Health Update: Why Design-Led Buyers Are Choosing Homes That Support Health – What Experts Say

Health and wellness have become the most significant parts of modern lifestyles, and buyers are looking for homes that have this built into the design.

According to realestate.com.au search data, wellness amenities are among the top features that buyers across the country are looking for.

Swimming pools, for example, made up a quarter of all keyword searches in December 2025, outperforming more “practical” features like air conditioning, heating, or number of storeys. 

“Wellness isn’t just a trend, it’s a way of living that affects everything – how we sleep, how we move, how we connect,” says Sonja Sorich, Director of Spa Wellness Consulting. 

“Wellness elevates every aspect of life. When we feel well, we show up better. For ourselves, our work, and the people around us.” 

In Melbourne’s luxury apartment market, one residential project making wellness a priority is Park Modern by Time & Place in South Melbourne. 

“At Park Modern, wellness isn’t treated as an isolated activity like going to the gym or booking a space session. Instead, it’s woven into everyday life,” Ms Sorich says.

Why wellness design is driving apartment demand in Melbourne 

In the new year, buyers are looking for homes that help them living more intentional and health-conscious lifestyles. 

According to realestate.com.au’s latest New Home Research, wellness has become a major factor driving apartment buyers in the post-COVID era, with buyers willing to pay more for homes that have health and wellbeing benefits. 

“This is where a lot more thought is now going into because they’re considering the indoor built environment and its effect on our wellbeing,” says Ms Sorich.

The Victoria State Government’s focus on supporting wellbeing through design is by pushing for 20-minute neighbourhoods, where residents can meet most of their daily needs within a 20-minute walk. 

Walkable sports and recreational facilities are core features of a health-focused neighbourhood according to this framework, and buyers are increasingly looking for homes that apartments that have these amenities built in. 

Access to nature and open spaces is also part of what makes a 20-minute neighbourhood and Park Modern’s location meets this need, located beside Melbourne’s Botanical Gardens and Albert Park Lake. 

“The fact that this particular property is positioned where it is, where it’s right across the road from the botanical gardens, you cannot replicate the power of nature,” says Ms Sorich.

The wellness features reshaping urban living 

Park Modern has a range of amenities, carefully curated to support wellness in all its forms. 

To do so, the Time & Place team has identified two different wellbeing journeys and built their wellness amenities around these concepts. 

“We have the active journey, and we have the relaxing journey,” says Ms Sorich. 

“Both of these are really important for health overall and that’s going to contribute to a life well lived.” 

In the active journey, residents have access to a Technogym fitness suite, including a fitness studio and spaces for group classes, as well as infrared and Finnish saunas. 

In the relaxing journey, residents can focus on recovery and calm in the magnesium soak pool, hydrotherapy pool, and cold plunge. 

Park Modern’s wellness offering also pays close attention to how important social connection is to residential wellbeing. 

While Ms Sorich explains that the active and relaxing journey amenities are also a “social space”, Park Modern takes this a step further with its broader Park Society activating the ground floor. 

Beyond the fitness and relaxation amenities, the Park Society space includes a workspace and reading room, a living room and social lounge, and a park-side providore where residents can connect and relax as a Park Modern community.

Park Modern’s approach to wellness also includes thoughtfully curated social spaces for building community.

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How Park Modern creates calm through every design detail 

While in many luxury developments the focus on health and wellness begins and ends with amenities, Park Modern has sought to go further, designing each of the 237 one- to three-bedroom apartments with wellbeing in mind. 

The interiors, expertly crafted by renowned architecture practice Bates Smart, have been designed with a deep understanding of how light, sound, and materials can support resident health. 

Beside celebrating the park views, the large windows also fill each apartment with natural daylight that guides natural circadian rhythms. 

Even the nature-inspired palettes, with buyers able to choose between Rust and Beinge colour schemes, and curves in the cabinetry have been chosen for their wellness impact. 

“We focus on simplicity, natural materials, and organic textures,” says Ms Sorich. 

“This creates a softer sensory experience that promotes mental clarity.” 

These timeless choices focus on restraint and quiet luxury, reducing visual clutter for a more calming style that prioritises enduring design over gimmicks.

Wellness-focused design also informs the layout and materials of each Park Modern apartment.

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With a range of apartments on offer and construction scheduled to be completed in Q1 2028, Park Modern is set to be a new standard for how luxury homes approach health and wellness. 

“Through thoughtful design and deep connection to nature, we’ve created homes that truly support the human experience,” says Ms Sorich. 

“Park Modern isn’t just a place to live; it’s a framework for living well.”