Harcourts Property Centre opens New Farm hub, launches projects arm

Harcourts Property Centre has opened an office in New Farm, in inner Brisbane, as a hub for its residential, commercial and projects businesses, Harcourts announced on 22 October. Harcourts said the move had also helped establish Harcourts Property Centre Projects, a joint venture with projects executive Gary Thompson that will focus on Brisbane's new projects market ahead of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

For principals, it is an example of a growing multi-office group putting specialist divisions under one roof in an inner-city suburb where, at the 2021 Census, three in four occupied homes were apartments.

The Harcourts Property Centre New Farm office at a glance

• Leadership: Sam Devlin, managing director and principal of Harcourts Property Centre New Farm, leads the business with Aaron Brooks.
• Prestige: Jake Hathway, whose focus is Brisbane's prestige residential market, is based in the office.
• Commercial: the group's commercial team, which has widened its focus across South East Queensland and particularly Brisbane's inner-city suburbs, works from New Farm.
• Projects: Harcourts Property Centre Projects is run as a joint venture with Mr Thompson, who has more than 35 years of experience.

From six employees to more than 200

Harcourts Property Centre began in 2016 "with just six employees and no properties under management". It now has more than 200 team members across 12 branches, more than 33 times its starting headcount, and "now transacts more than $1.5 billion worth of South East Queensland property", according to Harcourts. That figure is the value of property transacted, not the group's income, and the announcement does not give a period. Earlier this year the group unveiled The Next Chapter strategy after a record-breaking $1.5 billion year.

Harcourts Queensland chief executive Andrew Freibe said: "New Farm is one of Brisbane's most special property markets." He said the suburb "has a character and appeal all of its own, and it's an area where local expertise and relationships really count".

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"New Farm is a market you need to understand," Mr Devlin said.

"Having a base here also makes sense for the wider business. We're growing our commercial capability across the inner city and expanding into projects, so this office puts our people closer to the markets and clients we're working with," he said.

Mr Brooks said: "In a market like New Farm, you can't take a one-size-fits-all approach." He added: "We want to build lasting relationships in the area."

What the Census says about New Farm

New Farm is an apartment and renters' market. At the 2021 Census, 74.5 per cent of its 5,710 occupied private dwellings were flats or apartments, against 12.5 per cent across Queensland, and only 20.4 per cent were separate houses, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics' QuickStats for the suburb. Of those homes, 53.4 per cent were rented, against 33.1 per cent statewide.

Households also earn more and pay more on their mortgages. Median weekly household income was $2,069, about 24 per cent above the Queensland median of $1,675, and median monthly mortgage repayments were $2,264, about 31 per cent above the state's $1,733. Median weekly rent was $405, against $365 for Queensland.

The projects business targets a market drawing attention ahead of 2032, the same backdrop against which a Fortitude Valley site with approval for 641 apartments hit the market in September.

What it means for principals

• Specialists can share a hub. The group has put a commercial team that covers South East Queensland, its prestige residential focus and a new projects business in one inner-city office. Mr Devlin's case is proximity: the office puts people "closer to the markets and clients".
• Projects expertise can come through a partner. Harcourts Property Centre Projects is a joint venture with an executive who has more than 35 years in the field, a structure that brings projects experience in through a partner rather than a hire.
• Know the stock. With three in four occupied homes apartments and more than half rented, much of the sales and leasing work in New Farm involves apartments and landlords. As Mr Brooks put it, "you can't take a one-size-fits-all approach".