Singapore trust snaps up Adelaide’s Grenfell Centre
Singapore’s Soilbuild REIT has extended its office empire in Australia by purchasing a $134.22 million tower in Adelaide’s central business district from Credit Suisse’s asset management arm.
The Singapore real estate trust has picked up the Grenfell Centre in one of the largest deals struck in Adelaide this year and Soilbuild chief executive Roy Teo said the move expanded its footprint in Australia, saying it had bought as an iconic A-grade building in the heart of the city.
“Underpinned by a strong cashflow of high-quality office tenants, the acquisition will further enhance the quality of Soilbuild REIT’s portfolio and provide income and geographical diversification,” Teo says.
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Adelaide was the second most liquid CBD office market in Australia between 2000 and 2018 and enjoys vacancy rates of less than 5 per cent across the A-grade office market.
Soilbuild launched a preferential offering to raise about $S101.8 million to back the purchase of 25 Grenfell St, which was struck on a yield of about 7.25%.
Soilbuild, which had previously looked at buying another Adelaide tower, is now established in both the office and industrial property markets.
In Canberra, it bought an office building known as Australia Place, at 14 Mort St, for $55 million, and in South Australia it picked up an Inghams poultry processing plant in Burton for $61.25 million.
Credit Suisse had bought the tower for $125 million in 2016 and has revamped key areas. It says it was looking to tap into renewed interest in the city when it put it up for sale. JLL’s Jamie Guerra, Roger Klem, Rob Sewell and Stuart McCann and Knight Frank’s Guy Bennett, Paul Roberts and Neil Brookes sold the tower.
The tower spans 24,969sqm and comprises 22 levels of office floors on top of two levels of retail floors together with 30 car park spaces and end-of-trip facilities. The committed occupancy is 88.4% with a weighted lease term of five years. Key tenants include the SA government, law firms Minter Ellison and Lipman Karas and Jones Lang Lasalle.
Last year, more than $807 million worth of commercial property trades were struck in Adelaide. Buyers are targeting the city as the Sydney and Melbourne markets are at their peak.
In other recent plays, Singapore-listed property trust, Suntec REIT bought the Allianz Centre in Adelaide for $148.3m and Centuria Capital Group bought 80 Flinders Street in Adelaide for about $127 million.
This article originally appeared on www.theaustralian.com.au/property.
