THE PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT REVIEW
basement into the design of the project and thereby reducing overall development costs for the project. Additionally, in well trafficked regional locations, a developer looking to develop a service station or QSR can acquire a site at a lower cost but still achieve commensurate rental returns from an operator. Notable examples of this can be seen in the recent Ampol Portfolio sale, transacted by Colliers. This national portfolio includes repositioning opportunities across key regional and sub-regional centers. Having assisted major companies like Ampol, these strategic opportunities are always extremely well received by the market. This recent portfolio and similar offerings in recent years have garnered high levels of enquiry and demand from private and professional buyers given the diverse and unique nature of the landholdings and their locations throughout prominent regions of Australia. Based on your conversations with clients, what are the benefits of investing in specialised commercial assets & to what extent has the more defensive income profile & stable nature (portfolio hedging) of these assets been a drawcard, particularly for new investors. In times of uncertainty, we traditionally see investors shift their focus towards more secure defensive assets that offer tenure security, covenant stability and projectable long-term returns (often which may be used as a hedge against inflation with CPI rental increase mechanisms). This sees specialised assets such as medical, childcare and other social infrastructure options highly desirable for private and institutional purchasers. At Colliers, we take a full integrated methodology to how we approach these specialised assets, leveraging our experience in selling assets at all stages of the lifecycle - whether is during conception/ raw-development, DA approved development or completed/investment sale -we add value and assist our clients throughout their journey. We’ve worked with clients seeking early advice on an opportunity prior to their aquisition, guided them through the planning phase post-acquisition, utilising our relationships with tenants to pre-commit an operator for the site, and then facilitate the divestment of the development once approved or packaged as an investment upon completion.
Both Institutional property groups and private investors have generated a significant amount of activity within the specialised commercial real estate sector to-date, how have you seen the two approaching the market in 2024? In recent years, Institutions have typically been the most active across specialised commercial assets, particularly at the larger end of the scale and when dealing with portfolios. However in 2024, we have seen a number of key Institutions taking a more considered approach to the sector and even considering divest of assets that are no longer align with their core strategies. This shift has presented opportunities for the private sector to take a more active approach to acquisitions in the space. Despite this, buyer appetite for high quality opportunities remains high; in a recent childcare portfolio \, Institutional purchasers looking at the portfolio in-one-line faced considerable competition from private buyers on an individual basis further demonstrating the demand at both ends of the market for these sorts of opportunities. Our portfolio strategy, allowing for assets to be acquired in-one- line, in part or individually ensures all buyers have the opportunity to participate in the process whilst creating a competitive environment to ensure value is unlocked for our vendors. Thanks for sharing your perspectives - in closing, are there any other major investment trends or market themes that you’re analysing within an alternative real estate context that are pertinent for commercial property investors. In addition to those assets which are ultimately becoming familiar to the market, newer specialisations - such as day hospitals, co-living, data centers and self-storage - which were typically controlled by the institutional market due to their scale, are gradually becoming better understood and sought after from the private market. Our team of experts have experience and exposure to all facets of the development markets from commercial, industrial and healthcare, with the ability to advise and unlock value for our vendors and their specialised projects.
July / August 2024 – 23
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