- Residential sites acquired and sold across Bowral and Lennox Head
- Office in heritage listed building comes to market after 37 years
- An industrial facility acquired for $16M in a tightly held area
Residential development sites are commanding premium prices up and down the New South Wales coast, as one development sells for a local record, and another hits the market, expecting a price tag to match the views over Lennox Head.
Commercial continues to see high demand and prices, with the latest sales seeing an industrial site sold for $16 million in a tightly held industrial precinct, and an office comes to market for the first time in almost four decades.
Bowral site sold for record price
A townhouse and apartment development site has sold for $9 million, a record price for the New South Wales’ Southern Highlands suburb.
Known as Maeve, the 24 residence project on a 6,000 square metre site is located at 18 Kangaloon Road in Bowral.
Sold by Reform to Saf Developments, the off-market deal was negotiated by Knight Frank’s Nathan Berlyn and Luke Hayes.
The project comprises 12 apartments and 12 townhouses, with the apartments sized between 131 square metres and 179 square metres, going for above $1.7 million each, and the townhouses starting from $2.2 million and sized at 221 square metres.
Berlyn said there had been strong demand from multiple developers over the course of the off-market campaign to sell the Maeve site and project, and ultimately it was sold to an existing client who was a local builder-developer.
“The development was sold for a record price – nothing has been achieved at this level for a medium density site in Bowral, with the closest being around half what Maeve sold for,” he said.
“The buyer was willing to pay this to secure a site of this scale, calibre and quality, with the boutique number of dwellings and unbeatable location.
“This property garnered strong interest largely due to being a development-approved, turnkey site in a great location, within walking distance to town.
“It also has a high-end design and a superb product mix with large, oversized homes that perfectly cater to the growing downsizer market in Bowral.”
9 hectares of beachfront bliss hits the market
A prime plot of land 20 minutes south of Byron Bay has been listed for sale, with Nick Bordin of Elders Bangalow & Lennox Head and Will Phillips of McGrath Byron Bay appointed to market the property.
Located at 8 Byron Bay Road, the 22 acres of land boasts sweeping views over Lennox Head. The property is an elevated cleared block and falls within the boundaries of the broader Urban Growth Area for Lennox Head and has potential for future residential development. It is bordered by residential zoned land to the north, east and west.
The majority of the site is currently zoned 1D Rural (Urban Investigation) which allows for a range of uses including private dwelling houses, secondary dwellings and seniors housing, subject to council approval. Approximately 6,250 square metres of the site is currently zoned R2 Low Density Residential which would allow for a residential subdivision with a minimum lot size of 600 square metres, subject to council approval.
The expressions of interest closes at 5 pm on Thursday 18 May 2023.
Heritage listed office appeals
The sale of a fifth suite within the British Medical Association’s BMA House property at 135-137 Macquarie Street is currently being managed by JLL’s Capital Markets NSW Associate Director, Willem Watson; Watson previously advised four suites at the property over the past 24 months.
According to JLL, the heritage listed building from the 1920s is one of the most tightly held locations in Sydney. Premium office suites are typically held for an average of between 30 and 50 years; this fifth suite was held for 37 years.
“The strata suites in BMA House are some of the most tightly held offices in Sydney, and in some cases held by the same owner for more than 50 years. We typically only see these office spaces come to market when an owner leaves the workforce,” said Watson.
“More broadly, supply constraints continue to support higher pricing as strata stock is withdrawn from the market through institutional investment and government resumptions. We are seeing an increased number of participants competing for reduced stock levels in what can only be described as a shrinking market.”
Watson added, “As a result of reduced supply and increased demand we are seeing building and city records consistently broken and large increases in capital growth realised as owners take advantage of strong sector conditions despite surrounding uncertainty in other financial markets.
“Liquidity of premium stock remains strong, particularly in the top echelon of Sydney’s strata stock. Further, the suites in the prestigious BMA House are so tightly held, driving returns to even higher levels.”
JLL’s Office Leasing NSW Senior Executive, William Conry has been appointed to advise on the lease of five tenancies in BMA House, also setting benchmark rents.
“The scarcity of strata office suites in Sydney has only increased since the acquisitions made by the NSW Government to make way for the city’s Metro West stations. This has placed upward pressure on occupier demand for strata office space and has resulted in a surge in rents,” said Conroy.
“This is particularly prevalent in the Premium Grade strata space as occupiers are flooding to suites with good natural light, in renowned buildings with strong tenant reputation and in the financial core of the CBD – as is the case with BMA House.”
Western Sydney industrial facility goes for $16M
A tenanted industrial facility at Wetherill Park’s 8 Kellaway Place has sold for over $16 million.
The owner-occupier acquisition has come as the supply of built-form facilities in Western Sydney continues to remain low.
The 5,715 square metre site is currently occupied by Swedish paints and performance coatings company, Akzo Nobel, with the lease expiring in October this year; the passing rental is $515,000 net per annum, with the sale price reflecting a 3.31% yield with a pending lease expiry.
CBRE’s Janet Joljian and Elijah Shakir brokered the deal via private treaty.
“The property consists of an industrial freestanding site split into two tenancies, ultimately providing an opportunity to occupy or re-position upon lease expiry,” Ms Joljian said.
“The purchaser was attracted to the building due to the ability to occupy one tenancy and receive uplift in rental within the other tenancy.”
