Chinese buyers target heritage-listed building
CHINESE buyers are very interested in a heritage-listed building for sale in the Toowoomba CBD.
The former Toowoomba Permanent Building Society headquarters at 2 Russell St is going up for auction on Thursday.
McGrath Commercial’s Drew Camm said Chinese buyers had an increasing appetite for solid investments and Toowoomba was starting to “come on the radar”.
“The great thing about the Toowoomba commercial and industrial market is that there’s a steady climb.
“You can compare that to the Gold Coast which has had massive peaks and lows which leads to fire sales.
“In Toowoomba only a handful of people own most of the commercial properties, so when something new comes on to the market people get interested.”
The building was constructed by the building society in 1934 and was leased by Cleary & Lee Commercial in 1979.
Designed in 1934 by William Hodgen, former director of the Toowoomba Permanent Building Society and noted Toowoomba architect, the building is an example of a purpose-built commercial premise of its era.
The building at the intersection of Neil and Russell Sts is single-storey and features classic art deco and Georgian elements.