Boom year for Australian childcare centre sales
The number of childcare centre sales is up – with deals worth $205 million clocked this year.
The rise in transaction value for the first quarter, the most recent information available, is 58 per cent compared to the first quarter of 2024.
With the 2025-2026 federal budget allocating over $21 billion to early learning ($16b of that, subsidies), demand specifically for the sector is being sought, agents say, often by first time investors.
“Investors are favouring secure, long-leased assets amid equity market volatility and the prospect of interest rate cuts,” Stonebridge Property Group’s Tom Moreland said.
“Childcare revenue is growing at 6.7pc annually and forecast to reach $22.3b this year,” he added.
“Tight supply, strong population growth and more parents in the workforce are driving demand,” according to the executive.
“Rising construction costs have made existing centres more attractive especially when acquired below replacement value.
“Private investors still lead activity, but institutional capital is expected to re-enter as funding conditions improve”.
Interstate, international investors back: agents
CBRE Healthcare and Social Infrastructure’s Jimmy Tat agrees, adding interstate and international investors form a greater pool of suitors than last year – more reminiscent of more buoyant times in the commercial real estate sector.
“We continue to see a strong return to investment from international capital across the country,” he said.
“The majority of our sales are occurring across states to locally based buyers who generate their wealth from Asian based business sources,” according to the executive.
“This means Queensland based investors are buying in New South Wales and Victoria while we see Victorian based buyers purchasing in other states”.
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