An off-shore developer has paid $4.6 million for a prime development site in Melbourne’s key south-eastern commercial centre of Dandenong with plans for a circa $20 million residential project.

The sale, brokered by Savills Directors, Julian Heatherich and Nick Peden, attracted a strong field of local and off-shore buyers looking to take advantage of an existing permit for a major townhouse development.

Located at 227 Princes Highway, the generous 8,942 square metre site, zoned General Residential, offers three street frontages totaling 276 metres and direct proximity to Dandenong’s Central Activities District.

“The market for well-located sites with a development permit in place is very strong and the response we received in terms of expressions of interest reflected that demand.

“The fact that the property offered such exceptional access with no existing improvements paved the way for immediate development and that had a major impact on the result,” Mr Heatherich said.

Mr Heatherich said Savills have brokered the sale of 22 residential development sites worth well over $150 million this year alone as developers responded to a hot apartment market.

“This result is another example of a market characterized by exceptional demand for apartments from a rapidly growing population at a time when there is a general shortage of residential units.

“Melbourne’s nation-leading population growth is driving that very strong market, particularly in the south-east where key centres like Dandenong will continue to see this sort of demand,” Mr Peden said.

The vendor was a local private investor.