Key office building for sale

THE Robina-based Clarence Property group, hard on the heels of buying a yet-to-be built Brisbane logistics facility, has put a Gold Coast office building on the market.

The two-level building at 183 Varsity Pde was bought by Clarence for $11.8m in 2017.

Clarence is selling the property, known as the Sykes building, in the wake of undertaking a major refurbishment of the foyer and common areas.

Its major tenants are Sykes Australia, an arm of a global outsourcing business, and the Queensland Department of Education and they provide 80 per cent of the annual fully leased $1.086m net income.

Clarence is selling the building via expressions in a campaign run by CBRE’s Mark Witheriff and Tania Moore. It closes on September 23.

The 3193sq m building has parking for 120 cars and has a 100kW solar energy system.

Mr Witheriff said Clarence’s decision to sell the property came amid a significant shortage of investment opportunities on the Gold Coast.

“Varsity Lakes itself is attracting increasing interest, with Coles Group acquiring a site for a new supermarket with the development of the $200m build-to-rent project by HomeCorp,” he said.

The Gold Coast, in the latest Property Council of Australia office vacancy data, showed a fall in its vacancy rate from 14.3 per cent to 11.3 per cent in the first half of 2021, amid significant demand from occupiers.

Clarence Property, which holds the Sykes building in its unlisted Westlawn Property Trust, this week signed up to buy a Richlands logistics facility from Lanskey Constructions for $14.44 million.