Singapore’s Rockworth Snaps Up Brisbane Office Tower for $60m

Rockworth Capital Partners has snapped up a Brisbane office tower in the city’s "golden triangle" financial precinct in a $60 million off-market deal.

The acquisition marks the Singaporean asset manager’s first move into the Brisbane office market, bringing Rockwell's Australian holdings to include 14 office and retail assets across the country.

RCP's current Queensland retail portfolio includes Town Square in Redbank, Everton Park and Rothwell shopping centres.

The 17-storey office tower, at 100 Edward Street, was sold by an investment partnership managed by Evolution Private.

The freehold building sits within a $10 billion precinct of planned infrastructure spending and redevelopment with proximity to the Queen’s Wharf and Eagle Street Pier.

The Evolution partnership purchased the building for $46 million in 2011.

The tower offers 7120sq m of office space, 109 carpark spaces and ground floor retail tenancies.

Related: Melbourne Investor Lists Brisbane Tower After Leasing Success Story

Driven by surging demand for office space in Australia’s major capital cities, office buildings in Brisbane's CBD are in high demand.

Just last month Charter Hall acquired the high-profile development site, No. 1 Brisbane, for a proposed 81-storey skyscraper on Brisbane’s Queen Street Mall for $94 million.

Canadian property group Quadra Pacific listed two major Brisbane office towers with price expectations over the $200 million mark.

Savills office research recorded more than $2 billion worth of transactions taking place in Brisbane's CBD office market last financial year.

Rockworth chief executive Lim Kin Song says the Edward Street acquisition is a timely opportunity to participate in a fast-evolving gateway city.

“With its recent refurbishment and above average occupancy rates compared to the broader Brisbane B-Grade market, the Property presents substantial underlying value that will allow for the exploration of initiatives to enhance rental income and extract further cost efficiencies given the scale of our portfolio.”

Kin Song said the Group will continue to look for similar value-add investment opportunities and counter-cyclical propositions.

Evolution principals Rob Carter and Mark Russo said the building currently has 25 tenants occupying more than 90 per cent of the space.

The tower was recently refurbished with a modernised lobby and upgrade to building services.