Rising swell of interest as surf beach accommodation resort

Media Release
14.05.2019

Rising swell of buyer interest as surf beach accommodation resort placed up for sale

The land, buildings and business sustaining a commercial accommodation resort at one of Northland’s best surf beaches and beach holiday destinations has been placed on the market for sale.

The Waipu Cove Resort at Waipu Cove just 90 minutes north from Auckland and 40 mins south of Whangarei is a 12-apartment motel-style venue immediately adjacent to a camp ground and Waipu Cove Beach, which the owner describes as: “A slice of Pacific paradise…. a great place to rejuvenate and unwind.”

The business comprises a mix of studio, one, two, and three-bedroom apartments built around a shared swimming pool complex. Guests at Waipu Cove Resort can access the nearby sandy beach via a back gate giving direct access.

Included in the two-storey property is a 208 square metre four-bedroom/three-bathroom owner/manager’s apartment plus a 36 square metre garage/workshop with top floor views across Bream Bay over to Whangarei Heads and decking of 60 square metres giving all day sun.

The resort’s 550 square metres of buildings sit on some 2,300 square metres of freehold land zoned commercial accommodation.

Seasonal rack rates at Waipu Cove Resort range from a studio room at $130 per night to $375.00 per night for a three-bedroom apartment. The resort recorded a 67 percent occupancy rate for the year ending March 31, 2019 - showing yearly increases for the past five years.

Now the Waipu Cove Resort land, owner/manager’s residence, business management rights and most of the individual apartments at 891 Cove Road are being marketed for sale by negotiation through Bayleys Real Estate, with offers closing at 4pm on May 30,

Bayleys business brokers Carolyn Hanson and Wayne Scurrah said the offering was segmented into two tranches. The first portion was the owner/manager’s residence and the Waipu Cove Resort Management Rights business to all twelve apartments.

Mr Scurrah said the second tranche comprised eight individually-owned apartment-titled apartments, with the sale of these apartments available separately or as one sale together and as part of the owners/ managers residence and business.

The remaining four apartments within the Waipu Cove Resort complex would remain privately owned but would be available for rent by holidaymakers under the existing management agreement which has been operating for seven years.

“Essentially, Waipu Cove Resort functions under a similar ‘pool’ structure to some of the big-city international hotels operate – where individually-owned rooms are leased back to the branded accommodation provider, and apartment owners are paid a net return once allocated operating expenses and a management fee are taken out,” Mr Scurrah said.

The Waipu Cove Resort apartments are all administered under a body corporate group, representing all apartment owners. The body corporate group works with the business owner to administer all expenditure and the maintenance of the premises- both internally and externally - to ensure high levels of resort-style accommodation are delivered in accordance with guest expectations.

“Any new owner of the Waipu Cove Resort business and available eight apartments would of course be first in line to purchase those remaining four apartments as and when they come up for sale – eventually unifying the entire complex into one ownership structure,” Mr Scurrah said.

Waipu Cove Resort is the biggest motel-style accommodation provider in the southern portion of Bream Bay - with minimal competition of a similar standard, catering to both tourists and corporate travelers. The property provides on-site guest parking for 12 vehicles,” said Ms Hanson.

“Aside from a common laundry, all the apartments within Waipu Cove Resort are self-contained – featuring their own kitchen amenities, lounges, and bathroom facilities. They also all have shared access to an in-ground heated swimming pool, a spa pool and well-appointed outdoor BBQ area all situated within a tropical setting,” she said.

Under the current management agreement in place, apartment owners are entitled to a maximum 60-days personal use of their apartment each year.

“Bringing those apartments back under the umbrella of a singular ownership entity would not only increase the resort’s occupancy rate, but also grow gross revenues,” Ms Hanson said.

“The Waipu Cove Resort business could either be operated by the owner or under management - with cleaners and other contractors employed as required throughout the seasons.”

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