This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
WESTERN Australia-based fund manager Westbridge has emerged as the purchaser of Charter Hall Long WALE REIT (CLW)’s Redbank Plains Retail Centre in Ipswich, having just settled on the $23 million deal.
It will be the eighth and final asset for its Diversified Fund No. 4.
Michael Hedger and Joe Tynan of CBRE acted as selling agents. The deal was part of CLW’s portfolio recycling that also included divestment of industrial and office assets.
The Redbank Plains property, located at 588 Redbank Plains Road is a convenience retail site with over 89% of income secured to national and global retailers. It has a weighted average lease expiry of 6.27 years, with tenants including Ampol, Krispy Kreme, Zarraffa’s Coffee and global burger chain, Carl’s Jr, alongside several complementary retailers.
“With the asset’s leasing profile linked to a blend of CPI and fixed review structures, we saw an opportunity with this acquisition to build on the fund’s defensive income profile, which has been a key part of our strategy in safeguarding against the current high inflation environment,” said Simon Worth, head of capital transactions at Westbridge Funds Management.
He also noted the centre is within the fast-growing Ipswich local government area, “aligning with our mandate to acquire assets in locations with long-term capital growth potential”.
Situated 25 kilometres south west of the Brisbane CBD, the local population of Ipswich City Council is projected to grow by around 140% by 2041 according to 2021 Census data, supported by key residential projects from Lendlease and Peet.
Damian Collins, chairman of Westbridge Funds Management, said, “We believe the Redbank Plains Retail Centre is the perfect addition to the existing portfolio of the fund, which now spans Western Australia, Victoria and Queensland, giving investors the benefit of diversification across sectors and locations.”
The Westbridge Diversified Fund No.4 closes with circa $125 million in assets with exposure to a number of high-profile tenants including Dan Murphy’s, Holman’s industries, Ampol, 7-Eleven, Swick Mining (Perenti) and Blackwoods, a wholly owned subsidiary of Wesfarmers.
In September, Westbridge sold its Midland Central Shopping Centre in Western Australia for $19.3 million to a private investor.
