A significant off-market sale of a major warehouse property in one of Perth's prime industrial precincts points to rising transactional activity in the city's tightly-held industrial property market.

The sale of the 15 Ashby Close property in Forrestfield for $18.4 million was negotiated by Matthew Hopkinsand James Condon of Savills.

The near new office/warehouse depot facility, fully leased to ASCO Transport & Logistics, represents prime Perth industrial real estate. It is located on a large site of approximately 3.21ha and comprises a warehouse/workshop facility of 11,058sq m and a hardstand area of circa 10,000sq m.

The property was purpose built for specialist oil and gas logistics company Bonnie Rock Transport, which the UK-based ASCO Group became the majority shareholder of in 2014. The Forrestfield facility is a state-of-the-art transport and logistics depot, from which ASCO services many national and multi-national clients.

Mr Hopkins, Associate Director, Industrial & Business Services, Savills WA, first sold the land to the owner three years ago, and has now completed the sale of the built investment property.

He said 15 Ashby Close presented a rare A-Grade industrial investment in the tightly-held Perth industrial market.

'This property is prominently positioned in one of Perth's most well-established and well-regarded industrial suburbs, where opportunities for prime industrial investment have been extremely limited,' he said. 'The premium quality and location of the asset, and strong lease covenant, presented a compelling investment proposition.'

Mr Condon said the Forrestfield property provides a strategic logistics location given it is adjacent to the new Gateway Project providing excellent connectivity to both the Roe and Tonkin Highways and is also in close proximity to the new underground Perth Airport Link Forrestfield Train Station.

The sale of the 15 Ashby Close property is the latest in a string of Perth industrial sales in excess of $40 million so far this year concluded by Savills.

Mr Hopkins said these sales highlight a strategic unlocking of high-quality, well-located investments across the Perth industrial market, resulting in a subsequent rise in transactional levels.

'The opportunity to secure prime Perth industrial investments has been very limited in recent years, resulting in intense competition for assets that do come to market,' he said. 'There is a real weight of pent-up capital chasing these opportunities, both on-market and off-market. In particular, the investor appetite for well-located assets with strong lease covenants or value-add upswing, in the premier industrial locations with strategic access to major arterial roads, is extremely strong.'

Savills latest Perth Industrial research briefing for Q1 shows a total of $715 million worth of industrial property transactions in Perth in the 12 months to March 2016, up from $437 million in the previous year. The reported volume and value of Perth industrial property transactions, above $20 million, is the highest in a decade, according to Savills research.

Savills plc published this content on 30 May 2016 and is solely responsible for the information contained herein.
Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 30 May 2016 01:25:04 UTC.

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