Niagara House sells for $9.95m at packed CBD auction

A landmark CBD property, Niagara House at 370 Little Bourke St, has sold for $9.95 million at a highly competitive auction that drew a huge crowd during the AFL Finals series.

The six-level freehold, fully leased and anchored by outdoor retailer MacPac, was offered to the market for the first time in 27 years. The campaign, led by Fitzroys’ Lewis Waddell, Mark Talbot and Ben Liu, attracted more than 100 enquiries from Melbourne, interstate and overseas.

Bidding on auction day came down to six parties, but it was ultimately a local investor who secured the prized asset.

The 1330 sqm building includes MacPac, a subsidiary of ASX-listed Super Retail Group, across the ground floor and basement, with four levels of offices above. The sale price reflected a sharp net yield of 3.9 per cent – among the tightest recorded in Melbourne this year – and a land rate of $30,243 per square metre, significantly higher than the previous Little Bourke St benchmark of around $21,000 per square metre.

Mr Talbot said the result reflected renewed confidence in the CBD.

Investors from around Australia and overseas have recognised the rebound of Melbourne’s CBD. Confidence in the CBD is back, and impressive, well-presented properties are in demand, he said

While the campaign generated strong national and international interest, Mr Waddell noted that offshore and interstate parties “couldn’t compete with local capital”.

Niagara House sits on a unique triple-fronted, Capital City 1-zoned site of 329 sqms, bordered by Niagara Lane and Warburton Alley, just metres from the popular Hardware Lane dining precinct and the 24/7 Bourke Square car park.

Mr Waddell said the building’s location was a major drawcard.

“This part of the city generates pedestrian traffic day and night from workers, residents and tourists, with Hardware Lane offering one of the CBD’s best dining and nightlife experiences. Melbourne’s CBD is seeing a hospitality resurgence, and this property is ideally placed to capture the buzzing crowds that have returned to the city,” he said. •