Spiritgrow lists Caulfield North office
Spiritgrow is selling a sizeable Caulfield North office it had intended to repurpose as a community hall, synagogue and headquarters.
The listing comes seven months since the not-for-profit purchased a nearby, larger site – 80-82 Kooyong Road – where it will develop these facilities new.
Its outgoing property, 204-206 Balaclava Rd, is expected to trade for more than $4.5 million at auction later this month.
Colliers’ Daniel Wolman and JLL’s Josh Rutman have the listing.
Investment in development hotspot
On a 552 square metre Commercial 1 zoned plot at the western edge of a retail strip, 204-206 Balaclava Rd contains two levels of modernised office area over an underground car park.
It is next door to a five storey mixed-use building, completed in 2018.
A couple of even taller buildings have recently been constructed around the corner on Hawthorn Rd – at #67 (seven floors) and #144 (six levels).
Beck Property Group and Probuild are intending towers between 15 and 22 storeys as part of a redevelopment of nearby land between Caulfield Racetrack and train line (story continues below).
Opposite that site – where the land is zoned Malvern East – Benson Property Group recently completed an 18-level structure, Vanguard, part-occupied by hotelier Sebel.
“The 1177 sqm [204-206 Balaclava Rd] building, which has housed several commercial and retail tenants whilst under the ownership of Spiritgrow, is ideally placed to cater for ongoing demand from owner occupiers, investors and developers looking to gain a foothold in the tightly held precinct, and take advantage of the current record low cost of debt environment,” Mr Wolman said.
“Whilst [it] has an existing planning permit in place for a development, it is likely to draw most interest from owner occupiers which see strong underlying land value in the very well constructed improvements that currently sit on the site,” he added.
“It’s got character and is very well located and combining this with the current low cost of debt and strong business confidence, it wouldn’t surprise me to see someone want the asset as their new office headquarters that would also see them have the potential to put their name on the building” according to the executive.
“Significant infrastructure plans will further enhance Caulfield as a major precinct of Melbourne, particularly the Caulfield Racecourse development, which is set to be transformed into a sporting and entertainment destination that is more than 10 times the size of Melbourne Cricket Ground, turning the venue into one of Asia’s premier racing tracks and recreational precincts”.
Mr Rutman said, of the property’s development upside, the area is underpinned by strong office, retail and residential demand.
The porperty is opposite a two level brick building, part occupied by Anytime Fitness, which sold last month for $3.5m, reflecting a 4.2 per cent yield.
Caulfield North is 11 kilometres from town.
