Swiss group lists biggest Flinders Lane office

The Queen Street office contains 9200 square metres of modern area.

ST Real Estate is selling the biggest and most flexible of its three Flinders Lane fronting offices.

On the north east corner of Queen Street, the 1970s, 16 level building is expected to sell for over $80m – a sweet spot in which private investors, syndicates and institutions compete.

It is being marketed as an investment – with 9200 square metres of A-grade area, 80 per cent of which is occupied.

Developers are being targeted too; with a short 1.9 year Weighted Average Lease Expiry, the asset could be repositioned, possibly with more ground floor retail, rooftop activation or an extension.

The 917 sqm plot near Collins Arch and Tomasetti House – the latter which Sydney publican Justin Hemmes’ Merivale acquired as its maiden Melbourne venue last April – could also be rebuilt.

Colliers’ Daniel Wolman, Oliver Hay, Leon Ma and Anna Cavar are the agents.

50 Queen Street

ST paid $40.7m in 2014 for the property – 50 Queen St – later utilising part of it as headquarters for its Swiss fund manager, Fidinam.

With a ground floor showroom, the building has been renovated multiple times.

The office area gets natural light from four sides (story continues below).

The former Melbourne Water headquarters at 120 Spencer Street sold for $325 million.

Elsewhere on Flinders Ln, ST holds heritage assets Invicta House – for which it paid Swinburne University $40.7m last March and Swann House (technically known as 22 William St) which is undergoing a major renovation.

It also owns 533 Little Lonsdale St and Maurice Blackburn House at 456 Lonsdale.

“With two substantial repositioning projects currently under development in Flinders Ln, we remain long term investors in the Melbourne market,” Fidinam Australia managing director, Matthew Burrows, said.

“The sale of 50 Queen St will allow us to deploy more capital on behalf of ST Real Estate into value-add Melbourne and Sydney CBD opportunities over the next couple of years,” he added.

“50 Queen St remains an outstanding opportunity for a buyer looking for an entry into the Melbourne market,” according to the executive.

The listing comes two months since we reported Forza outlaid c$80m for the historic Nicholas Building at 31-41 Swanston St, with plans to reposition.

Singapore’s CapitaLand is also behind a recent CBD office purchase – 120 Spencer St – which traded in April for $325m reflecting a 5.4pc yield.

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Marc Pallisco

A former property analyst and print journalist, Marc is the publisher of realestatesource.com.au.