Habul Chevron play
HARRY Habul, a somewhat colourful fellow who’s had fingers in various property pies for decades, is getting serious about cashing in one of his bigger “plays”.
A tower site he’s owned on Chevron Island for seven years has been what might be termed “loosely available” for some time.
It seems would-be buyers might have had “harrying” experiences: a hesitant Harry has apparently been a bit at sea when it’s come to deciding what the land is worth and putting a fixed price on it.
That situation has changed; Harry says his holding can be bought today for $9 million.
For that money a buyer will get a triangular-shaped parcel spanning 3670sq m and fronting Stanhill Drive and Anembo St. It cost Harry $4.7 million in 2010.
He last year spent plenty of dollars enhancing its value by securing approval for a 31-level tower with 232 apartments and streetfront townhouses.
That puts so-called land content cost of each apartment at less than $40,000.
Chinese buyers of a neighbouring 1121sq m parcel, bought for $2.35 million last year, want to construct a ninestorey, 48-unit building.
That puts their landcontent cost for each unit at $10,000 more than Harry is asking.
The property veteran has had a varied career playing on the Gold Coast property and business fields.
In the late ’80s he owned the Lawrence Drive Tavern at Nerang. He was an early shareholder in S8, a company set up by Chris Scott to operate in the management-rights field and which was
ASX in 2001.
Harry showed in 2009 that he had a hankering for luxury when he was the unsuccessful top bidder, at $6.6 million, for a Sovereign Islands mansion called Madison.
Among sites he has held and sold are one at Biggera Waters, flicked to the Raptis Group for $6.3 million.
The following year he bought a site adjacent to Harbour Town at Biggera Waters from a mortgagee for $3.85 million, selling it for $6.5 million four years later to developer Jim Raptis’s son Evan and his Emandar group partner, George Mastrocostas.
His 2010 Chevron Island listed on the buy also was a “distress” one: the seller was a receiver to company Jet Constructions, which had a Russian link.
Jet had gained development approval for 10 and four-level unit blocks.
The seven-title holding is occupied by older houses and units and Harry no doubt is hoping the holding income they offer might influence would-be buyers of his site.
That income stood at $150,000 back in 2010 and might have swelled since then.
Harry’s hopeful of finding a Chevron buyer at a time when seven sites have been approved for towers on the island but there’s no sign of any of them coming out of the ground.
A HESITANT HARRY HABUL HAS APPARENTLY BEEN A BIT AT SEA WHEN IT’S COME TO DECIDING WHAT THE LAND IS WORTH AND PUTTING A FIXED PRICE ON IT.