2021 Property and Construction Industry Honours: Developer of the Year

2021 Property and Construction Industry Honours

Developer of the Year

 

Honoured company: Synergy Capital Group Ltd

Reason for recognition: Creator of premium apartments

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The management team at Synergy Capital Group Ltd has more than ten years of experience in property and land development, focusing primarily on land development, premium apartments and high-quality townhouses.

 

Quality at the heart of refined luxury

 

Synergy firmly believes that precise market positioning is the key to a project’s success. Its team is committed to creating refined, luxurious residential complexes in New Zealand to meet the needs of high-end buyers. The Jervois & Lawrence luxury apartments in Herne Bay, Auckland’s most expensive suburb, are a flagship project into which Synergy has poured its efforts.

 

With unrivalled sea views and a prime Herne Bay location, the Jervois & Lawrence luxury apartments were officially completed in June 2021 and are a landmark in the area. The building has five levels, including a basement car park, with 28 boutique apartments and 3 retail premises. Its overall design is refined and understated, with a Japanese-style courtyard garden. Every apartment features cabinetry from premium Italian brand Arclinea, a full suite of kitchen appliances from German luxury brand Gaggenau, herringbone solid timber flooring and zoned central air conditioning. Buyers include prominent New Zealanders, people in the top 10 on the rich list and international celebrities.

 

As a premium luxury apartment development with an average selling price of NZ$25,000 per square metre and a penthouse priced above NZ$8,000,000, Jervois & Lawrence demands exceptionally high standards of workmanship and materials, earning it high praise in the neighbourhood. The project team worked closely with leading teams including CMP, Leuschke Architect and interior designer Macintosh Harris—a dream collaboration in pursuit of perfection.

 

Committed collaboration delivers reputation and returns

 

A developer is a project’s creator, leader and driving spirit. From initial market research and product positioning to site selection, land acquisition, assembling the project team, applying for consents, construction and sales, through to settlement and subsequent maintenance, every stage requires the developer’s coordination and decisions. As the developer of Jervois & Lawrence, Synergy poured its heart and soul into overcoming every obstacle to complete a landmark project that delivered both a strong reputation and healthy returns.

 

When the project began in 2017, high-end apartment development was still a new field for Synergy. Jervois & Lawrence’s location in Herne Bay, the area with New Zealand’s highest average house prices, meant there were very few comparable developments to draw on, making the project’s positioning particularly challenging. The Synergy team spent half a year conducting research and site visits before settling on a design direction, and completed its resource consent and building consent applications in 2018. Having worked backwards to establish the product’s positioning, the team was confident it could create an outstanding offering in the high-end apartment market.

 

From its formal launch in 2017 to completion in mid-2021, a period of more than four years, the development of Jervois & Lawrence spanned several major changes in New Zealand:

 

The first major challenge was the policy preventing overseas buyers from purchasing homes to live in. Just as presales began for Jervois & Lawrence, the New Zealand Government introduced its ban on overseas buyers purchasing such homes, forcing the cancellation of NZ$12,000,000 in presales. The Synergy team responded swiftly, immediately applying to the Overseas Investment Office (OIO) for a Transitional Exemption Certificate for Large Apartment Developments. It successfully obtained the certificate, becoming one of the first developers in New Zealand to pass the legislation’s rigorous assessment process and secure an exemption.

 

From 2018 to 2019, New Zealand’s property market underwent a major correction, slowing presales for the project. Under pressure, the project management team continued trying different sales approaches. At the time, an adviser suggested reducing construction costs to mitigate risk, but this would also have meant lowering interior fit-out standards. The Synergy team’s longstanding principle was to take responsibility for its products and customers, never cutting costs at the expense of quality. To address customers’ concerns about timing and quality, the team maintained regular communication and kept prospective buyers informed of progress, while also upgrading interior specifications throughout the project to reassure them through better quality. Sales then gradually began to reach a more satisfactory level.

 

In early 2020, the unexpected Covid-19 pandemic disrupted supplies of interior fit-out materials, delaying the entire project and requiring a budget review. A project originally expected to finish ahead of schedule now had to face the many problems caused by delays. During the first lockdown, construction stopped on site, but the management team kept working, coordinating architects, engineers and the contractor to communicate and prepare contingency plans, while closely monitoring the procurement and shipping of appliances and kitchens from Europe. Overseas interior materials began arriving in winter 2020. The contractor then launched an intensive effort to complete the fit-out, while sales also produced encouraging results. The project team was crucial to Jervois & Lawrence’s success, with everyone working towards the same goal and overcoming difficulties together. During the acceptance stage in 2021, the Synergy team became involved three months early to ensure that construction quality and finishing details met satisfactory standards. After a construction period of 27 months, the team finally completed the formal handover with construction company CMP.

 

Looking back over the past few years, the Synergy team has experienced dramatic ups and downs and emerged tested and strengthened. There have been laughter and hard work, challenges and rewards. The successful completion of Jervois & Lawrence depended on close teamwork, a grounded approach and practical, meticulous professionalism. The Synergy team is pressing ahead, carrying its longstanding high expectations for quality and service into its next projects, continuing to work hard and move forward to deliver more and better developments.