Celebrity agent Gavin Rubinstein's unique solution to tackle Australia's housing crisis

The top Sydney agent has created a mock underground home in the heart of Sydney’s CBD, suggesting the future lies in digging down instead of out and up.

“In a property market defined by scarcity, Vault 33 presents the perfect long-term and sustainable solution,” Rubinstein says, giving a tour of the retro fit-out that uses abandoned Sydney tunnels, existing underground floors, reinforced sandstone and solid metal sheeting.

He has teamed up with Prime Video on the concept.

Australia’s housing crisis is due to a number of factors: higher costs of material and land are making it harder for developers to build homes at a profit, there’s a surge in net overseas migration and the increased demand for properties versus supply is causing house prices to rise.

The Housing Industry Association’s latest forecast released in February paints a grim picture. Australia is anticipated to build just over a million new homes over the next five years, falling almost 200,000 homes short of the government’s 1.2 million target.

The Institute of Public Affairs also suggests that from now to the year 2028, Australia is set to face a net housing supply shortfall of 252,800 dwellings.

Vault 33 in the heart of Sydney’s CBD, is inspired by the vault of the same name that features in Fallout, a new original series from Prime Video.

Inspired by the legendary video game franchise and set within the Fallout universe, the series will follow three protagonists who cross paths on their respective journeys across the vast and dangerous Wasteland around them. Unbeknownst to them, they are all in search of an item that will not only determine their fate but the fate of the Wasteland.

Rubinstein has created an urban, yet retro home, with an open-plan layout. There’s even a dedicated bar and entertainment zone that brings Sydney’s nightlife underground.

While it’s tongue-in-cheek and a mock set-up, underground homes in the heart of the city could be the future.

“With the way prices are and the way they are heading, you just never know what the future holds,” Rubinstein says.

Domain’s House Price Report for the December 2023 quarter reveals Sydney’s median house price has reached a new peak of almost $1.6 million. The city’s median house price rose by 10.3 per cent last year, surpassing its previous peak last December.

The median house price across the combined capital cities is now $1,094,539, highlighting an increase of 7.8 per cent year-on-year.

Rubinstein hints at rising house prices being a constant, but admits he tries not to predict the future.

“They are not making any more land, in Sydney’s eastern suburbs (where Rubinstein’s listings are), anyway,” he says. “We’ve got such a tight supply paradigm that’s been prevalent for the last decade at least and lots of demand with people constantly moving to Sydney.”

“It’s going to underpin prices going forward. There will be peaks and troughs and the markets will need to turn.”

Fallout is available to stream on Prime Video from April 11.

Nine Entertainment Co (the publisher of Nine.com.au) owns and operates the streaming service Stan. 

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