Tightly held retail opportunity along Little Collins Street

​Melbourne, 9 October 2013 – An iconic CBD retail property located in close proximity to the new Australian on Collins (AOC) redevelopment has been listed for sale by the CBRE Melbourne City Sales Division. The offering of 261 Little Collins Street is the first property offered on the street between Swanston and Elizabeth Street since late 2009.

261 Little Collins Street is a 114sqm retail opportunity on the ground floor of the iconic Century Building on the corner of Swanston and Little Collins Streets. The property is leased to national retailer Bell & Barnett since 2010 returning $280,800pa + GST.

CBRE City Sales agents Josh Rutman and Ed Wight have been appointed to bring the property to the market.

“Situated in the heart of the Melbourne CBD Retail Core, the property presents an extremely rare opportunity to purchase a leased retail investment in this tightly held retail precinct. It has been over a decade since a retail investment property of this calibre between Swanston & Elizabeth Street has been offered publicly,” said Mr Rutman.

“The vendors have taken notice of the strong retail yields being achieved at public auctions, along with the current low interest environment, and have realised that due to the improved retail conditions driving tenant confidence and fuelling investor demand, right now is the best time to bring this type of asset to the public market”.

Following a recent string of high profile CBD sales including 115 Hardware Lane ($1,509,000 / 5.4%), Shop 5, Causeway House, 304 Little Collins Street ($1,510,000 / 4.49%) and 268-270 Lonsdale Street ($7,150,000 / 2.58%),  Josh Rutman said “261 Little Collins Street had already attracted strong interest from a range of potential buyers, including Asian investors based locally and with connections to overseas capital.”

“The recent changes in Self-Managed Super Fund (SMSF) laws for buying commercial property, as well as the current low interest rate environment and the change in the new government, are making it more attractive than ever to purchase commercial property, especially well located CBD retail properties.”

The property goes to public auction on Friday 18th October at 12.30pm.

“This auction offers prospective purchasers with an opportunity to get a foothold in one of Melbourne’s most identifiable and successful retail locations. We expect the location of the property to provide continual growth over the next decade which we believe will help drive significant interest from local, national and international investors,” Mr Wright added.