THE first of the apartments designed to help Freo shed its reputation as a burgeoning retirement village and earn a place as the hub of hipsters, has been launched in White Gum Valley.

Part of the WGV development on the old Kim Beazley school site, the units were designed by GenY with their needs at the top of the pile.

“We understand that younger buyers have different lifestyles and often want a very different housing model sought by their parents and grandparents,” LandCorp chief executive Frank Marra said at this week’s launch.

“The Gen Y House represents a departure from the traditional old-style brick and concrete triplex developments with isolated homes, replacing this with a clever, climate-responsive design that delivers more for less,” Mr Marra said.

“Multiple sustainability initiatives have been implemented at the house, including the use of lightweight building materials, solar passive design, a shared underground rainwater tank and the installation of a ground-breaking trial of a shared solar battery storage system.”

Residents should save about $1200 a year on power and water costs.  The three apartments launched this week are inter-locked and sit on a 250sqm block, and tap into a willingness of a younger crew to share outdoor living spaces.

The GenY House will be open for inspection until the end of February when they’ll be offered for sale as strata titles.