THE PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT REVIEW
What market sectors do you anticipate being most in demand over the next six months?
In the short term we consider that Student Accommodation and Build to Rent will continue to be in demand, particularly for development sites in order to cater to the tight residential vacancy rate and strong student housing demand. The 2022 calendar year showed international student numbers increased 8% year-on-year according to the official Government of Australia. In South Australia, the growth rate was even stronger reaching 10% over the same period. We anticipate the growth trajectory will be maintained, with applications for student visas into Australia exceeding pre-COVID-19 levels with applications in 2022 increasing by 115% y-o-y. Following the January 2023 announcement from the Chinese Government that all Chinese students enrolled in overseas universities must return to face-to-face study it is anticipated this figure will be bolstered creating an undersupply of student accommodation. According to JLL Research, there are currently 7,000 PBSA beds in Adelaide with the expectation that PBSA availability in the city will be exhausted rapidly with the influx of returning students in 2023. Within the next two years there is limited PBSA supply forecasted in South Australia. This imbalance in demand and supply is likely to create even more competition in an already tight residential leasing market. In order for supply to catch up with demand, we anticipate a strong level of adaptive reuse, particularly in the C and D grade office stock in the CBD.
What advice do you have for any prospective developers in the current climate?
The fundamentals remain the same – a well located site with good amenity will always attract good tenants. If you understand the key drivers of the tenants then you can control the outcome.
Look to take advantage of key infrastructure projects when considering when you search for your next site.
How have your marketing strategies changed, if at all, over the past 12 months?
The JLL team continue to actively advertise across a multitude of platforms. There has been increased emphasis on digital communications to ensure maximum market exposure. Despite this, no matter how good a digital and print campaign is, it is imperative to back this up spending plenty of time on the phone. Moving into a market where purchasers are becoming more selective, leveraging personal relationships and knowledge of active purchasers and their requirements will always be essential.
June / July 2023 – 85
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