Griffih Mayor Doug Curran, Maas Group’s John Grey and Helen Dalton MP turn the first sod. Photo: Supplied.
Construction is finally underway on the infrastructure for a major new housing estate in north Griffith, with hopes the 280-lot development will help ease the city’s chronic shortage of homes.
Dubbo-based developer Maas Group acquired three farms spanning about 33 hectares on Citrus and Rifle Range roads in Collina for the development, which was approved in 2022. But it has taken four years for the project to reach the stage where civil construction is now underway.
“It’s a huge positive for the community. There will be 350 homes built on the 280 lots that will support nearly 1000 residents,” Maas Residential Real Estate General Manager John Grey told Region.
The ‘Collina North’ estate is being sold in stages, with 39 off the plan lots released for sale in Stage One last year and Stage Two now being marketed.
Five Stage Two lots were still available for sale at prices starting at $259,000, as at Tuesday 24 August.
A third stage is expected to be released towards the end of the year.
Most lots are between about 600 and 800 square metres, with larger lots available for dual occupancy.
“Designed to deliver dual dwelling income opportunities, flexible living options and strong long-term value, these premium lots offer a rare chance for buyers to secure a preferred position early,” Mr Grey said.
But while work has now started on the estate’s roads and other infrastructure, buyers will have to wait before they can start building.
The individual residential lots have not yet been registered with separate titles, meaning construction of houses cannot begin on those blocks.
“I would hope to get registration done early next year and by mid-2027 is when we’ll see the first new homes pop up,” Mr Grey said.
Construction on the infrastructure is now underway. Photo: Supplied.
While real estate observers say recent tax changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax could dampen the market, Mr Grey said they’ll have the opposite effect on this project.
“The government has excluded new homes from the tax changes; new homes are now very attractive to buyers,” he said.
He said based on similar projects in rural towns, he expected around 70 per cent of the lots would be bought by homeowners to live in and 30 per cent purchased by investors.
A major part of the delay to get Collina North started has been getting the infrastructure needed to service the new estate. Council secured $1.4 million in NSW Government funding to upgrade the Citrus and Rifle Range roads intersection and improve access from the Collina precinct to Rifle Range and Beelbangera roads.
Maas Group Holdings CEO and managing director Wes Maas said the commencement of construction represented a major investment in Griffith and the broader Riverina.
“As a regional business, we’re committed to creating developments that not only deliver housing but support long-term community growth and economic activity,” Mr Maas said.
The development comes as Griffith continues to grapple with a tight housing market with reports that skilled workers have turned down jobs in Griffith because they can’t find anywhere to live.
Maas says population projections indicate Griffith’s population will exceed 30,500 by 2036, creating demand for an additional 1744 dwellings.
Rental vacancy rates have remained around 0.6 per cent, highlighting the shortage of available housing.
Once completed, Collina North will add hundreds of new residential lots to a city where housing supply has struggled to keep pace with demand.
More information on the housing lots for sale can be found online.
