Melbourne building doubles price in three years

A Melbourne office building has more than doubled in price in the space of 3.5 years with a $93.88 million sale to a Hong Kong-based investor confirmed.

And the big winners are Australian retirees.

The 12-storey building at 277 William St, Melbourne jumped from $45.9 million when it last changed hands in November 2015.

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EG real estate fund management group’s Daniel Farley says the building was overhauled during their ownership, with “virtually the whole building” re-leased and major works undertaken at the site — with the result well worth the effort.

“Our primary investors are Australian superannuation funds,” Farley says.

“So the back end of this result goes into the pockets of Australian retirees.”

The sale was prompted after a number of unsolicited offers were made, with CBRE and Jones Lang LaSalle handling the deal via expressions of interest.

CBRE’s Kiran Pillai says the result reflects the high demand for investments in Melbourne’s CBD, and the limited opportunities available.

Interest in the city’s towers was weighted towards offshore investors, but local investors were still competitive, Pillai says.

Farley says EG will look to reinvest in Melbourne’s CBD after the success of the William St sale.

“We have a really positive view on Melbourne, and we’re big believers in it short to medium term,” Farley says.

This article from the Herald Sun originally appeared as “Super-fund owned Melbourne office tower doubles in price”.