Learn the everything you need to know about hundreds of projects from throughout Australia. We’ve got the insider information to ensure that you choose the apartment, townhouse or house and land project that suits you and your lifestyle.
This is independent editorial content written by a PropertyMash Journalist. While we try to ensure all information is as accurate as possible, please double check with the developer or real estate agent directly before making a purchasing decision. The information contained within this article may be incorrect or out of date.
Zahra apartments are a new development in New Farm that is expected to be completed by the end of 2018. The boutique five-storey development of 22 apartments features three-bedroom apartments. Some apartments include a study nook, and all come with two or three carparks.
Construction of Zahra apartments has begun with the foundation currently being laid. All 22 of the apartments at Zahra are three-bedrooms, with the largest penthouse having four. Each apartment has two bathrooms and at least one balcony, with a few having private courtyards and multiple balconies. This open-plan layout and expansive outdoor living areas are great layouts and definitely geared towards owner-occupiers.
Residents at Zahra will have access to a few amenities, many of which are unusual for a development of this size, adding to the luxury feel of the building. This includes a deck and a heated pool, a dining zone with a kitchen, media room and the Zen Rooftop Garden with a fire pit. Another feature unusual for a development of this size is the two lifts that the building hosts; meaning residents will never have to wait for a lift.
There are only ten apartments still available, with over half already purchased.
We love…
But remember that…
Zahra apartments New Farm construction. Images taken by PropertyMash
Zahra is only 4.3km to the CBD. James Street shopping and restaurants, the Gasworks at Newstead and The Valley Emporium are all within 10 minutes drive. The development is directly across the road from Merthyr Bowls Club, with New Farm Park located just a quick, 800m walk down the road. While Merthyr Bowls Club isn’t generally as busy as New Farm Bowls Club, still expect some noise until 10 pm on Friday and Saturday night as well as lack of street parking on the weekend.
The location so close to the river, coupled with the open plan layout will provide some beautiful cross breezes through the apartments at Zahra. With a few lovely parks so close by as well, there’s no reason not to pack a picnic and some champagne flutes and walk directly out the front for a lovely afternoon by the river.
Several buses run along Oxlade Drive, with a City Cycle terminal right at the doorway, making weekend trips along the river so convenient. The ferry terminal is 700m away, providing easy access to other riverside suburbs like Bulimba and West End, as well as the University of Queensland. Local schools include New Farm State School and Holy Spirit Catholic School.
The location of Zahra apartments in New Farm
Zahra’s pièce de résistance is what they’ve called an “extra living zone”. Situated near the entryway, this space features a well-landscaped pool, media room with indoor cinema and a private dining room with a kitchen. The pool is solar heated and is about 15m long.
Zahra apartments pool
The rooftop boasts a Zen garden and fire pit perfect for entertaining guests. There’s also plenty of room on the rooftop for yoga and enjoying a Saturday afternoon with a book in hand.
There are two lifts in the internal of the building, which is quite rare for a complex this small but is a welcome feature for residents. The underground secure car park offers at least two car spaces as standard, with some offering three.
Zahra apartments rooftop
The indoor area of an apartment in Zahra is quite spacious at between 126 and 180 square metres. For apartments with a single balcony, the external area sits between 16m² and 40m². About half of the apartments have two or more balconies, with six of the apartments also having access to a private courtyard. This brings the average external space of each apartment to 46 square metres, with individual apartments offering as much as 95m² of area outdoors.
Another thing worth noting is that there is the option of adding a Tesla Home Battery to reduce energy costs. The kitchen is also a real statement, with world-class appliances and functionalities like a large butler’s pantry and a kitchen island/breakfast bar in every apartment.
There are two colour palettes buyers can choose from (a light and a dark) when purchasing off-the-plan at Zahra.
All Zahra apartments are comprised of three bedrooms, 2-2.5 bathrooms and some include a study nook. All bedrooms have built-in wardrobes with the master bedroom featuring a large ensuite with double sinks and bath. A few of the floor plans are two storeys as well, with the bedrooms upstairs and living spaces downstairs. The balconies are designed to be an extension of the indoor space, rather than a separate area completely.
The entryway in all apartments is a lovely addition and gives these apartments a luxury feel. There’s good storage throughout too, with plenty of cupboard space and hidden nooks. All bedrooms are down one end of the apartment too, which is an excellent feature and something that’s not often thought about. The floor plans of every single apartment are very carefully put together, with a clear owner-occupier focus. As mentioned earlier, the open-plan living will also provide some beautiful cross breezes through the large windows.
The luxurious kitchens at Zahra are definitely worth talking about. With a Gaggenau combi steamer oven, convection oven, a warming drawer, a Gaggenau coffee machine, a Pitt 5-burner undermount gas cooktop, and a Gaggenau integrated dishwasher: let’s just say, it’s going to be a very nice looking kitchen. There is also a large butlers pantry coming off the kitchen in every apartment. Along with this, each Zahra apartment also comes standard with a 40 bottle, dual-zone wine fridge.
The flooring is 240mm wide Danish White Engineered Oak timber and wallpaper adorns the walls in the living spaces and bedrooms to add texture. The airconditioning at Zahra is fully ducted.
Currently, 60% of the apartments have been purchased by people who are intending to live in the building, so there is expected to be a good mix of owners and investors. Rental demand in New Farm is high, with the median rent in the suburb being $770 per week. New Farm neighbours Teneriffe, which is Brisbane’s first $3 million suburb. With only a limited amount of river-frontage space in Brisbane, developments along this stretch are considered to be sure-fire investments.
Zahra joins a slew of other luxury boutique developments in New Farm and the surrounding suburbs. Teneriffe is welcoming Obsidian and Fortitude Valley is expecting The Coterie, both to be completed within the next year or so.
Zahra apartments charge a body corporate fee of between $5,270 and $6,420 annually for all apartments except the penthouse, which has body corporate fees of $8,140 per year. This works out to approximately $80 to $90 a week, which excludes the yearly Insurance Levy of around $1,100.
The developers of Zahra are Spyre Group who have developed over $200 million worth of property around South East Queensland over the last ten years. They’re focused on residential development, property advisory and property trusts. Recently, Spyre group have been working on projects across Brisbane and the Gold Coast, including Elysian at Broadbeach and Soko Sky Homes in West End.
Rounding out the team are Hutton & Hutton, who is the sales agent for Zahra apartments.
There is currently no display suite for Zahra.
Hutton & Hutton have also released a video of a 360° fly-around of the Zahra model which helps give buyers an even better indication of what the building will actually look like come completion.
We would love to hear your thoughts on this project.
Have you visited this project recently, or perhaps you live nearby or bought in a neighbouring building? Tell us what you love about this project, or perhaps what you don't.