Virtical snares Darlinghurst pubs for a discount
MA Financial has made a loss divesting adjoining Darlinghurst pubs bought in late 2020 – ahead of what was a 12 month boom for the sector.
The group is banking $61 million for the c1910 Kinselas and c1890 Courthouse Hotel from diversified investor Virtical, led by Mark Toma, which has in recent months been establishing a boutique east coast hotel portfolio.
MA paid $67m in two deals weeks apart, holding them in the Taylor Square Fund.
In both cases, the vendor was the Kospetas family’s Universal Hotels which held them since 2017.
The properties were also once owned by ex-Qantas chief executive officer Geoff Dixon and advertising magnate John Singleton.
MA planned to refurbish and extend the assets to create a major entertainment precinct on the west side of Taylors Square, between Oxford and Campbell streets.
However the area hasn’t revitalised as expected following the end of lockdown laws.
“While we are confident the precinct will thrive over the long term, this combined with changes in the construction and funding markets has meant the timeframes associated with redeveloping the iconic site now sit outside of the fund’s…investment timeframes,” MA managing director Chris Unger said.
“Accordingly we have decided to sell the assets to Virtical which has the opportunity to pursue its own repositioning strategy on a different timeline as part of a broader portfolio,” he added.
Also this week, we are reporting MA Financial, for a different mandate, is paying $50 million for a near-new industrial park (story continues below).
Virtical pub spend hits $126m
The Kinselas and Courthouse Hotel deals comes a month since Virtical, until recently known as Core Asset Development, outlaid $40m for the c1865 Republic Hotel, at the corner of Bridge and Pitt streets in Sydney.
In May meanwhile the group outlaid $25m for Melbourne’s Adelphi hotel, developed in 1938 then extended, from a consortium including Resimax founder and racehorse owner Ozzie Kheir.
The deals come hot on the heels of MA Financial divesting three Queensland assets, held by Redcape, for a total $47m.
Two sold to Star Hotels.
In July, the manager made the surprise announcement to freeze that recently unlisted trust’s redemptions until December.
Savills’ Nick Lower marketed the Kinselas and Courthouse Hotel.
Subscribe to our newsletter at the bottom of this page.
