Altis banks $46m from homemaker centre
Altis Property Group is banking $46.25 million from a regional bulky goods investment.
The Lake Haven Homemaker Centre at Charmhaven, between Sydney and Newcastle, is trading to Metro Diversified Property Management.
On 5.3 hectares at 53 Lake Haven Drive, at the north east corner of Pacific Highway, the asset contains 21,788 square metres of gross lettable area; tenants include Autobarn, Barbecues Galore, BCF, Beacon Lighting, Harvey Norman and Repco.
Part of the complex was recently vacated by Bunnings.
Altis paid $40.5m in 2014; the disposal marks its exit from the Large Format Retail sector.
JLL’s Nick Willis and Sam Hatcher were the agents.
Exit from Large Format Retail
Altis announced in 2018 it would quit Large Format Retail to focus on industrial and logistics product.
Shortly after, the manager offloaded Homemaker The Valley, in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley, to Arkadia for $170m – a price which reflected a 7.3 per cent yield.
It also divested Sydney’s Greenway Plaza and Homemaker Greenway for $112.4m.
That buyer was Brent Blundy’s Aventus Property Group (story continues below).
Two years ago, Altis sold another investment of this type in the New South Wales Capital, Homemaker Prospect, for c$65 million.
That deal, with Dexus, reflected a circa seven pc return.
Metro builds retail portfolio
In 2019, Metro paid Intergen Property Partners $47.5m for Blaxland Home Centre in Campbelltown – about 55 kilometres south west of Sydney.
Late last year, the group paid Professional & Industrial Alliance Pty Ltd, which is directed by Gold Coast Titans co-owner Darryl Kelly, $46m for Homebase Wagga Centre.
Metro is held by Garry Allan Carter.
Mr Willis, who declined to comment about the Lake Haven deal, said the Large Format Retail sector has evolved over the past decade, with investors attracted to the risk adjusted returns it offers in comparison to other retail sub-sectors.
“The investor demand in recent years has been further enhanced by the sectors’ retailer performance, rent collection reported throughout COVID-19 and value add potential through the land rich nature of these assets,” according to the executive.
“It is evident through a recent sales campaign for LFR assets the increased volumes of maiden capital now looking to deploy into the sector,” Mr Hatcher added.
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