A number of key office towers in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane have been placed on the market in the past week. The offerings come off the back of a very strong office market in Sydney and Melbourne, with expectations that the market will remain strong in the short term. In the Sydney market, the iconic Chifley Tower is on the market with Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC Real Estate looking to sell a 50% stake in the $1.8 billion complex. The 40-level premium office tower, with three levels of retail, occupies almost an entire city block and was purchased by GIC in 2005 for $710M.
Separately, the Queensland government owned QIC has hit the market with two office assets. The largest offering is a key precinct in Collins St, Melbourne which includes the 52-storey tower at 80 Collins St once known as Nauru House. QIC is looking to sell the tower as part of a mixed-use project which includes a surrounding 39-level office tower, and a 300-room hotel and retail complex. The combined development is estimated at ~$2 billion, with QIC looking to sell anywhere between 50-100% of the site. QIC has also listed for sale it’s A-grade office tower at 61 Mary St, Brisbane. The 17-level complex is fully occupied by the state government until 2029 and is expected to sell for around $300M.