Macquarie gets bigger in Newmarket

Listed landlord Macquarie Goodman Property Trust increased its Newmarket presence yesterday, saying it is buying a third Carlton Gore Rd office block for $30.5 million.

The deal comes after the trust's $155 million capital-raising exercise, which closed last week fully subscribed. The funds are being used to partly fund the trust's purchase of properties worth $304.3 million from cornerstone unitholder the ASX-listed Macquarie Goodman Group.

The trust's units are trading at $1.14, down from $1.20 last month. It is buying 139 Carlton Gore Rd, expanding its presence in the area where it already owns the nearby Vector Centre and BTI House.

Settlement of the deal, brokered by former DTZ agent Jon Chomley, is expected next Wednesday. The vendor is Hossain and Isabelle Reyhani's Core City Developments.

The 5900sq m block, with 230 carparks, was completed last year and has ground-floor retail and three levels of office space.

Trust chief executive John Dakin said the building was "almost 85 per cent occupied". Once fully leased, it would return $2.6 million in rent annually. Tenants include Connell Wagner and Fujitsu NZ.

He said Newmarket was attractive because of its "prestigious shopping precinct, five to 10 minutes' drive to the CBD and proximity to main arterial roads, motorways, bus systems, rail networks and recreational facilities".

Last week, Macquarie Goodman Group bought Air New Zealand House in central Auckland from developer Trans Tasman Properties for $48.9 million.