The Crowne Plaza Surfers Paradise and associated assets have been listed for sale, with price expectations currently north of AUD$100 million.
CBRE Hotels has been appointed to market the assets, on behalf of a private Singaporean family.
They will be sold in-one-line or individually through an International Expressions of Interest campaign, according to CBRE Hotels National Director, Wayne Bunz.
“The Gold Coast is one of the most sought-after hotel investment markets and is also one of the most tightly held, with opportunities to gain an investment foothold rare, especially with vacant possession, so this presents a significant opportunity,” he said.
According to CBRE, the offering provides diverse income streams, including the prominent 269-key resort, management rights for the Gold Tower (104 keys), a prestigious two-level penthouse, extensive retail space, a tavern offering 19 gaming machines, 15 function venues, a 261-space parking complex and multiple food and beverage outlets, including Queensland’s only revolving restaurant with 360-degree views of the Gold Coast.
The large 1.2ha landholding also offers additional development land with approval for 234 apartments in a 46-level tower. The zoning has no height restrictions, which allows for further apartments or an additional tower on the same site, subject to the relevant planning approvals.
The sale plans coincided with the owners’ decision to divest their only Australian hotel asset, to capitalise on a buoyant investment market and strong investor appetite.
Bunz noted that while the resort presented well, with AUD$2 million spent on the central facilities over the past two years, a new owner had the scope and flexibility to go far beyond what was already in place.
“We have engaged PlusArchitecture, who have prepared multiple concepts to provide to potential purchasers,” he said.
“These plans include elevating and expanding the pool to take advantage of the ocean and hinterland views in addition to enhancing the yield of the site by adding two residential apartment towers and reconfiguring and expanding the tavern and retail spaces,” Bunz said.
He said that the ability to gain vacant possession coupled with the resort’s prime location, value enhancement options and the strong fundamentals of the Gold Coast hotel market would help underpin strong buyer interest.
Year to date the Gold Coast has been the best performing market in Australia with distance, with RevPAR growing 14.4%.
While much of this can be attributed to the Commonwealth Games, the momentum continued into June, with RevPAR growth of 10%.
STR Regional Manager Matthew Burke said: “The Gold Coast has experienced a long period of growth and currently trades on an annualised basis at near record occupancy of 72.8% with average rooms rates for the 12 months to June 2018 at a record of AU$197.42. Events like the XXI Commonwealth Games provide a short term direct performance boost to the norm but performance overall continues to grow and May and June’s monthly results demonstrate the continued growth to prior year.”