As Australia’s growing Build to Rent sector is entering a more competitive and complex phase, BDO’s latest research has discovered that the national Build to Rent pipeline has reached 51,000 apartments worth $40.1bn, up from 39,300 apartments worth $30.1bn a year earlier.
Australia now also has 33 operating platforms; a sign that the sector is no longer an early-stage concept market and that competitive intensity is rising as more operators establish a presence.
According to BDO, in the beginning, much of the sector’s marketing centred on familiar lifestyle signals such as rooftop terraces, first-class gym facilities and pet-friendly spaces. But as it becomes more saturated, those cues are becoming table stakes.
The competitive edge is shifting toward the parts of the offer that operators can directly shape: resident proposition, service model, community experience and brand identity.
Freecity Living’s recent launch is an example of that shift in practice. The new consumer brand has gone live ahead of leasing commencing in the coming weeks at The Herring purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) scheme that comprises 528-units at 169-171 Herring Road in Macquarie Park.
While Freecity’s first resident community sits in the PBSA sector, the strategic challenge is one shared across the broader living sectors, particularly as operators build across adjacent formats including co-living and Build to Rent.
“We’re not building for one type of resident or one moment in their life. Our ambition is to create places people can call home through many different stages, so we needed a brand with the flexibility to grow with them.
“Chello turned that ambition into a clear strategy and identity that brings everything together, creating a brand that feels relevant whether you’re renting your first place as a student, building a family, or looking for a home later in life.”
Melanie Hopgood-Bould, Head of Marketing, Freecity
BDO believes that it is a whole-of-life proposition – something as yet unattempted in the Build to Rent space. Freecity holds a development portfolio exceeding $7bn and over 6,000 units in the pipeline across Sydney, including PBSA developments at Macquarie Park, Forest Lodge and Rockdale, an approved Build to Rent and co-living precinct at Rouse Hill, a proposed living-sector precinct at Sydney Olympic Park, and a 60-plus level Build to Rent tower planned for Parramatta.
Freecity also brings a construction differentiator through its premium volumetric modular construction capability. For the sector, that matters at the delivery and product level. In market, however, consumers are less likely to choose a home because of the construction methodology itself, they’re choosing based on what the brand promises and the resident experience it signals.
That’s where brand identity takes on a larger role. No longer just a campaign layer applied at launch, it’s becoming part of how operators create confidence before completion, explain their offer across multiple assets, and stay ahead of the pack in terms of retention, reputation and trust.
Sydney-based brand growth agency Chello worked with Freecity on developing its consumer brand, said that in a more crowded living-sector market, operators need a brand proposition that gives people a reason to care before a project is physically experienced.
“As the category grows, the challenge is no longer just to market a building. It is to create a proposition people can believe in, trust and see themselves in before the doors open.
“That’s where brand starts to do real commercial work for operators.”
Tom Dabner, Strategy Director, Chello
For the Build to Rent sector, the implication is broader than one launch. In a market where demand is growing fast but feasibility remains tight, operators are increasingly competing on clarity of offer as much as physical product. Brand investment, in that context, is becoming less about promotion and more about protecting value across the full life of the asset.
