Official Newsletter of Hamton Property Group

INITIATIVES
Hamton Real Estate Services - Service Doesn't Stop at Settlement

In an exciting new initiative for the Melbourne property scene, particularly for those clients purchasing property as an investment, Hamton is pleased to announce the launch of Hamton Real Estate Services.

This new addition to the Hamton Group is a fully licensed Real Estate agency which has been established to provide investors with experienced advice on all aspects of Property Management, as well as providing seamless Owner’s Corporation management, (formerly Body Corporate management) on all Hamton projects.

This exciting innovation will mean that investors purchasing in a Hamton project will now be able to enjoy a complete one-stop advisory service from start to finish. Importantly, they can be confident that not only will their property manager know every detail of their property from the ground up, but that the days of communication issues between the owners corporation and the property manager are also behind them.

We will be updating all readers in coming months about the benefits available to Hamton clients through this service. If you have any questions in the meantime, you can give Nicole Wiseman a call today on 9522 8444 or email nicole@hamton.com.au.

NEWS
Society South Yarra - Construction Commenced

It’s hard to believe that just a few short months ago we were still in the planning stages and yet to launch our much anticipated ‘Society’ project in South Yarra to the public.

Having launched this ground breaking project to the Melbourne market in March, we have been excited to see an extremely positive response from the public, the media and the industry to our “vertical village”, a unique concept in the Melbourne market. In fact, this acceptance has been so strong that ‘Society’ was officially “SOLD OUT” inside two months, with many buyers still registering their interest in the hope of another opportunity arising.

This remarkable result was emphasised on the 1st of May when a celebration was held to commemorate the closing of the onsite display suite and the official commencement of the construction phase.

We will keep you updated over the coming months as the demolition works take place and the arrival of the cranes signals another key step towards the anticipated completion in mid-2010.

Visit www.societysouthyarra.com.au

Mandalay Malvern - Moving Forward

The initial marketing launch is now under way for ‘Mandalay’, an exclusive retirement living concept in Malvern unlike any other this area has seen before. Enquiry levels are proving to be very strong from buyers wanting to select from the widest possible choice of apartments.

The display suite is certainly attracting its fair share of traffic, a reflection of the unmet need across Melbourne for quality retirement accommodation that allows discerning retirees to enjoy peace of mind in a secure setting without compromising on the living standards they enjoyed before retirement.

Floor plans are now available on the website and reservations are now being taken for individual apartments, so our recommendation for those looking for something very special in retirement is to call in to our display suite as soon as possible, or give Pam Testa a call on 9822 6677.

For further information, visit www.mandalaymalvern.com.au

Prospect Hill, Diamond Creek - Welcome the Neighbourhood BBQ

It may have been a cold and showery Sunday afternoon, but over 40 purchasers and their families took the opportunity recently to be a part of a new innovation in residential land sales in Melbourne.

The team at Hamton, along with Joint Venture partner Jeremy De Zylva, organised a special barbecue on the estate, complete with a seated marquee and full bar service, in order to give people a chance to get to know their neighbours well before they started building.

This event proved very popular with the soon-to-be-residents of Diamond Creek. As one future resident said, “It’s been a real bonus to start making friends with people before we move in. My kids are already making plans with the children who’ll be living around the corner. The whole family is feeling even more excited about the move.”

With just seven home sites left available in this exciting hilltop community, there’s still time for a lucky few buyers to join this exclusive new enclave. So if fresh air and spectacular views sounds appealing, why not give us a call today?

For further information, visit www.prospecthill.com.au

2008 Oxfam Trailwalker Wrap Up by Amanda Roper

8 Hamtonites (Paul H, Chris, Matt, Paul S, Scott, Sarah, Tara & I) set off at 7am on Friday 10th April from Jells Park, Wheelers Hill to embark on Oxfam Trailwalker 2008. A challenging 100km walk finishing at Wesborne Park, Warburton.

The terrain was varied with different extremes of uphill and downhill, rainforest tracks through the Dandenong Ranges, monotonous flat stretches along the Warburton trail and tracks through the scrub that proved difficult in the dark.

We suffered 2 casualties along the way – Tara withdrew due to a sore ankle at the 46km mark after a killer effort up Hacketts Road, Olinda, and Sarah succumbed to her blisters at the 65km point at midnight (Sarah had been the trooper the previous year).

The rest of us powered on to the finish and it was an absolute relief to cross the finish line at 3:30pm on Saturday afternoon. Everyone (except for Paul Saly) was nursing either shin splints, blisters, rolled ankles or just general soreness and fatigue.

We were lucky to have such an outstanding support crew of Sally (and later Sally’s husband Chris), Gabby Fitzgerald, Alistair Birch and Tim Hubbard. These guys provided us with everything we needed along the way. Nothing was too much trouble and it made all the difference to have their support throughout the walk.

We had an elapsed time of 32 hours, but the actual time walking was about 20 hours.

We raised just over $10,000 for Oxfam Australia. The work they do in developing countries is so important and we thank all of those who supported us and donated to this great cause.

There is still debate whether there will be a team next year, but I'm sure there will be a team on the start line in 2009.

Paul Hameister's Mt Aconcagua Report

On 31st January 2008 at around 1.55pm, I reached the summit of Mt Aconcagua (around 7000m/23,000ft), exhausted and dehydrated after a 7.5 hour ascent in crampons from Camp 3 (6000m).

The ascent was relentless and quick (usually 8-10 hours) because our guides were worried about a forecast change in the weather. They were right. As the 3 of us sat slumped over for our 10 minutes at the summit, we could see no further than 20m as a blizzard began to set in. Things were looking grim.

In fact, the pace had been strong for all carries from Base Camp to Camps 1, 2 and 3, since the news had arrived that in the expedition before us, a 32 year-old had died on summit day from cerebral endeama (with another person lost in a blizzard – later found with severe frostbite). Our sense was the guides were angry (their company’s reputation had been damaged) and they were trying to sort us out.

We had started with 11 expedition members from around the globe (Canada, USA, Norway, Holland, UK, Ireland and Australia). Four turned back at Base Camp (4300m) after the first brutal acclimatization climb. We lost another at Camp 2 (severe headaches and vomiting).

By Camp 3, we had 6 left and within the first pitch black freezing 2 hours of the grueling pace on summit day (up at 4am), another 3 had turned back. Statistically, we were on track – last season only 8% of climbers made the summit. This season it will be closer to 15%.

As we sat on the summit, my two companions were from Norway and Ireland (both had extensive mountaineering experience and so were more familiar with how bad they were feeling than I). All of us were physically shattered.

 

Disappointed to be denied the view across Chile to the ocean, we took some quick photos and started down the famous Catalina (vertical 60 degree angle) which had taken over an hour to ascend.

It wasn’t long before I started to lose my grip on reality and found myself collapsing every 15-20 minutes, no matter how hard I focused on trying to walk strongly. On a few occasions I lost consciousness and was woken by my guide yelling at me not to fall asleep (which was all my body wanted to do). I was suffering AMS and severe dehydration. Aconcagua is one of the driest environments on earth – you lose moisture with every breath. I had been drinking 5-6 litres of water a day, but because of the pace on summit day (and lack of rest stops), I had consumed only about 1.5 litres. It was not enough and my body was shutting down.

After a 5.5 hour descent, Camp 3 finally came into sight. After collapsing in my sleeping bag that night, I staggered 8 hours down to Base Camp the next day where I ate for the first time in 2 days. My blood pressure was dangerously low and after a few cans of Lemonade and packets of salty chips I made the 35km/10 hour final walk (still vomiting and with a high fever) through the desert valley back to the hostel and finally civilization in Mendoza to sleep for a couple days before the 26 hour travel home.

Without doubt, that is the hardest physical and mental challenge I have ever undertaken. There was no elation at the summit – just exhausted relief and the dawning realization that I had used all my energy and determination to get there, but now I had to get back down and would have to call on reserves I had never known to do so. On the way up, I could have turned back on at least 10 occasions (and on a couple, expected the guides to tell me to do so). On the way down, I can’t believe how tempting it was just to go to sleep and know that I would have died.

It is a mountain to be respected – offering an unpredictable, hostile and foreign environment.

Thank you to everyone for their support, we raised $15,750 to buy new breathing monitors at the Royal Childrens Hospital.