Cedar Woods pays $30m for second Wollert housing block
Cedar Woods is paying $30 million for a 21.7 hectare Wollert farm abutting one almost twice as big picked up 14 months ago for the recently launched Mason Quarter housing estate.
Its new holding, which will extend that community but be master-planned separately, is earmarked for c300 lots and two schools.
The deal, with a private owner, settles in 2022.
“The acquisition demonstrates the company’s disciplined approach of utilising its strong balance sheet to take advantage of this favourable time in the property cycle,” Cedar Woods managing director, Nathan Blackburne, said.
“We’re confident that the Melbourne land subdivision market will benefit from continued housing demand and perform well as Victoria continues its economic recovery,” he added.
“We’ve seized the opportunity to acquire a neighbouring site to leverage the Mason Quarter brand and the amenity we will establish within the Wollert community.
“The combined site increases Mason Quarter’s frontage to Craigieburn Road, providing greater prominence and additional scale benefits which are value accretive to the initial [suburb] acquisition” (story continues below).
Mason Quarter is proposed to contain a town centre and train station.
It is also designed with community facilities, walking and cycling tracks and parks, the developer added.
Cedar Woods paid $56.65m for the 43ha site next door to its latest acquisition – expected to be subdivided into about 500 plots.
Wollert is 26 kilometres north of the city.
This week, Melbourne Water listed a prominent block abutting the near new Middle Gorge train station, in neighbouring South Morang, as a medium density residential or commercial development site.