ALDER HQ’S $9M DEAL

Gold Coast-born construction and development company Alder has sold its Helensvale headquarters to a fund’s manager in a $9m million deal.

The 116 Siganto Drive property, built nine years ago, was bought by the Natgen group and is being put into a property trust.

The buy has been funded by an offer to investors of returns of 9.02 per cent, paid monthly, an offer that closed oversubscribed.

The fully let property is netting $668,165 a year, putting the buy on a 7.4 per cent yield.

The three-storey office building named Alder Place, which fronts the M1 motorway, will remain the Alder headquarters for at least 13 years.

The private group in 2015 won Master Builders’ regional, state and national awards for the design and construction of the building.

Alder, set up more than 20 years ago, has in excess of 100 staff and has delivered more than300 projects spanning the health, education, commercial and community sectors in Queensland and NSW.

The group has land holdings of 170ha throughout Queensland.

Alder managing director Greg Alder said Alder Place was the company’s flagship corporate HQand its sale allowed the company to satisfy its future growth plans.

“Alder created this award-winning building to ensure maximum connectivity to the M1 in both directions and to expose our brand and craftsmanship to a high number of daily commuters,” he said.

“We have chosen to sell the asset as it is one we no longer want to retain within our investment portfolio – it locks up capital for growth.”

The building is one of two being put into a Natgen trust – the other is a two-level office and retail property in Cairns.

Natgen managing-director Mr Goakes said the ability to acquire the Alder building below new replacement value underpinned the long-term value and growth potential.

“Building costs have risen precipitously in the last couple of years, which means we are able to buy good quality office buildings for significantly less than they would cost to replace,” he said.

“When we are looking for new assets for our investment trusts we seek unique opportunities in areas where we see long-term value.

“Vacancy rates are historically low on the Gold Coast, which is pushing rents up over time, and in today’s environment, where it’s not easy or cost effective to build any new spaces, we are looking down the barrel of tight vacancy levels for some time.”

QUENTIN TOD,  Journalist

Queensland investment company National & General Group buys Collie Central shopping centre for $10 million

Collie’s biggest shopping complex has new owners after being bought by a Brisbane-based group for an eight-figure sum.

The Collie Central shopping centre was put on the market last year and has now found a new owner in the National & General Group after it bought the centre for $10 million.

Natgen managing director Steven Goakes said the company would be sticking to the basics in its operation.

“This is our fifth shopping centre in our portfolio so we’re getting a level of expertise in how to run them to ensure that customers are happy, and thus tenants are happy,” he said.

“Our customers are the shop owners and their customers are the shoppers so we make sure that we do with our properties whatever makes the shoppers happy.

“They might sound like silly little things but making sure the line markings in the carparks are up to scratch, making sure that the place is clean and tidy and bright and well lit, the signage is good, all these sorts of things.

“They sound like common sense, but it’s not always common practice.”

This is Natgen’s first investment venture away from the Eastern States, with the company owning trusts with properties in Queensland and New South Wales.

The company said the shopping complex — which includes a Woolworths and a Terry White Chemmart — had an average weighted lease expiry of four and a half years and a total tenancy area of 4500sqm.

Mr Goakes said Collie’s energy transition made it an attractive investment.

“The energy transition is something that I think is generally beneficial to an area, not everyone sees it that way, but we certainly see that,” he said.

“When I actually looked at Collie and the location’s attributes of that particular area of energy transition, it’s really so central to the South West Interconnected System, it’s the obvious place for things to happen.

“When you look at how much government money is going into that process of transition, it’s like watering a garden, it always produces in multiples of what they put in.

“With the amount of money that we’re seeing going into that area it’s certain the benefits will be much greater than the risks, and that’s what we’re looking for.”

Article source

Natgen in WA venture

Property fund manager Natgen has expanded into WA by acquiring shopping centre Collie Central for $10m for its unlisted property trust fund, Natgen Investment Trust CO24.

The complex, about 170km south of Perth, is anchored by Woolworths and major tenants include Terry White Chemmart, Liquorland, OPSM, and a WA government office.

The centre has a weighted average lease expiry of 4.5 years and a total tenancy area of 4500sq m.

The trust raised $6.5m in equity from wholesale investors, which was combined with a $5m debt facility to fund the acquisition.

It offered a distribution of 8.5 per cent per annum over a five to six-year term, with potential for further income generation and long-term capital growth.

source: The Australian, 9th May 2024, page 9

Fund buys up on the Gold Coast

Fund manager Natgen has expanded its Gold Coast warehouse development pipeline, buying two developments in the city’s northern suburbs.

They paid $2.95m for a 4500sq m vacant two-lot site at 8-10 Naves Drive, Coomera.

The property will go into the Natgen Development Trust CM23 and when built will comprise a commercial showroom/warehouse facility. It will offer more than 18 tenancies ranging in size from 100sq m to 220sq m.

Dave Kertesz and Jacob Zhou from Crew Commercial struck the deal. It follows Natgen’s earlier investment via the Natgen Development Trust OR23 of a 3162sq m site at 23 Tillyroen Rd, Ormeau Hills, for $2.1m. Natgen plans to develop a mini-warehouse storage facility comprising 24 strata-titled units.

Natgen managing director Steven Goakes said the projects offered an attractive opportunity for investors.

“They have strong long- term locational advantages due to their proximity to increasing traffic areas, high population growth and the shortage of suitable warehouse and storage units needed for small business operators and residents,” he said.

Storage project ‘ideally located’

Brisbane property fund manager Natgen has increased its investments in the fast-growing Gold Coast self-storage market.

Natgen paid $5.5m for the 8084sq m site at 8 Ellis Way, Upper Coomera, for its latest property trust.

The development of a $32.8m high-specification, state-of-the-art self-storage building and surrounding facilities at the site includes more than 7000sq m of self- storage units incorporating an office/retail space, parking, security and landscaping.

Significantly, the site fronts the M1 Motorway and is part of the Coomera Springs Enterprise Park.

The trust will construct and operate the facility for a six to seven-year period following completion, and investors will contribute $10m.

Crew Commercial’s Dave Kertesz and Colliers’ Daniel Coburn and Jacob Griffin struck the deal on behalf of Gold Coast developers LatSod Pty Ltd, who own the total 3.12ha site. The acquisition follows Natgen’s recent investment in Gold Coast self- storage at Molendinar via the Natgen Development Trust ML23, with total assessed completed value of $22.9m and investors contributing $8m.

Natgen managing director Steven Goakes said the latest self-storage acquisition offered a significant opportunity for investors.

“The self-storage site at Upper Coomera is ideally located at the epicentre of a large demand area,” he said.

Natgen settles $4.5M land acquisition at Molendinar

• The land is set to become a self-storage facility.
• SEQ accounts for over a third of the nation’s upcoming self-storage stock.
• Demand remains elevated, driven by lifestyle changes and challenging rental conditions

Brisbane-based property fund manager, Natgen, has settled a $4.5 million land acquisition that is set to become a high-specification, state-of-the-art self-storage building.

Based in the expanding central Gold Coast area, Natgen Development Trust ML23 comprises the future self-storage building and surrounding facilities at 2 Industrial Avenue, Molendinar. It is also situated adjacent to a major arterial road – the Southport – Nerang Road.

The facility will feature over 5,250 square metres of self-storage units, incorporating an office/retail space, parking, security and landscaping.

Natgen Development Trust ML23 will construct and operate the self-storage facility for a five to seven-year period following completion, with a total assessed completed value of $22.9 million and investors contributing $8 million.

The acquisition follows the success of Natgen’s previous investment in Gold Coast self-storage at Upper Coomera, with last year’s $10 million Natgen Development Trust UC22 closing fully subscribed.

Demand for self-storage high

The self-storage sector has seen a growing level of interest, with the past twelve months seeing $132 million in sales for the sector, according to data from Ray White Commercial.

One of the drivers for demand includes the housing crisis, with experts noting the challenges of securing a rental have fueled the need for prolonged storage.

The South-East Queensland (SEQ) self-storage construction pipeline is also the strongest in the country, with Ray White finding the region accounts for 36% of the nation’s upcoming stock.

Natgen Managing Director & Responsible Manager, Steven Goakes said the SEQ self-storage market offered an attractive opportunity for investors.

“Self-storage is a growth industry in Australia due to the rise of e-commerce, shrinking living spaces and sustained population growth, particularly in South-East Queensland,” Goakes said.

“The Molendinar facility’s central Gold Coast location and the strong demand factors have given us confidence in the facility’s long-term performance and our ability to maximise returns for our investors, with this type of asset also acting as a hedge against inflation.”

The Gold Coast is expected to hit one million residents by 2041, with other drivers of local sector strength including the upcoming 2032 Olympics.

According to the Urbis Self-Storage Index, self-storage occupancy rates have risen to 94.4% in outer Brisbane as of December 2021.

Revenues for the self-storage sector have surged to $1.5 billion, with annual growth of 4.4% from 2022 to 2027; the lack of feasible substitutes further supports the industry’s performance, according to IBISWorld. This has led to strong market valuations and capitalisation rates for high quality self-storage facilities, with the industry attracting increasing investor interest.

“Natgen has a strong focus on well considered, risk-managed investments that offer regular monthly income, an inflation hedge, low volatility and growth potential,” Goakes added.

“This latest acquisition provides further diversification for our investors and we look forward to completing this exciting development.”

Natgen in $4.5m purchase

Brisbane property fund manager Natgen has bought a Gold Coast self-storage site for $4.5m for its latest property trust. The fund manager’s Natgen Development Trust ML23, will develop a high specification, state-of-the-art self-storage building and facility at 2 Industrial Ave, Molendinar. On a 4,520 sq m site, the building will house more than 5,250 sq m of self-storage units, with an office/retail space, parking, security and landscaping. The acquisition follows its previous investment in Gold Coast self-storage at Upper Coomera, with last year’s $10m Natgen Development Trust UC22 closing fully subscribed.

Fund ramps up exposure to growing self-storage sector

Brisbane-based property fund manager Natgen has further diversified into the fast-growing Gold Coast self-storage market, with the settlement of the $4.5m land acquisition for its latest property trust.

The fund manager, through its Natgen Development Trust ML23, will develop a high specification, state-of-the-art self storage building and surrounding facilities at 2 Industrial Ave, Molendinar. On a 4520sq m site the building will house more than 5250sq m of self-storage units, incorporating an office/retail space, parking, security and landscaping.

The acquisition follows the success of its previous investment in Gold Coast self-storage at Upper Coomera, with last year’s $10m Natgen Development Trust UC22 closing fully subscribed.

Natgen managing director and responsible manager Steven Goakes said the South East Queensland self-storage market offered an attractive opportunity for investors, based on its strong economic fundamentals. “Self-storage is a growth industry in Australia due to the rise of e-commerce, shrinking living spaces and sustained population growth, particularly in South East Queensland,” he said.

“The Molendinar facility’s central Gold Coast location and the strong demand factors have given us confidence in the facility’s long-term performance and our ability to maximise returns for our investors, with this type of asset also acting as a hedge against inflation.”

The trust will build and operate the facility for a five to seven-year period following completion, with total assessed completed value of $22.9m and investors contributing $8m. It offers investors a targeted distribution of 8.46 per cent in the first year of operation, rising to 8.62 per cent in year two.

Mr Goakes said Natgen was focused on risk-managed investments that offered regular monthly income, an inflation hedge, low volatility and growth. “This acquisition provides further diversification for our investors and we look forward to completing this exciting development,” he said.

Brisbane-based property fund manager Natgen has acquired a Herbert Street building for $9.28 million

The building currently houses five Queensland Government departments with a total 2,026 square metres, with a weighted average lease expiry of approximately six years.

A total of 95 per cent of income for the building comes from Queensland Government and Australian Government leases.

The trust fully subscribed under its unlisted property fund Natgen Investment Trust GL22 after attracting strong demand from property investors.

Natgen Managing Director Responsible Manager, Steven Goakes said the positioning of the building within dynamic region with renewable energy prospects, together with the predominantly government tenants, made it an attractive asset for a Natgen investment trust.

“The industrial strength of the region and large scale investment in renewables within the region place this asset well within the Natgen portfolio,” he said.

“The five-star NABERS energy efficiency rating of the building is central to the continuing attractiveness of the building for government tenants.

“Natgen has plans to improve the building over time to build upon its sustainability credentials.

“In fact, both state and federal governments have internal mandates requiring buildings which they occupy to hold high energy efficiency ratings. With the push to early carbon-neutrality, these requirements will grow in importance.”

Mr Goakes said the terms of lease will remain the same.

The latest property trust launched by Natgen adds to its previous funds which contain assets in Goodna, Toowoomba, Upper Coomera, Inverell and Gold Coast.

Natgen has executed a broad range of investment and development projects across a range of sectors, including commercial, retail, industrial and residential property.

Fund snares green government tenanted Gladstone office asset

BRISBANE based property fund manager Natgen has expanded its regional portfolio, buying a government tenanted office building near the heart of the Gladstone CBD. They paid $9.28m for the building at 20-22 Herbert St (pictured) through their latest unlisted property trust fund, Natgen Investment Trust GL22. The building houses five Queensland government departments and has a total tenancy area of 2026sq m, with a weighted average lease expiry of about six years.

Natgen managing director & responsible manager Steven Goakes said the building being in a “dynamic region”, together with the predominantly government tenants, made it an attractive asset.
“The industrial strength of the region and large scale investment in renewables place this asset well within the Natgen portfolio,” he said. “Also, the 5-star NABERS energy efficiency rating of the building is central to its continuing attractiveness for government tenants.” Natgen Investment Trust GL22 closed fully subscribed. It offers investors an initial distribution of 7.52 per cent a year over a five to six-year term.