Rail link boosts club character
A 580sq m character building on K Rd, close to a future City Rail Link station, is up for sale with a new lease to its longstanding tenant.
On a 304sq m site at 270 K Rd, the freehold property provides three levels of commercial accommodation, including a basement.
It is occupied by the Family Bar and Club which has recently renewed its lease for six years from December 2018, with one four-year right of renewal.
The property, currently generating net annual rental income of $210,600, is for sale by tender closing at 4pm on Tuesday March 5, unless sold prior. It is being marketed by Bayleys Auckland City & Fringe manager Alan Haydock and senior broker Damien Bullick.
Haydock says the offering is among 20 properties in central Auckland and surrounding CBD fringe suburbs featured in Bayleys’ first Total Property portfolio for 2019.
“This is the largest volume of listings we have had in a Total Property portfolio this early in the year and reflects a changing commercial property market,” says Haydock.
“It has become more challenging for purchasers to secure bank funding and as a consequence the buyers who do have higher equity levels are often more experienced and have a more hard-nosed approach to price.
“This has resulted in a big drop in off-market sales. Vendors are realising if they want to get a good result they need to wrap an effective marketing campaign round their properties.”
Bullick says the Family Bar has occupied 270 K Rd since 2006 and is one of K Rd’s best known nightclubs, with a high-profile amongst the LGBT community in particular. The tenant also operates a gaming lounge at the front of the property, in addition to a bar at the neighbouring property at 278 K Rd.
“The building presents well and is among a block of character buildings with attractive, well maintained facades. The current owner had a detailed structural assessment of the building undertaken last year which showed it has a seismic rating of 50 per cent of New Building Standard — above Auckland Council’s minimum requirement of 33 per cent of NBS.”
With a new lease in place, Bullick says the offering should appeal to investors looking for cash flow.
It is well-positioned in the heart of the thriving K Rd entertainment and retail precinct and to the rear of the property is a laneway off Mercury Lane which will border the entranceway to the K Rd Central Rail Link station. This laneway currently provides service access to the rear of 270 K Rd and is shared with owners of other neighbouring buildings.
“There is no doubt that the advent of the new station will further enhance the rejuvenation and intensification of activities in this part of K Rd which will benefit surrounding property owners. In anticipation of this, we are already seeing a jockeying for position and a significant increase in investment activity in this location.”
Late last year, Haydock and Cameron Melhuish sold the nearby twolevel 1288sq m former Newton Post Office building at 292-300 K Rd for $6.05 million.
The building, partially leased to two tenants and generating net annual income of $136,000, will be a short walk away from the new station.