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Could this developer’s latest venture be the solution the nation needs to solve the rental crisis?
Build-to-rent (BTR) housing is on the rise, with many hailing it as a boon to Australia’s hard-pressed tenants. But until now, family-sized homes have flown under the radar of the sector’s developers.
This lack of precedent does not faze Resimax chief executive Aziz “Ozzie” Kheir, who has recently unveiled plans for an ambitious detached BTR housing scheme in Melbourne’s Mernda, Wallan and Eynesbury.
“There is enormous potential in the build-to-rent sector as an alternative to traditional home ownership and conventional rental properties, however the detached housing market has been slow to adopt this scheme in Australia,” Mr Kheir said.
“We’re able to contribute a pool of brand-new, family-sized homes to a broken rental market that is in desperate need of supply.”
Resimax Group said it will partner with construction company Tick Homes to provide 500 brand-new, freestanding homes to families in Melbourne’s northern and western growth corridors. The three- and four-bedroom homes will be ready to move into by 2025.
The 500-lot development won’t be the end of Resimax’s journey into BTR housing. The group intends to retain 5 per cent to 10 per cent of all future housing stock as BTR.
Mr Kheir explained: “Looking into the future, we see this designated pool of rental stock as being part of the full life cycle of our development strategy. The objective of our build-to-rent program is to house tenants in our communities, then transition them into home owners over time.”
It isn’t just accommodation that Resimax plans to provide – the BTR venture will also incorporate a rewards program that encourages tenants to set down roots in the community.
Long tenancies, punctual rent payment and property maintenance will reportedly win tenants a variety of benefits, from free electricity to discounts on local restaurants.
Mr Kheir noted that tenants are “seeking a balance of good quality life and spacious housing, which is a rarity in today’s rental market”.
“We’ve tailored our rewards program to both ease the pressures and encourage tenants to continue living in our communities.”
Only 18 months into the project, Resimax has already received strong interest from clients, most notably from young families. Two hundred of the 500 properties have already been snatched up by aspiring tenants who have been priced out of the traditional rental market.
The project follows on from a boom in BTR developments in the last 12 months, with affordable BTR housing opening up in Brisbane, Adelaide and the ACT. Researchers have recently flagged BTR as the next big thing to hit Australia’s overloaded housing market, with a $16 billion investment set to create over 52,000 new homes by 2028.
“As a business, we’ve refined our model to leverage this opportunity,” Mr Kheir concluded.
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