SCA acquires third Queensland shopping centre this year
SCA Property Group is paying $34.34 million for Drayton Central, on Toowoomba’s southern outskirts.
The price reflects a 5.39 per cent yield – the lowest for a regional Queensland neighbourhood shopping centre.
The deal comes four months since the ASX-listed investor acquired the Mt Isa Village for $44.2m – a 7.34pc initial return.
In March, the group paid Altor Capital $18.66m for Cooloola Cove – between Noosa Heads and Hervey Bay;
That price reflected a 5.85pc yield which at the time set the record for a non-metropolitan Queensland shopping centre.
Savills Australia’s Peter Tyson and Jon Tyson brokered that deal and Drayton Central.
SCA now owns 30 retail investments in the state – about a third of its portfolio.
Drayton Central
Drayton Central was developed in 2014 by the local Hughes family.
The anchor, Woolworths, contributes to 60pc of the income.
There are also 11 specialty stores, many leased to essential services businesses including a bakery, chemist, dentist, hairdresser and medical centre with 10 doctors (story continues below).
A basement contains 217 car parks.
Its main trade area encompasses nearly 12,000 people.
“The centre was a perfect fit for ASX-listed SCA Property Group’s investment philosophy of investing in high quality low-risk convenience based neighbourhoood retail centres,” Peter Tyson said.
“This asset class has proven to be resilient due to its exposure to non-discretionary retail tenants and strong weighting to food sales through grocery-based anchors,” he added.
“The market has been reminded of this resilience through the unfolding pandemic and there is heightened investor demand for retail centres,” according to the executive.
“Convenience based neighbourhood centres anchored by Coles or Woolworths in the sub-$40m price point are becoming more scarce in the market at the same time as they are in more demand,” his colleague said.
SCA has recently snapped up other non-metropolitan shopping centres outside of Queensland too, including two in Newcastle – Marketown, which cost $150.5m, and Raymond Terrace ($87.5m).
Late last year it agreed to purchase Katoomba Marketplace in the Blue Mountains for $55.1m.
At Palmerston in the Northern Territory, the group recently paid $6.4m for a service station near the Bakewell Shopping Centre, for which it outlaid $33m last year.
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