QUEENSLAND developer Vivendi Homes is on the prowl for property in the Mt Isa area.
The company has secured contracts for the construction of 13 homes in the Healy Heights estate in the booming mining town.
Vivendi plans to add to this through a mix of build contracts and land acquisition.
Vivendi is building the initial 13 homes over two stages in the North West Queensland community, with the first stage comprising seven houses scheduled to be completed before Christmas.
It is planning to start construction on the second stage in November.
Vivendi managing director David Brown said the company’s plans for regional Queensland were based on supporting the rapid growth of the mining, energy, agricultural and support industries.
He said the ongoing minerals boom had caused a dual effect in many mining communities across Australia, creating an unprecedented housing shortage for local workers but making boomtown’s residential markets an attractive proposition for forward thinking investors.
“We’ve got a number of major investor clients who are keen to participate in our next project in Mt Isa,” Brown said.
He said with rental properties in metropolitan cities returning as little as 2.5 per cent investors were attracted to strongly performing regional communities where rental properties could return more than 5 per cent on investment.
Brown said Vivendi has also taken out a long term lease on worker accommodation to service its housing program.
“We are committed to employing local tradesman for the construction of our projects but had so far found it difficult to find skilled workers.
“We want to employ local builders, however, there is a great skills shortage when it comes to construction which means we have had to outsource a lot of jobs so far.”
The privately owned Vivendi Homes has launched a 70-home project in Emerald and is investigating possible projects at Chinchilla, Mackay, Bundaberg and Nebo. It is also scheduled to commence operations in the booming Pilbara region and Perth in West Australia.
Vivendi has tasted great success in rural Australia with a major drawcard being the company’s unique designs that have the ability to withstand harsh climates.
The company’s VPS building system is a prefabricated thermo dynamic external and internal wall and ceiling solution that is engineered to be structurally and thermally superior to other building systems used.
“The VPS system is cleaner, more durable, more energy efficient than traditional homes and still maintains structural integrity,” Brown said.
David Brown
david.brown@vivendihomes.com.au