Centuria exchanges 90 Crown Street Wollongong for record price

Centuria Property Funds has unconditionally exchanged on the sale of its commercial office property located at 90 Crown Street, Wollongong.

The gross sale price was $43.9 million to a Melbourne based funds management group.

It sets a new record for the Wollongong commercial property market achieving rate per square of $4,786.

The asset was purchased in 2005 for $30.675 million.

According to Jason Huljich, CEO of Unlisted Property at Centuria, Wollongong has recently received significant interest from investors as yields continue to compress in traditional core markets.

“Although much of Centuria’s investment focus is on major metropolitan and fringe markets, primarily in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, where buyer demand has been expanding significantly, we are also seeing strong demand within the core regional markets such as Wollongong,” said Mr Huljich.

“90 Crown Street is well located within the heart of the Wollongong CBD, with excellent access to retail, entertainment and transport links. As one of only a limited number of office developments in the market designed to attract corporate and government occupiers, this landmark property attracted substantial interest from investors.

“Ongoing upgrades to the Wollongong city centre, the expansion of the Wollongong Public Hospital and its popularity for both business and lifestyle have also driven buyer demand,” he said.

Mr Huljich said interest in the sales campaign and the record rate per square metre were validations of Centuria’s active management philosophy.

“The property is fully leased, primarily to Government tenants and delivers an estimated annual income of $3,636,018, which equates to a passing yield of 8.3 percent.

“While managing the asset, Centuria undertook various works to improve the building’s sustainability, achieving a NABERS rating of 4.5 stars and over 70% of the leases were reset prior to taking the asset to market.

"Development approval for additional office and retail space was also secured, which contributed to achieving an excellent result for investors,” he said.

The sale was managed by Knight Frank’s Richard Garland and Jonathan Vaughan, in collaboration with MMJ Real Estate -Wollongong's Geoff Jones, Travis Machan and Tim Jones.