Property Investors Cheque Out Investment Potential At Provincial Bank Branch Up For Sale

The land and building housing the Westpac bank branch in the Waikato township of Matamata have been placed on the market for sale.

The premises at 40 Arawa Street in the centre of the town’s business district features a 310-square metre building sitting on 392 square metres of freehold land.

Westpac is one of New Zealand’s ‘big five’ retail banks, which combined, hold some 90 percent of loans and mortgages in New Zealand. The Westpac branch in Matamata operates in all sectors of retail banking - including personal, business, and agri’ business, and has been operating from the Arawa Street premises for nine years.

Nearby notable commercial tenancies around Arawa Street include the Matamata branches of livestock and farm services firm Farm Source, building materials retailer Mitre 10, Countdown supermarket, multiple stand-alone food and beverage outlets, along with the town’s civic administration centre and library.

Westpac is currently on a lease at its Matamata branch running through to 2024 with a further four-year right of renewal – generating rental income of $59,325 plus GST and operating expenses. The next rental review date for the property is in 2024.

The rectangular shaped freehold property and building at 40 Arawa Street in Matamata is now being marketed for sale by auction on August 10 through Bayleys Waikato. Salesperson Josh Smith said the property had a seismic rating of more than 67 percent of new build standards, and enjoyed a prominent position in Matamata’s town centre – sustained by ample free customer parking spaces immediately outside.

Smith said the internal layout of the Arawa Street building was typical of a retail banking environment - comprising a large open-plan area with office cubicles around the periphery, meeting rooms, and staff amenities situated behind private doors. The building also had rear access for staff, along with parking for three vehicles, from a private service lane running behind the row of terraced shops in which the premises was located.

“Banking premises, as is evident with Westpac in Matamata, are maintained at high levels in keeping with their professional status. The current owner of 40 Arawa Street has very much taken a ‘hands-on’ interest in ensuring the building is an easy-care investment - by always overseeing any facilities management issues as and when they arose,” he said.

“For example, the premises has been recently re-roofed with high-grade steel, in addition to its street frontage being kept at a high standard. As a result, the building has always delivered good rental yields from an appreciative tenant.”

As a rural services township with a population of some 7,806 residents according the 2018 census, Matamata comes under the jurisdiction of the Matamata Piako District Council. The town’s businesses derive much of their income from the dairying, equine and cropping sectors of primary industry, along with tourism linked to the Lord of the Rings Hobbiton attraction on the outskirts of town.

“Recent sales of vacant premises along Arawa Street have reflected strong demand for retail space in this part of central Matamata,” Smith said.

Click here for more information on the listing.

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