Golden age sees sparkle in homes
Jeff Xu’s Golden Age Group is forging a path in the house and land market, snapping up a site on Melbourne’s western fringe for a price estimated at $31 million.
The developer is planning 377 land lots and a public park on a site in Rockbank, about 30km west of the CBD, which will have a gross development value of $120m.
An industry source said Golden Age paid about $1.5m a hectare for the 21ha site, although the developer would not reveal the cost.
The new community, to be known as Willow Springs, will have blocks of land ranging in size from about 185sq m to 650sq m to cater to various buyers.
Golden Age Group is known for its apartment developments, but says the new venture will diversify its portfolio and benefit from strong demand for land in Melbourne’s growth suburbs.
“The demand for well-produced land in Melbourne’s outer ring is growing rapidly due to an increasing population and affordability pressure in the inner ring,” Golden Age Group managing director Jeff Xu said. “We can expect continued solid growth in the outer ring, which is how we identified this opportunity to use our point of difference as a mixed-use developer to offer a new level of quality and a unique approach to land.
“We have been creating vertical communities for many years now so we are very much looking forward to applying this knowledge to our first land project and create a community that is different to what has been produced before.”
Mr Xu founded Golden Age Group in 2006. The company has a $4.2 billion development portfolio with another $1.5bn worth of projects in the pipeline.
The developer is also forging ahead with a $450m apartment project above The Glen shopping centre in Melbourne’s southeastern suburbs, owned by Vicinity Centres. The group has teamed up with US-based Starwood Capital to develop a $600m luxury residential tower in Melbourne’s Spring Street.