This article originally appeared in The Courier Mail
THE owners of a convenience shopping centre on the Queensland central coast have sold the hotel component of their asset after successfully completing a divestment strategy.
Australian-based Real Asset Management sold the freehold of the Railway Hotel in the Keppel Bay Plaza at Yeppoon to a Brisbane-based private investor for $6.5 million.
The Railway Hotel and adjacent Star Liquor Warehouse recently secured new longterm leases, expiring in 2033.
Real Asset Management head of real estate Will Gray said that was the catalyst for the wealth management group to divest and capitalise on the buoyant hotel market.
“After extracting significant value from re-leasing both assets, we have crystallised capital returns for our investors,” he said.
“We are continuing to see expenditure growth in Yeppoon and are excited by our proposed redevelopment plans for Keppel Bay Plaza.”
Real Asset Management bought the shopping centre for $28.1 million in 2016.
At the time, the shopping centre at 64 James St had a gross lettable area of 6455sq m and was on a 2.3ha site.
As well as the major tenants it has 21 speciality shops, the hotel and extensive carparking.
Yeppoon, 38km north of
Rockhampton, is the gateway to the southern Great Barrier Reef and the famed Great Keppel Island.
JLL Hotels & Hospitality’s Tom Gleeson, who struck the deal, said the Railway Hotel was the premier venue in Yeppoon.
“It’s underpinned by strong trading across all major revenue streams and benefiting from its convenient location within Keppel Bay Plaza,” he said.
Keppel Bay Plaza is one of 13 convenience shopping centres in Real Asset Management’s Australia Retail portfolio which continues to have assets of more than $370 million and an overall property portfolio of $460 million.
The firm recently launched a separate medical property fund to tap into the stable, non-cyclical returns available from investing in medical-related facilities as Australia’s population continues to age.