The week in New Zealand real estate - 11 December 2020

Contact Chris Farhi at Colliers International Strategic Advisory to subscribe to this weekly update of the biggest real estate news from around New Zealand.

Chris Farhi Vlog

• This week the vlog looked at the City Rail Link's new tunnel boring machine and Precinct Properties' new office development at 10 Madden Street in Wynyard Quarter.

Institutional investors

• Aged care provider Radius Care listed on the NZX this week. No additional shares are currently being offered. The company has been listed to facilitate expansion. More info here.
• Australia-based Auckland Real Estate Trust (formerly Quattro Plus) also listed on the NZX this week. The company has seven properties in Auckland, including 1 Albert Street. More info here.

Office

• Wellington City Council is considering demolishing its Municipal Office Building to ensure the future of the National Music Centre. Works to refurbish the existing building had blown out to $84M. More info here.

Retail

• The business that operates homeware retailer Nido has been placed into receivership. The 27,000 sqm store opened in June 2020 after a $59M development of the site. More info here.

Hotels

• CPG Hotels have purchased the former Heritage Hotel in Hanmer Springs and will re-open the hotel before Christmas. The hotel will undergo a full refurbishment next year to turn it into a luxury 5-star Fable branded resort. More info here.
• Accor Hotels open two new hotels in New Zealand in 2021. The 96-room Mercure Auckland Queen Street will open early 2021, and the 60-room Sebel Wellington Lower Hutt will open mid-2021. More info here.

Residential

• Statistics NZ and BRANZ estimate 28,000 homes in New Zealand are damp and have visible mould. Just under half of these homes are in Auckland. More info here.
• Home ownership is at its lowest rate in almost 70 years. The current rate of 64.5% is down from a peak of 73.8% in the 1990s. More info here.

 Government

• Wellington City Council is considering loaning earthquake-prone building owners funds to complete seismic strengthening works before their deadlines. There are 563 buildings that require work. More info here.
• Victoria University has leased 11 hectares of council land in Wellington to plant a native tree forest. The university will be able to receive carbon credits for the forest. More info here.
• The Court Theatre development in Christchurch is progressing to the next stage of design work. The $39M project includes a 360-seat auditorium. More info here.

Copyright ? Chris Farhi 2020. All rights reserved.