Corporate News

Villawood Properties has stamped an indelible print on South Australia’s property market since its arrival in late 2021. Its sharp urban designs, new levels of affordable quality and community focus have driven some 450 land sales across three large projects at Oakden in Adelaide, with Renewal SA, and at Andrews Farm and Gawler in the city’s unfolding north.

A $300 million joint venture breathing a new life into the Morphettville Racecourse, with Hostplus and the SAJC, together with a sleek, high-end boutique coastal project at Seacliff, have garnered it a profile in stark relief to its competitors.

Villawood recognised the potential of South Australia some years ago, not just its property attributes per se but its players too. The group has gathered a team of the state’s best development figures with an unmatchable experience and local knowledge.

What’s unfolded with that stable to date is just the start of a journey which will transform how and where people build and live in Adelaide and South Australia. It’s a journey bolstered by Villawood’s national footprint as well as the state’s growing stature and importance to the national economy.

Adelaide is often referred to as the tiny but mighty city that packs a real punch. While that might be well-known of its event and entertainment scene, what’s been going under the radar is also the huge economic clout it’s developing while the rest of the country is flailing about caught up in deficits, spending cuts and a general malaise in confidence.

By contrast, the SA capital is weathering the national storm much more comfortably. Property prices are affordable, investor confidence is strong, job prospects are high and capital works and business are burgeoning.

Leading the pack is a $2bn nuclear submarine build at Osborne in the city’s north which will generate 8000+ jobs, starting now. That’s before factoring in downstream supply-chain jobs as well. The ongoing contribution over coming decades is tagged around $200bn.

As Premier Peter Malinauskas says: “It is not just the thousands of workers to be employed at Osborne who will benefit. This is a transformational opportunity to increase our economic complexity.” And Defence Minister Pat Conroy: “This is the greatest industrial undertaking ever for Australia. It will be transformative for South Australian industry.”

Transformative indeed. Couple this with a burgeoning technology sector powered by government incentives and business assistance, infrastructure projects such as the Royal Adelaide Hospital and Adelaide Women’s and Children’s Hospital and you have a ripe investment environment.

Augmenting this very neatly is the fact South Australia’s population rose by more than 25,000 people in the 12 months to September 2022. That’s 1.4 per cent to 1.83 million and, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the second-biggest increase on record.

The chef drivers of this growth were net overseas migration and net interstate migration. A total 19,560 people moved to South Australia from overseas, the highest figure on record. Net interstate migration was 1440, the second-highest figure on record and the highest in 30 years, since 1991.

SA Treasurer Stephen Mullighan says the increase shows confidence in the state, the economy and the direction of the government: “Coupled with our record low unemployment rate, and record high number of South Australians in work, our economy is attracting more migrants. And with (the) AUKUS announcement providing decades of work for South Australians, we can expect to welcome more people to SA in the months and years ahead.”

And another major defence project as well, the new Deeper Maintenance and Modification Facility beside RAAF Edinburgh in Penfield, will create hundreds of jobs in Adelaide’s north – 450 in construction and 160 ongoing – further driving SA’s growth.

Additional factors driving SA growth include the State Budget’s recent first home buyer stamp duty exemption for land up to $400K and properties up to $650K. Plus raising the $15,000 First Home Owners Grant property value cap to $675,000.

The two measures combined can save first home buyers up to nearly $45,000 on the purchase of a new home valued at $650,000. Throw in incentives such as Villawood Properties’ $10K FHB Boost package as well, or its $10K Care Worker package, and this figure can climb as far as $55K.

Says Trade and Investment Minister Nick Champion: “South Australia is at the forefront of the nation’s defence industry and the local opportunities that follow are why we are determined to keep leading the pack.”

Villawood will also be leading the pack with community-focussed, contemporary and sustainable developments that continually raise the bar of how South Australians live.