The purchase for an undisclosed amount was made in partnership with GIC Real Estate, the Singapore sovereign wealth fund.
The Jessie Street Centre is an A-grade office building with a net lettable area of 53,900 sqm. The property is fully and has a 5.5 star NABERS Energy Rating.
The property benefits from a strong underlying tenant covenant base, being predominantly leased to the Australian Taxation Office, AMP Services Limited and various NSW Government Service tenancies.
Charter Hall Group Managing Director and CEO David Harrison said: “This strategic acquisition further strengthens a well-established 15-year partnership with GIC. They recognise our strong track record of creating institutional quality investment opportunities and we can add value to utilising the second largest office platform in Australia with approximately $18B of property assets.”
“We are also proud to advance our relationship with the Australian Taxation Office as a major tenant customer, which further increases our exposure to the Australian Government and also the NSW Government across our office portfolio,” Mr Harrison said.
The property will benefit from significant developments and infrastructure projects within the surrounding precinct including Parramatta Square, the recent completion of Stage 1 of WestConnex Motorway, the Parramatta Light Rail project to be completed in 2023 and the recently announced Sydney Metro West rapid rail to the Sydney CBD, which will reduce travel times between the two CBDs.
Chief Investment Officer, GIC Real Estate Lee Kok Sun said: “Parramatta is expected to benefit from Sydney’s forecast population growth and planned infrastructure enhancements such as a new metro line to the Sydney CBD and a light rail link.”
“As a long-term value investor, we are confident this asset will generate resilient, income-driven returns. We look forward to strengthening our partnership with Charter Hall through this transaction and working together to add value to this asset.”
Fund Manager, Charter Hall Trent James said: “This is a rare opportunity to acquire a high quality, A-grade office asset situated on a significant 13,530 sqm site within the Parramatta CBD
“The ongoing transformation of Parramatta will see it as a genuine second CBD and is likely to surpass North Sydney as Sydney’s largest metropolitan CBD market. This investment demonstrates our ongoing long-term support of Western Sydney.”
