The Grand Hotel in Armidale in the sought-after New England region of NSW has been sold within the first week of the campaign by mid-north coast property owner Steve McEvoy.
McEvoy holds a stable of freehold investments on the mid-north coast of NSW. Because the Grand sits geographically out of his core portfolio, it is understood he will redeploy funds from the sale into a property development on the Coffs Harbour coast.
The pub’s freehold was bought by the owners of the St Kilda Hotel in Armidale, Harley Payne and his son Tom, for an undisclosed sum.
“We are delighted with the acquisition and feel it will be a good long-term investment for our family,” Tom Payne said.
“Obviously we have the capacity to run the venue in the future should the opportunity arise, however right now we are very comfortable with the current passive rental return.”
The brick hotel is less than a kilometre from the Armidale CBD and according to HTL Property, which was engaged to sell the hotel alongside MQ and Associates, the pub is currently producing $109,200 in annual rental revenue with increases to $151,800 by August 2022, representing a yield of around 5.15 per cent.
“The purchaser was attracted to a combination of the stable and secure rental income, the underlying asset value, the geographical proximity to their current assets in Armidale, and the positive economic sentiment enjoyed in the region,” HTL Property director Xavier Plunkett said.
“The sale is indicative of an extremely strong regional hotel market, particularly in the New England region, which has seen $110 million worth of pub sales in the past 18 months alone.”