This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
JUNIPER Group has placed its landmark $850 million Soul tower at Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast in the hands of receivers, PricewaterhouseCoopers.
PwC partners Michael Fung, Derrick Vickers and Greg Hall were appointed the companies:
· Juniper PM Pty Ltd;
· Juniper Financier No 2 Pty Ltd;
· Juniper Developer No 2 Pty Ltd;
· Pimlico Investments Pty Ltd;
· Juniper Property Holdings No 15 Pty Ltd;
· and Juniper Property Holdings No 24 Pty Ltd
Juniper Group’s decision comes as a shock to the market, because recently owner Graeme Juniper had spruiked that the 245-metre 77-storey tower had raked in $200 million in sales.
Completed in July this year, the Soul tower comprises 288 apartments, a 5-star managed accommodations a residential tower, and an adjoining street-front retail complex, which is already open for business.
Meanwhile Grocon, which was unaware of the appointment of receivers, is suing the developer in the Supreme Court of Queensland over outstanding payments.
PwC’s Michael Fung said it would be ‘business as usual’ as they finalised settlements of pre-sold apartments, marketed the remaining unsold apartments, and continued the development of the retail precinct.
“The challenges facing the real estate market in the Gold Coast area are well known and have been impacting the major developers in the area for some time.
“These challenges, together with the slower than expected completion and delays in settlements on pre-sold stock meant that the receivership of this world-class development was unsurprising,” he added.
“Many of the apartments have been pre-sold and we will be working through the settlement process to deliver those apartments to purchasers.
“The retail precinct is also attracting interest from some leading brands and over time will become one of the key retailing hubs in the newly revitalised Surfers Paradise sea-front area,” he continued.
“Assets of such premium quality as Soul are rare, and we expect the remaining apartments will command significant attention from both domestic and international buyers,”
Fung said he expected interest both domestically and from the international high net worth community.
Fung said the appointment is restricted to the Soul development only and does not affect any other properties or assets. In particular, the Sea Temple hotel operation is not impacted by this appointment.
Property Review
