The Monaco, Main Beach secures sell-out as one of Gold Coast's most expensive apartment towers
The Monaco, the luxury Main Beach apartment development by the local developer Ignite Projects, has secured a sell-out.
The Rothelowman-designed, 24-level tower, with just 24 half and full-floor apartments, sold with an average sale price of $4.6 million. The penthouse secured $9.5 million when bought by a Sydney buyer, who was in lockdown at the time of purchase.
The tower will rank as one of, if not the most expensive on the Gold Coast, not counting the smaller, boutique beachfront projects that might only rise five or six levels.
It's not the first time Ignite boss Josh Foote has seen stellar results recently, having quickly knocked over his apartment development at Palm Beach.
They sold out Cabana, a collection of 32 beachfront apartment, in six weeks, one of the quickest sell-outs the Gold Coast had seen for a long time.
"The Monaco naturally took a little longer, given the near $5 million average apartment price", Foote says.
"The buyer pool is considerably smaller, less than one per cent of buyers can spend that much."
“The building is setting a new standard for the suburb, which is getting a well-deserved facelift thanks to the $205 million revitalisation of the Spit to turn it into the Gold Coast’s version of Hyde Park and a 300-berth marina at The Southport Yacht Club.”
The Monaco saw a mix of local buyers, and those interstate from Sydney and Melbourne, NPA Projects Director Andrew Erwin, who exclusively handled the sales, said.
"It will be a second home for a lot of the buyers, but some will be calling it home", Erwin told Urban.
The Sydney-based buyer of the expansive two-level 630 sqm penthouse was impressed by the design and unrivalled location, and plans to use it for his ‘forever home’.
Construction is now underway by McNab Builders, with an estimated completion date of 2023.
Foote says there's no surprise to see the heightened demand for the Gold Coast, which he expects to continue now the country has seen what locals have seen for years.
"It's just all about lifestyle, 100 per cent".
The developer worked on a few projects with a friend in his native Auckland before moving to the Gold Coast.
"It wasn't the value of the Gold Coast that brought me here, it was the lifestyle, and then the value become apparent."
Foote expects to be heading back to the Southern end of the Gold Coast for his next development, but like many in the industry, is finding it difficult to find a suitable site, for the right price.
"I like developing down there. It's where I live, and it's probably the most beautiful part of the Gold Coast.
"But it's that competitive at the moment, it's hard to find a site that will stack up. Land value is so high due to the demand for houses in desirable locations, even really old houses where an interstate buyer can knock down and rebuild and still see value."
He reckons great sites with any development potential have nearly doubled in price in the last 12 months or so. Crazy times.
