Regional pub fund land big Central Coast hotel for $32m
As pubs throughout NSW get the green light to reopen today post Covid enforced closures, capital sources continue to aim squarely at the asset class as transaction volumes continue to run.
The Woy Woy Hotel on the NSW Central Coast is the latest asset to change hands with the pub set to join the acquisitive Harvest Hotels (“Harvest”) portfolio as they continue their expansion into major regional locations throughout NSW. The off-market sale, brokered exclusively by JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group Senior Vice President, Ben McDonald is the 5th sale in the last month alone for the JLL team with further announcements scheduled to be released to the market in the coming weeks.
Located on the NSW Central Coast, approximately 90km’s from Sydney and 350m from Woy Woy train station, The Woy Woy Hotel is one of the most sought-after hotels in the region due to it’s large trading footprint, town centre location, 30 gaming machines, underutilised first floor accommodation offering and substantial drive thru bottleshop.
The hotel was sold on behalf of the McIntyre family who have owned and operated the ‘Old Woy Woy Pub’ as it’s affectionately known since the late 1990’s. Auro McIntyre, a career publican, and second-generation owner of the hotel is set to retire when he hands over the keys to Harvest in December and says he can’t wait to enjoy ‘his first Christmas off’ with his family.
Mr McIntyre offered; “I could not be happier with the outcome JLL delivered for my family. For me, I felt the time was perfect and am really excited for the Harvest team – they have certainly got themselves a special hotel.”
JLL Senior Vice President, Ben McDonald highlighted the assets’ core attributes, value-add potential and the general tightly held nature of hotels on the NSW Central Coast as key to delivering such an outcome.
Mr McDonald said, “In our view, the Woy Woy Hotel is one that is extremely hard to replicate given the undeniable trading proposition, key growth location and limited opportunity to enter the Central Coast market. We don’t typically see high volumes of transactions in this region which is understandable given the strong and growing performance of the businesses generally.”
Mr McDonald continued: “Our national team continues to drive exceptional outcomes for our clients as we deliver exclusive opportunities to a seemingly insatiable market.”
Commenting on their latest acquisition, Harvest Hotels Director Fraser Haughton had this to offer; “To date, the venues that we operate have all been in in rural regional centres, so when the opportunity to purchase this iconic coastal venue arose, we felt it was the perfect addition to our portfolio and the right pub to kick off Harvest Pub Fund 2.”
With over $300m of hotels in various stages of negotiation, JLL anticipate a busy run into the holiday period as both vendors and purchasers seek to consummate ongoing deals before the books close for Christmas. The Woy Woy Hotel sale follows a number of key coastal asset sales for the JLL team in 2021 including the record setting sale of The Great Northern Hotel and Lateen Lane Hotel in Byron Bay for circa $80m, The Lorne Hotel in Victoria for $38m and the Grand Hotel in Newcastle highlighting the ongoing demand for geographical diversification from a wide-ranging investor set.
JLL, 11th October 2021
