry Schlesinger
- Luxcon to turn East Melbourne office into luxury apartments
by Larry Schlesinger