What’s Driving Pro-invest Push into ‘Underserved’ Micro-Apartments

Small footprint flexible micro-apartments are the next big move for Pro-invest founder Ron Barrott. Speaking to The Urban Developer , the serial entrepreneur and property investor says while Pro-invest has been heavily exposed to the hotel sector, this was a logical pivot. And while it may sound like a build-to-rent play, this is a much more strategic move from Pro-invest, which is targeting an under-served segment of the market. The property developer is spearheading Australia’s move into a more flexible living sector with its flex living product, micro apartments that are as small as 20sq m and transform from living/working spaces during the day to bedrooms by night, as well as a more traditional build-to-rent product. The company is targeting 6000 units across flex living and build-to-rent in Australia, drawing on its established presence in hospitality to create community-focused developments. Operational build-to-rent projects in Australia to date have primarily targeted the high-end renter with luxurious amenities to help make the project stack. But Barrott explains Pro-invest has taken a different tack. “We are looking at the lower end of the A’s, all the way through the B’s and the top end of the C’s, and we will tailor to each market,” Barrott says. “It’s aimed at the largest socio-economic profile of people. The [build-to-rent projects] that have been done to date tend to be targeting the top end of the A’s. ▲ Pro-invest founder Ron Barrott: The company is targeting 6000 units across flex living and build-to-rent in Australia. “We want a robust product that we can roll out across the capital cities, as indeed we’ve rolled out our hotels in the main cities. We know we can make it stack at sensible rents.” Barrott says the current rental landscape and escalating pricing is “not sustainable”. But “through good design and development and sizing”, Barrott says a more affordable build-to-rent product is achievable. “We’re not looking to oversize these, 200 to 250 units, even down to 100 units works, but the sweet spot is probably between 200 and 250,” he says. “So not too large, where you can build a community. And obviously, building a brand that will gain a reputation, you’ll know if you move from our facilities in Sydney to facilities in Adelaide or Brisbane or wherever you’ll get the same approach and the same product.” Barrott says the rationale is to make them small enough to create community but big enough for the economics to work. Target markets for micro-apartments Micro-apartments are not a new idea internationally but the global company is bringing it to a new market in Australia. Australia’s immigration rate in 2025 is high, with the annual net overseas migration reaching 315,900 in the 12 months to March 2025. Temporary students make up a substantial proportion of this, while the top nations immigrating to Australia comprise India, China, the United Kingdom and New Zealand. ▲ Carmel Place, a nine-storey apartment building in New York City completed in 2016 was the city ’ s first micro-apartment building. Barrott says that the migrant community is very accustomed to renting accommodation, and the Pro-invest play would target educated people who need “accommodation in good, well-located positions with good communication to the city”. The flexible living product is also flexible in its approach to duration of stay, from short to medium and long-stay options, whereas the build-to-rent portfolio is more geared towards longer stays. Barrott says they will be targeting the cities where their hotels are based, as they have strong data and good local market intelligence they can embed in their projects. While this is predominantly the east coast capital cities of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, Barrott says Adelaide is also in scope. “Each of these cities has significant demand for this sort of product,” he says. “We’ve just got to put it in the right location and build the right product, and the product will speak for itself. “Obviously, when it comes to management, we are well able to manage this sort of property.” Investor appetite is strong The pivot from hotels to short and long-stay accommodation has provided the Pro-invest team with a good understanding of which amenities people are looking for. “We’re well placed then to match the two in the product that we create,” Barrott says. Pro-invest inked a joint-venture partnership with Kajima in July 2025 for the ground-up build-to-rent platform, which Barrott says will help to meet the housing supply shortage in Australia. He says that there are “strong tailwinds for the next decade” of build-to-rent development. Kajima Australia managing director Tatsuru Isano said it was a strong partnership that would develop “ground-up projects in key urban centres”. “These developments will prioritise sustainability, community and affordability and will help address the shortfall in supply of quality rentals in the market,” Isano said. Delete Barrott says Pro-invest and Kajima are “like-minded” in their approach to creating an alternative housing model in the market. It’s different in Australia because the rental market in the past has been mum-and-dad investors who bought a second or third home and rented it out, he says. “Things are changing and everything we’re going to be doing is institutional grade. That’s what we’ve always done.” Key-worker housing solutions “Our extended stay flexible living product is a very micro-apartment,” Barrott says. “I believe a lot in providing housing for key workers. And I think it’s something we could work with local governments and the like to provide. “We’re talking about the professionals, the firemen, the policemen, the teachers, the professionals that can’t really afford to live right in the city. “But you need them in the city. And I think our product can be tailored to accommodate them as well.” Sustainability is also a key metric for the real estate investor and developer. “Brown-to-green is the strategy that we maintain. Even if it’s a replacement of an old building or utilisation of an old building, then we will look at it. So we have a program of conversion and we also have a new build program,” Barrott says. “And obviously, you’re going into the unknown when you’re taking an old building apart as well. But it’s the right thing to do if there’s a good, sustainable reason for doing it, then we should be doing that. We’ve only got one environment, we need to look after it.”

What’s Driving Pro-invest Push into ‘Underserved’ Micro-Apartments

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