What Brisbane’s Next Generation of Luxury Living Looks Like

As Brisbane moves towards 2032, the way we live is changing with it. Spyre director Andrew Malouf shares why rare locations, design-led apartments and a different definition of luxury are setting a new benchmark for the city.

Brisbane is growing up, and so is the way we want to live in it. As the city moves towards 2032, new restaurants, hotels, cultural precincts and major infrastructure are changing its landscape. In residential property, another shift is underway: the apartment is increasingly becoming a lifestyle choice in its own right.

It’s a change Spyre director Andrew Malouf has been watching closely. “Brisbane is entering a genuine transformation on the road to 2032, and what excites me is a city finally backing itself on architecture and design instead of defaulting to the safe option.” For Malouf, the opportunity goes beyond adding more apartments to Brisbane’s skyline. It’s about reconsidering what the best version of city living can offer.

The apartment is changing

For generations, the detached house has been closely tied to the Australian idea of success. Malouf believes that perception will continue to change as a new calibre of apartment enters the market. “There will be a time where the stigma of owning a house slowly fades with the introduction of apartments that provide for a superior way of living.”

His view is clear: location, amenity, architecture and convenience can combine to offer a way of living that a standalone home can’t always replicate. “I can stand behind the statement that the best apartments in Brisbane offer more than the best houses.” It’s a bold prediction, but one that reflects a broader change in what buyers are looking for from their homes. The appeal is no longer simply about square metres. Where you live, what surrounds you and how your home works with your day-to-day life increasingly matter too.

Luxury means more than a price tag

That changing lifestyle has also influenced how Malouf defines luxury. “Luxury in 2026 isn’t a price tag — it’s value, opportunity and legacy. Our focus for our projects is all about enhancing the day to day lives of those who inhabit them, allowing them to live aspirational lives within the comfort of their own home.”

For Spyre, that means looking beyond finishes and features to consider the complete experience of living somewhere. It also means recognising what can’t be recreated. Malouf began his career as a town planner, where he learnt to assess zoning, constraints and long-term potential before becoming attached to what a site could become. That experience now underpins Spyre’s approach to finding locations. “A truly exceptional site is one that can’t be repeated — a position on the water, a view, a piece of history no future release will match. Before we commit, we look for that rarity alongside a setting our residents will genuinely want to live in for decades, not just an attractive line on a feasibility.”

Why rarity matters

In a city experiencing significant development, Spyre’s strategy isn’t necessarily to build more. “There is a huge lesson in the sentiment that rarity beats scale — one exceptional, unrepeatable site will outperform a dozen ordinary ones every time. Discipline in what we say no to has mattered as much as what we’ve said yes to.”

It’s an approach that has seen the developer focus on highly sought-after locations across South East Queensland, with each project considered through the lens of what makes its position difficult to repeat. Glasshouse at Burleigh Heads became a defining example. Each residence settled for $24 million, but for Malouf, the project’s significance wasn’t simply its sales result.

“For us, the successful settlement of those residences was about far more than achieving record sales. It was validation that there is strong demand for thoughtfully designed, genuinely world-class homes in Australia’s premium residential market. More importantly, it reinforced the trust our buyers place in us to deliver exactly what we’ve promised.” That experience continues to inform what Spyre believes buyers expect from the next generation of high-end residential development.

Designed around the people living there

Behind the architecture and locations is another consideration Malouf believes is fundamental: the buyer. “They’re not simply buying an apartment—they’re investing in a lifestyle, their future, and often one of the most significant financial and emotional decisions they’ll ever make.” For Malouf, putting the resident at the centre changes the way a developer approaches everything from design and communication to delivery.

“I’ve always believed that if you genuinely put the buyer at the centre of the business, the commercial success follows.” It’s also why the measure of a successful development, in his view, extends beyond awards, sales records or the building itself. What matters is how it performs as a home once residents move in.