Search on for Auckland City hotel sites
Investors queuing to be in at ground floor of five- star accommodation projects
International hotel investors are now looking to buy into the Auckland market, but there aren’t enough properties to satisfy demand, says Dean Humphries, international director of hotels for Colliers International.
“Auckland hasn’t been the focus in the past for top international hotel investors, but that’s changing rapidly with an influx of inquiries within the last 12 months,” Humphries says.
Auckland is under- represented in major five- star brands, he says, pointing to the likes of Marriott, St Regis, Westin, Shangri- La, Fairmont, Mandarin Oriental, Radisson, Four Seasons, Peninsula or Rosewood, none of which have a presence in Auckland.
A range of five- star hotels is currently being built in all the major capital cities in Australia, and Humphries hopes Auckland can join that trend.
“Investors are recognising the huge economic benefits of the current tourism boom to this region and the future investment returns that can be anticipated from building quality hotels in strategic locations,” he says.
Increased overseas investor interest in Auckland hotels is evidenced by an announcement that a 21- level, 255- room Four Points By Sheraton hotel will open at 396 Queen St later this year, along with a new Sebel Hotel planned for Manukau City.
Also, it was announced last week, that Colliers International has been appointed by Viaduct Harbour Holdings Limited ( VHHL) to undertake a global search for a world class development partner to build a luxury hotel at One Market Square in Viaduct Harbour on a site occupied by a Simunovich Fisheries building.
“The City of Sails is fast becoming recognised as one of the world's lead- ing gateway cities and tourism hotspots,” Humphries says.
“With New Zealand’s tourism boom continuing and Auckland hotels performing at record trading levels, many of the world's leading hotel investors are actively reviewing opportunities in Auckland.”
Humphries says investors are typically looking for exceptionally well located, high quality hotels to add to their existing portfolios in other gateway cities such as Sydney, Singapore, London, Hong Kong, New York and Tokyo.
“The issue is we simply don't have any existing hotels for them to purchase and the solution i s to find a strategic development opportunity that will meet their strict criteria. In this regard the Viaduct site at One Market Square ticks all the boxes.”
A preliminary design by leading architectural firm Warren and Mahoney, envisages a 165- room hotel with floor area of 12,000sq m on a 1288sq m site.
Humphries says One Market Square provides the opportunity to bring some of the world's leading hotel operators to New Zealand.
“This i s a chance for the right developer to bring a new global luxury brand to the city’s vibrant waterfront. One Market Square i s, without a doubt, the best hotel development opportunity this city has seen in decades.” The 150- year- old recently refurbished Edinburgh Castle Hotel, one of Auckland’s few remaining 19th century hotels, on a 571 sq msite on the corner of Symonds St and Newton Rd has sold for $ 3.9 million, through Alan Haydock and Damien Bullick of Bayleys Auckland City & Fringe division. The two- storey building has a new 10- year lease to a hospitality and residential accommodation business and sold at a 5.9 per cent yield.
The issue is, we simply don't have any existing hotels for them to purchase and the solution is to find a strategic development opportunity that will met their strict criteria.
A 2,411sq moffice/ warehouse facility on a freehold 4049sq mproperty at 71 Port Rd, Lower Hutt has been sold for $ 2.83 million by Tim Julian and Kieran Lennon of Colliers International. A 590sq mindustrial building on a 6340sq msite at 185 Waipapa Rd, Kerikeri, sold at a Bayleys Total Property auction for $ 785,000 at a 6.75 per cent yield, through Alan Broadbent, Bayleys Northland. The property has three short term leases all expiring in May 2017.
A multi- tenanted 1747sq m industrial property at 76 Koromiko St, Tauranga, sold at auction for $ 2.16m, representing a yield of 5.8 per cent. It was marketed by Simon Clark and Rich Davidson of Colliers International.