It’s been quite a year for the property market in Australia.

As we come to the end of 2023, we’re looking back on the highlights and planning for a successful 2024. Yes, there have been many challenges but there is also a lot to celebrate.

What the data told us

Enquiry levels and sales volumes are both down 60% compared to 2022 with buyer sentiment low due to builder uncertainties and interest rate hikes. The “wait and see” approach has seen a larger proportion of buyers wait over 12 months to make a purchase from the time of enquiry with Wyndham and Casey seeing the highest market share in sales.
 
In 2023, land availability has increased by 37% with titled land up by 12%. Land is currently spending four months on the market as opposed to two months in 2022 and building approvals are half what they were three months ago. While things have been tough, the market will improve. As our Managing Director, Terry Portelli so aptly puts it, “I’ve had the benefit of 30 years in the game. I started during the depths of the recession in the late 80s and early 90s and I’ve navigated the GFC and the Royal Commission. Yes, the market drops back, but if you hold on it comes back and then it kicks again.”
 
The down market has seen an increase in the popularity of smaller lots as first homebuyers realise that compromise is key if they want to enter the housing market. As the medium-density market evolves, micro-lot housing has also become increasingly popular – affordable and compact townhouses built on lots as small as 80sqm to 100sqm. Property developers have diversified their communities to cater to the changing market with new offerings to suit the budgets and preferences of downsizers, first homebuyers, multigenerational households, and lone-person households.

Our 2023 projects

In 2023, we continued to partner with Australia’s top property developers to sell and market communities across the eastern seaboard of Australia. As the sales and marketing agent for Jinding, we partnered on Harriott Armstrong Creek, Broadstead Kilmore, The Patch (Wollert) and Octave at Junction Village. After launching in April, Broadstead quickly became the premium new land opportunity in Kilmore with the first release now over 80% sold and 50% of purchasers upgrading to a new family home in the community.
 
We also continued our valued partnership with Resi Ventures working on three of their premium communities – Monument Estate (500+ lots in Plumpton), Accolade (500+ lots in Rockbank) and Timbarra (285 lots in Beveridge).
 
For the seventh year running, we partnered with Development Victoria to sell the ever-popular Riverwalk land community with the project achieving its biggest year of sold and settled lots ever in the 2022/23 financial year. In November, we welcomed Margita Lacarruba as Riverwalk’s new Estate Manager farewelling Frank Franze after a decade with Red23.
 
We were also proud to work on Masall (Fraser Rise) by Varcon Group, Little Springs (Deanside) for OYOB and Acacia Village (Wollert) by CFMG Residential Communities. New projects for 2023 included 35 townhouses at Cedar Grove in Greenvale by Saw Constructions, and Albero Rise in Broadford by Lakton Developments.

Community grants

We don’t just sell land and townhouses, we build communities. Driven by that ethos, we launched the Broadstead Community Grants Program with Jinding, inviting non-profit and charity groups in the Kilmore area to apply for grants of up to $2,000 to support their initiatives. Seven local community groups including a food bank, wildlife shelter and historical society were awarded a share of more than $10,0000 with the program set to return in 2024.

Professional development

Red23 continued as an education partner for UDIA Victoria and Property Council Victoria, supporting and presenting at property development programs, outlook panels and events to build a more knowledgeable and robust industry.
 
In August, our Managing Director, Terry Portelli presented at a workshop hosted by the Australasia Property Advisory Association – Greenfield Development Outperformance in Downturned Market. We also sponsored and participated in multiple professional development and networking opportunities including the Future of Leadership conference.

Building a better industry

Terry Portelli was appointed to the UDIA Greenfield Development Committee for a two-year term to focus on housing, infrastructure and services across Victoria’s greenfield areas. Our Project Director, Nicholas Lacarruba was also appointed to the UDIA Victoria Geelong Chapter Committee for a two-year term to help develop policies and drive collaboration that supports the Barwon Region’s growth and sustainability.

Industry awards

In April, Red23 was proud to be a Principal Partner and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Category Partner for the 2023 nbn | People in Property Awards. 

Each year, the UDIA Awards for Excellence highlight quality and innovation in the urban development industry so we were thrilled when our Project Director, Nicholas Lacarruba was announced as a finalist for the Young Leader’s Award. Our partner, Jinding was a finalist in both the Residential Subdivision Award for Harriott Armstrong Creek, as well as the Marketing Excellence Award for Octave, Junction Village – two communities we are proud to have worked on. Congratulations to our client, Development Victoria, for taking home the UDIA Diversity in Development Award. 

That’s our wrap-up of 2023. A huge thank you to all our industry partners for your support over the year. We can’t wait to work with you in 2024 as we use all the lessons of 2023 to build the industry we love.

About Red23

Red23 is a leading sales and marketing agency for new land and townhouse communities across the eastern seaboard of Australia. We specialise in custom and data-driven strategies that turn prospective buyers into proud owners and help build thriving communities.
 
Since opening in 2007, we’ve built strong and lasting relationships with Australia’s leading developers and become a natural extension of their teams. While our clients have diverse projects ranging from 50 to 2,500 lots, they all want the same thing - an agency that will pull out all the stops to deliver exceptional results.

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