This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
FOUR industry super funds – AustSafe Super, Club Plus Super, Energy Super and Intrust Super have joined forces to buy Home Hub Hills in Sydney's Castle Hill for $178.5 million, which is Australia's largest homemaker centre transaction.
The centre was acquired by a new LaSalle Investment Management designed fund, the LaSalle Australia Club Investments Trust, which the four super funds are members of.
LaSalle Australia head Steve Leigh said LaSalle will be retained as fund manager after working closely with investors in designing the ownership vehicle and governance arrangements.
“The club-style trust allows investors greater control and flexibility than unlisted trusts with operating efficiencies that result in lower fees.
“We have been reviewing the markets for some time seeking a larger asset in the range of $100 million to $250 million that would provide investors with a relatively high and reliable income yield and potential for medium-term growth,” he added.
Leigh said the investment case for Home Hub Hills was strong and when combined with the new club style ownership structure proved attractive to investors with an initial yield of approximately 9%.
Home Hub Hills (HHH) is a 52,151 sqm bulky goods store located in Sydney’s northwestern trading zone. The tenants include the Good Guys, JB Hi-Fi and Harvey Norman.
HHH has an authority approval for a further 12,000 sq m of space to accommodate new anchor tenants.
“The sale represents Australia’s largest homemaker centre transaction and is the largest raising of capital for real estate from the institutional market place for some time,” Leigh said.
Property Review
