Mona Vale Officeworks site sold for more than $14 million as investors race to buy before Christmas
A building on Sydney’s northern beaches and leased to Officeworks has sold at auction for $14.75 million, as investors race to secure commercial properties before the traditionally quiet Christmas period.
The result for the Mona Vale property, which sold on a yield of 5.32 per cent, accounted for a considerable chunk of the $40.607 million of property to change hands this week at the final Burgess Rawson Sydney portfolio auction of the year.
“All properties that sold achieved strong yields and, historically speaking, December is a good time of year for both buyers and sellers because everyone is committed to closing a deal this side of Christmas,” said Burgess Rawson director Darren Beehag.
Officeworks has occupied the 3777-square-metre site since it was built in 2002, with a lease that ends in 2024 and options to 2029.
“It’s not easy to secure sites of this scale on Sydney’s prized northern beaches. When you couple the substantial parcel of land with the renewed five-year lease to Wesfarmers, you have yourself a fantastic investment,” said Mr Beehag.
The property is currently returning $784,000 a year, with 4 per cent annual rent increases.
Thirteen properties sold under the hammer at Burgess Rawson’s auction on December 10, with a clearance rate of more than 70 per cent.
Others included a bakery in the luxury Omnia development in Sydney’s Potts Point, which sold on the lowest yield of the day – 4.82 per cent calculated on a sale price of $2.78 million.
A freehold, vacant building in Dee Why fetched $1.205 million, while a Hammondville childcare centre sold for $3.701 million on a 5.13 per cent yield.
Burgess Rawson director Simon Staddon told Commercial Real Estate that it had been a strong year for auction results, with a marked turnaround following the federal election in May and an easing of finance restrictions.
The company had reported total annual sales of more than $175 million prior to the auction.
