Savills : Australian Unity Pays $13m for Mainfreight Asset

Australian Unity has paid $12.975 million on a 7.3 percent yield for a fully leased office and warehouse complex at Springvale in Melbourne's industrial south-east, in a deal brokered by Savills.

Located about 21 kilometres from Melbourne CBD, the 1651-1657 Centre Road property comprises 10,987 square metres of buildings including a 9,910 square metre warehouse, and office, truck workshop and canteen components, on a 29,640 square metre site.

According to Savills National IndustrialDirectors, Chris Jonesand Ben Hegerty, who negotiated the deal, the property was sold subject to remaining lease tenure of just north of 4 years to global warehousing and freight forwarding manager, Mainfreight Distribution Pty Ltd, at an annual rental of $948,000.

Mr Jones said the property offered secure income from a highly regarded international tenant, in an established southern eastern locality with excellent main road frontage.

'This was an astute purchase of a property which offered sound investment prospects in a continually re-gentrifying locality and importantly with very low surrounding vacancy.

'With a record $1.87 billion in industrial property sales in the 12 months to June, we are now seeing a growing level of demand for this type of asset as fund managers seek affordable investments in tightly held locations.

'The demand also reflects a growing acknowledgment that the industrial market in Victoria is responding well to the post mining boom economy with leasing now trending at a decade high,' Mr Jones said.

Mr Hegerty said the property, which last sold in February 2014 for $10.695 million, had attracted a wide range of potential buyers including significant interstate and off-shore interest.

'A well located property with a bluechip tenant and a secure lease will always attract attention and this was no exception,' Mr Hegerty said.

The vendor was MRS/Harmony.