Kylie Rampa on residential game changers
New models for housing affordability and density done well will reshape our cities and the way people live, says Lendlease’s chief executive officer of property, Kylie Rampa.
The build-to-rent model is currently a “hot topic”, Rampa (pictured) says, as it has the potential to increase the supply of affordable housing, improve the experience of renting residents and drive economic growth. “Thirty per cent of people live in rental accommodation in Australia. It’s a big number and it’s increasing,” Rampa explains.
“The rental experience in Australia has generally been awful, with most residents having no security of tenure, having to argue about things like maintenance, and having no benchmarking around the rent they pay.”
Rampa says there is a direct cost to the economy of “people having to move all the time”.
“In the US and other global markets, the rental sector is an institutional investment grade product with a strong operating platform, which delivers a much higher quality of rental product and experience to residents than we see in Australia,” she says.
“An institutional-grade product with a strong management platform will provide high quality rental solutions, attract institutional capital and increase supply.”
The Property Council has established a Build-to-Rent Roundtable to bring together investors, operators, managers and advisers, and is currently identifying tax, planning and regulatory issues as build-to-rent emerges as a new asset class in Australia.
While the build-to-rent model faces several obstacles in Australia, the biggest is taxation, Rampa says.
“Industry and government need to work together to unlock the opportunity. Currently there isn’t equal tax treatment of build-to-rent and build-to-sell. Governments are aware of this – but it’s definitely the main barrier we face.”
Government investment in transportation is also a “huge game changer” which will open opportunities for people to live in a 30-minute city. This is a realistic ambition – even in gridlocked Sydney – Rampa says, provided we “break our cities down into precincts”.
Rampa, who joined Lendlease in 2013 and has been in her current position since May 2016, is responsible for a multi-billion dollar urban regeneration portfolio, as well as communities, retirement living, retail, commercial office and investment management businesses.
She says density, or more specifically “the concept of density done well”, will also change the shape of our cities.
“We have a paranoia about density in Australia, and think that we end up with horrible built environments. But density done well – with appropriate planning, and a focus on quality and amenity on the ground plane – can give rise to efficient use of land that allows product to be built at a more efficient price. And you end up with more liveable environments with greater open and green space.”
Precincts like the $7.9 billion Barangaroo South development at Sydney Harbour attracts 30,000 people a day – more people than live in Dubbo. But density doesn’t always have to be clustered around a CBD, Rampa says.
“Density around major transport hubs, or even in new master-planned communities, improves affordability.”
Australians are increasingly looking for lifestyle, and that means “flexibility, access to transport, quality at the ground plane and a strong sense of community”.
Rampa points to Lendlease’s work on new master-planned communities, like Alkimos Beach in north west Perth, which was the first project nationally to achieve a 6 Star Green Star – Communities rating from the Green Building Council of Australia.
The 224-hectare development, which will eventually be home to 6,000 people, is currently involved in Australia’s first community energy storage trial, and mandatory solar panels and gas-boosted solar hot water systems are offset by a range of financial incentive packages.
But first-home buyers, families and retirees are equally attracted to the lifestyle elements. None of the homes will be more than 200 metres from a park, for example.
A community is “more than a built form – it’s also about creating beautiful places for families to live with parks and bike tracks, playgrounds, facilities and spaces that bring people together”.
Kylie Rampa will be joined by industry leaders Rod Fehring, Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz and Mark Steinert in a session unpacking the residential game changers at The Property Congress in October. A limited number of tickets are left. Don’t miss out!