A property developer is giving away free cars with every block of land sold at an environmentally sustainable estate on the Gold Coast in a bold bid to combat the state's weakening property market.
Currumbin Ridge founder Mark Chapman, who is credited with putting the Glitter Strip on the eco-friendly property map, is giving away a $40,000 Toyota Prius hybrid motor car with each of the next six sales at his $80 million gated development.
The 33 year-old oil miner-turned environmental crusader, who has funded the giveaway himself, said he hoped prospective home buyers would grasp the opportunity to reduce their carbon footprint.
"I don't think this is a gamble from a marketer's perspective, as much as it is a good step toward environmental solutions for the future," Mr Chapman said.
"Here in Currumbin, public transport is not readily available. So if residents do need to rely on cars, why not one that drinks four for every hundred (four litres per 100 kilometres), rather than 10 every hundred (10 litres per 100 kilometres)?"
The 28-acre development, which boasts 14 acres of rehabilitated bushland, is built on sustainable, locally produced materials.
"We use recyclable building material from Yatla, among a vast array of other such materials," Mr Chapman said.
"The Prius is simply the icing on the cake in this case."
