Hong Kong Investor Buys Byron Bay Retail Asset

A Hong Kong-based private investor has snapped up a Byron Bay retail asset on Lawson Street for $6.48 million.

Located at 17 Lawson Street, the 594sq m double-storey, brick building comprises three shops, two restaurants and four office suites with a central arcade providing pedestrian access to the rear shops and car parking on an 866sq m site.

The arcade had recently undergone a $250,000 refurbishment and currently has a gross annual income of approximately $465,000.

The purchaser shook hands on the Lawson Street asset at a tight 4.7 per cent yield.

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The property attracted hundreds of enquiries from Sydney, Melbourne and overseas, but its growth potential and positioning within ‘one of Australia’s most popular beach resorts’ helped the investor inch out other interest, according to Teska Carson director Michael Ludski, who helped broker the deal.

“This was indeed a rare opportunity and the both the strong market response and the tight yield reflected that,” Ludski said.

In December, Melbourne’s Berger family paid $5.1 million for a six-bedroom non-beachfront property at 38 Lawson Street. The property had been on the market for just 28 days.

“These resident and tourist numbers continue to provide significant returns and excellent growth potential underpinning local businesses.”

With a local population of around 30,000, Byron Bay attracts more than two million domestic and international tourists to its beaches every year.