Charter Hall (Charter Hall) and GIC have established a joint venture to acquire the 50 Marcus Clarke office building in Canberra, Australia for A$335 million. 

GIC will acquire a 95% interest in the property, while Charter Hall will acquire the other 5%.

Located in a prime position in Canberra’s CBD with access to all major amenities and transport facilities, 50 Marcus Clarke is a modern institutional A-grade office building with over 40,000 sq meters of net leasable area and is currently fully leased to a government tenant. The office building is built to a high standard with above market sustainability credentials (5.5 star NABERS energy rating, 6.0 Green Star rating).

Lee Kok Sun, Chief Investment Officer of Real Estate, GIC, said, “We are pleased to acquire this iconic office building in Canberra’s CBD with Charter Hall, a leading market player with strong experience in the Canberra market. This acquisition will add to the diversification of GIC’s office portfolio across key cities in the Australian market where GIC has been investing in for many years. With the opening of our Sydney office, we look forward to supporting the management of this asset and to generate more value-add with partners, such as Charter Hall.”

Kishore Gotety, Co-Head (Asia ex-China) of Real Estate, GIC, added, “We are confident that the stability of Canberra’s office market, coupled with resilient, high quality tenancy demand makes this acquisition a strong investment. The Canberra market has performed well during COVID, with continued macroeconomic growth and low office vacancy. Going forward, we expect steady office demand, underpinned by healthy employment growth and government demand. Lastly, we look forward to leveraging Charter Hall’s strong leasing capabilities to create more value-add.”

David Harrison, Managing Director & Group CEO, Charter Hall, said, “This strategic acquisition further strengthens our 15-year multi-sector relationship with GIC and reflects our strong market position and continued conviction for office assets with strong underlying investment fundamentals. We are also pleased to advance our relationship with the Australian Government as a major tenant customer, and further increase our exposure to Canberra’s growing office market as our Office portfolio in Canberra approaches $1 billion.”

Carmel Hourigan, Office CEO, Charter Hall, said, “50 Marcus Clarke is a well-located, modern asset that meets our high standards for sustainability and aligns well with our strategy of acquiring properties leased to high-quality tenants. It provides a flexible, future-focused and agile work environment, which will help the public sector maintain an engaged, productive and healthy workforce.”

CBRE’s Michael Andrews and Nic Purdue represented the vendor. Mr Andrews noted, “Canberra has been a standout office market in 2021, with investment activity on track to hit a new record. We are currently tracking $1.17 billion in total office sales, which has completely eclipsed the decade average of $375 million, with another $300 million in sales in the pipeline.

“This coincides with Canberra recording its lowest vacancy rate since 2012 amid ongoing confidence in the local economy, despite the backdrop of COVID-19. The weight of investment capital targeting the ACT market was evident in the recent sale campaigns for 38 Sydney Avenue, 25 Constitution Avenue and 2-6 Bowes Street, with the bidder depth for these assets highlighting the demand for government-backed income in addition to burgeoning first-time investor interest in Canberra.”

Mr Purdue added, “Economic indicators have remained positive, with the city having avoided the protracted and multiple COVID related lockdowns in other states. This has aided business confidence throughout 2020 and 2021, with significant leasing activity signalling that our workforce will continue to use office space in a meaningful way. The Commonwealth and Territory governments have been active participants in the market throughout COVID and several major leases have been executed, despite global uncertainty, as government policies evolve.”

The transaction is subject to relevant regulatory approvals.