It seems strata may have a new pantomime villain (like we need one). This week we look at multi-millionaire developer of fancy pants apartment blocks Tim Gurner.

He once shocked an economic conference by saying the country needs 40-50 per cent unemployment.

If that wasn’t bad enough it’s alleged he was the first public figure to draw parallels between young people eating smashed avocado and not being able to afford to buy a home.

Now this Melbourne developer of luxury apartments, and some of his customers, are in conflict as defects start to surface in his uber-fancy St Moritz block in the Victorian capital.

It’s not so much how the mighty have fallen (because he hasn’t) as how the prices have fallen, and in a rising market.

But before that, we look at the new regulations for strata managers that come in nest week (Feb3) and wonder how much difference they will really make.

And finally, Jimmy comes up with his radical plan to build more affordable apartments, saying that affordable luxury is impossible but liveable affordability may be the way forward

If you can tolerate a bit of noise from your neighbours, and one lift instead of two, surely apartment blocks could be built more cheaply without the risk of them falling down.

That’s all in the Flat Chat Wrap.

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Flat Chat is all about apartment living, especially in Australia.
Find us on Facebook and Twitter and the Flat Chat website.
Send comments and questions to mail@flatchat.com.au.
Register to ask and answer questions about apartment living anonymously on the website.
Recorded by Jimmy Thomson & Sue Williams; Transcribed by Otter.ai.
Find out more about Sue Williams and Jimmy Thomson on their websites.

With half of Australia still in holiday or hangover mode, and half of Sydney stuck on a railway platform somewhere, this is a short and (we hope) sweet Flat Chat Wrap podcast this week.

First, we look at a new trend in affordable and comfortable co-living, which already exists in two completed blocks in Sydney, with another one on the way.

Then there’s the revelation that the price gap between houses and apartment narrowing dramatically, as houses get a bit cheaper and apartments get dearer.

And finally there’s news of a new and possibly trend-setting addition to a planned apartment block which will doubtless get tongues and tails wagging with its direct appeal to dog owners.

That’s all in this week’s Flat Chat Wrap.

____________________________________________________


Flat Chat is all about apartment living, especially in Australia.
Find us on Facebook and Twitter and the Flat Chat website.
Send comments and questions to mail@flatchat.com.au.
Register to ask and answer questions about apartment living anonymously on the website.
Recorded by Jimmy Thomson & Sue Williams; Transcribed by Otter.ai.
Find out more about Sue Williams and Jimmy Thomson on their websites.

We are back in the saddle for the new year with the news that the NSW government has come up with a new way of tackling the bureaucracy and red tape that’s holding back housing construction – by adding what looks like another level of bureaucracy and red tape.

To be fair, the intentions are good. Maybe more really is less, and the new Housing Delivery Authority will accelerate the construction of “State Significant Developments”, especially in areas ripe for development but where Nimbys rule the roost. We shall see.

However, one of the more remarkable achievements around this is that the government has managed to announce this without even mentioning one significant and controversial word.

Also we hear about the apartment residents who turned their harbour view flat into a huge, expensive New Years Eve event venue … only it wasn’t their flat.

And we point the fingers at the Sydney residents who have taken Nimbyism to a new low – kicking locals who are already down and permanently out.

That’s all in this week’s Flat Chat Wrap.

____________________________________________________


Flat Chat is all about apartment living, especially in Australia.
Find us on Facebook and Twitter and the Flat Chat website.
Send comments and questions to mail@flatchat.com.au.
Register to ask and answer questions about apartment living anonymously on the website.
Recorded by Jimmy Thomson & Sue Williams; Transcribed by Otter.ai.
Find out more about Sue Williams and Jimmy Thomson on their websites.