Fast-food frenzy ends with $2.75m bid
The land and building home to KFC in Porirua, north of Wellington, has new owners following an ‘‘absolutely crazy’’ auction.
The property, which was being sold as part of a investment rejig by its original owners, was bought by a local investor for $2.75 million, well above its rateable value of $1.57m.
Bayleys Wellington agent Mark Sherlock said it was the biggest auction he had been involved in.
There were 168 bids. An average auction generates between 30 and 50 bids, he said.
‘‘The place was chocka. It went crazy, absolutely crazy.
‘‘There was some really, really strong bidding, but from a bit over $2 million there was only really two in it and they just went on and on and on for about 40 minutes … but we got there. It’s amazing for the vendors; they are very happy,’’ Sherlock said.
KFC-occupied property had always made for hotly contested investments, he said. ‘‘The fastfood asset class is sought after, especially when the properties are anchored by well-backed operators with decent-term leases.’’
The property, which is located across the road from North City Shopping Centre, was built in 1998 and KFC opened there the following year.
The original owners were selling as part of a reassessment of their investment portfolio.
The site had ‘‘clearly been a successful one’’ for Restaurant Brands, which owns the KFC New Zealand franchise, after it renewed its lease last year for another six years, Sherlock said.
The company has right renewal options until 2035.
A recent seismic assessment showed the building was an A grade, with a rating of 95 per cent of the new building standard, Sherlock said.
Porirua was ‘‘in pretty good heart, commercially’’, with a $5m upgrade to the Porirua City Council’s headquarters on the cards, and a $21m adventure park proposed for the hills west of the city, he said. of