Mantra Signs Massive Apartment Management Deal

Mantra Group has purchased the management rights for more than 1,500 apartments being developed across seven residential towers in Brisbane’s inner city suburbs of Fortitude Valley and Newstead.

The company purchased the rights from  prolific Brisbane developer Metro Property Development. The  first stage of the portfolio, containing a total of 710 apartments, includes Newstead Towers (314 apartments), Broadway on Ann (247 apartments) and Aqua at Newstead Central (149 apartments), which are all due for completion and settlement by June this year.

The second part includes Newstead Central’s St Tropez (231 apartments), Capri (207 apartments), Laguna (193 apartments) and Como (197 apartments) which are currently in the early stages of construction.

Metro Managing Director Luke Hartman said the sale was in line with its strategy of not retaining management rights in its developments.

“Metro’s main focus is on the development, sales and marketing and construction of projects. The sale of management rights is part of our overall strategy, which enables us to focus on what we do best and move on quickly to the next project,” Mr Hartman said.

Mr Hartman said a large portion of the apartments in these developments have been purchased by investors who are keen to tap into Brisbane’s rental market and high demand for new inner-city apartments.

“Brisbane’s inner-city, particularly Fortitude Valley and Newstead, is experiencing significant rental demand. We have seen a high level of interest from local, interstate and overseas investors who can see significant opportunity in this area of the market,” Mr Hartman said.

Tim Crooks from Resort Brokers Australia, who was the exclusive agent for the sale, said an extensive national campaign attracted widespread interest and resulted in five submissions from some of the best operators in the accommodation industry.

“It was an extremely competitive process and after a lengthy interviewing process with the top three bidders, Mantra Group emerged as the successful party. Mantra Group’s position as industry leaders in the management rights space, and their deep understanding of the Brisbane market make them the perfect management partner for Metro.”

Mantra Group CEO Bob East said he was excited about the pending transaction – which remains subject to certain conditions.

“As Australia’s largest owner of management and letting rights businesses, Mantra Group has developed unrivalled expertise in the management of large-scale strata title buildings. The idea of adding Metro’s seven high-quality developments to our existing portfolio is a compelling opportunity and is well aligned to our operating expertise and growth aspirations,” Mr East said.