Patience pays off as Brisbane Maccas corner bought for $77m
After three years of trying, Marquette Properties has snapped up one of Brisbane’s most prominent shopping corners for $77.1 million.
The Brisbane-based company purchased 130 Queen St — which sits on the corner with a frontage on Albert St — having first approached the owners of the prime spot three years ago to make a purchase and then slowly building up a rapport overtime.
Marquette’s managing director Toby Lewis said once the building was listed a year ago, the property group was all in.
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“We are all about buying property familiar to us,” Lewis says.
“Ever since I was a little kid I have been walking past this property so it is rewarding to be a part of it now. I feel like I have a responsibility.”
Last sold 23 years ago, the four-storey property offers 3780sqm of net leasable space, with an 80%/20% split between retail and office usage. Current tenants include McDonalds, Gelatissimo, Forever New and Money Exchange, with a 5.1-year weighted average lease expiry. Capitalisation sits at a rate of 5.60%.
The building is one of eight prominent corners in the heart of the CBD and will become the future pedestrian thoroughfare between the new Albert Street cross-river rail station and the Brisbane Live venue at Roma Street, offering an opportunity to become a flagship retail development.
A major “top to toe” refurbishment has been flagged for the site, beginning with an upgrade of the exterior to begin in February next year.
JLL’s Retail Investments and Capital Markets teams brokered the deal. Joint head of retail investments for Australia, Sam Hatcher, says opportunities like this are rare.
“CBD retail is one of the most compelling sub-sectors at present given the underlying land value and potential for future adaptive re-use. The property at 130 Queen Street in particular has the potential to be a future multi-level flagship development,” he says.
“Retail assets on the Queen Street Mall are tightly held with only 11 transactions occurring over the last 10 years.
“There is definitely a scarcity value to these assets on super-prime strips such as Queen Street Mall, which underpins their long-term value proposition.”
This article originally appeared on www.theaustralian.com.au/property.
