Goldfields Snaps Up Third Regional Greenfield Site

Melbourne developer Goldfields has again turned its sights to regional Victoria, buying a site in the coastal town of Grantville for $17.8 million.

Goldfields Group chief executive officer Lachlan Thompson confirmed the acquisition of the greenfield site, identified as one of the last such sites on the Bass Coast, between Phillip Island and Melbourne.

“This site was reflective of [Goldfield’s] belief in Australia’s regional housing markets,” Thompson said.

“We’re always searching for growth opportunities and are bullish on regional markets in areas with a diverse economy, healthy government infrastructure spend and good local amenities.”

The 13ha site, on the east coast of Western Port about 100km south-east of Melbourne, is set to become a masterplanned residential community of 160 lots and communal open space under Goldfield’s plans.

Construction is expected to begin in 2024.

The development will be targeted at seachangers from Melbourne, upgraders working in the south-eastern suburbs of Pakenham and Cranbourne, and local first-home buyers.

Goldfields national director of communities Paul Cicchiello said the site was the third residential masterplanned community the developer had acquired this year. 

“The Bass Coast is being protected from overdevelopment by the council’s Distinctive Areas and Landscapes Program,” Cicchiello said.

“With limited supply in the region and demand for residential housing in regional Victoria increasing, Goldfields is excited to offer future residents a peaceful, well-connected coastal lifestyle.”

▲ Goldfields chief operating officer Lachlan Thompson and managing director Marco Gattino.

The acquisition bolsters Goldfields’ commitment to investing in regional centres following the developer’s recent site acquistions in Margaret River, Western Australia and Shepparton, Victoria.

Goldfields bought its first WA housing estate site for $8 million in February.

The 47ha holding at 211 Darch Road will make way for a 400-lot subdivision with construction of the first dwellings expected to start by the end of the year.

The following month Goldfields moved on a 44ha site at Shepparton, which will similarly be developed into a 450-lot masterplanned residential community.

In Melbourne, Goldfields is behind low-density residential projects in, among other suburbs, Clyde North, Fraser Rise and Rockbank.

“Goldfields remains steadfast in its commitment to creating functional, quality housing communities in areas where people actually want to live,” Cicchiello said.

The exodus of remote workers throughout Melbourne’s six lockdowns has continued to put pressure on the housing market in regional centres.

Conditions in the Victorian greenfield markets, however, have continued to moderate since the start of the year as buyers adjusted to higher interest rates, rising inflation, cost-of-living pressures, ongoing affordability challenges and more stock being offered in the broader residential market.