Mixed business opportunity in busy Putaruru

The Putaruru site includes a Challenge service station, a convenience and liquor store, Lotto agency and laundromat. Photo / Supplied

Provincial properties in the South Waikato towns of Putaruru and Tokoroa, both with excellent exposure to State Highway 1, will be auctioned by Bayleys this month.

The Putaruru unit, dominated by a service station, is a fully-leased, multi-faceted commercial property, while the Tokoroa offering is an industrial site.

Quinn Ngo, Bayleys Auckland and Brendon Bradley, Bayleys Waikato are handling the sale of 105-107 Tirau St, Putaruru, a 274sq m commercial building on 2440sq m of land in two titles.

It will go under the hammer in Bayleys Auckland's auction room on September 23 as part of the agency's latest Total Property portfolio.

It is located on busy State Highway 1 at the northern entrance to Putaruru's main retail and commercial centre and benefits from exposure to high volumes of passing traffic.

The building was purpose-built as a service station in the 1950s with various additions since, including a liquor store in 2000 and the new canopy in 2001.

The sole tenant operates a Challenge service station, a convenience store, Lotto agency, a Laundromat and an adjacent liquor store which gives the business five diverse income streams to stop passing traffic.

"This is the first service station drivers see approaching Putaruru from the north, so it captures plenty of through traffic," says Bradley.

The tenant is in the second five-year term of the lease, which has guarantees in place. The property is producing net annual rental income of $61,480, plus GST. Rental reviews are bi-annual and the tenant pays 100 per cent of the outgoings.

The freehold property in Tokoroa fronting State Highway 1, which is expected to appeal to owner occupiers and investors, will be auctioned by Bayleys Waikato on September 24.

Brendon and Lynn Bradley, of Bayleys Tauranga, and Blair Hutcheson of Bayleys Waikato are marketing 46 Browning St, Tokoroa, comprising 3925sq m of freehold industrial land with a 620sq m single-level workshop building to the rear.

"The site has low building coverage, presently opening up possibilities for expansion or redevelopment in the future," says Bradley.

"It is currently set up for two tenancies, but only the rear portion of the warehouse is occupied at the moment - with no formal lease in place - by Crawford Logging. The opportunity is there for a new owner to formalise the arrangement and maintain an income strand while other options are explored, or to start afresh.

"It would also be fair to say that the rear unit is currently returning a rental below market rates for Tokoroa so the current gross rental of $12,000, plus GST, per annum is on the light side."

The occupied rear portion of the unit is about 345sq m and comprises two areas of workshop and storage space, including mezzanine space, basic staff amenities and three tall roller vehicle access doors leading out to the side yard.

The vacant front tenancy is around 275sq m and has been developed as an administration area with an office and sales counters plus an "L-shaped" display/storage area and roller vehicle access doors to both the front and side.

Zoned general industrial under the South Waikato District Council's Operative District Plan, the property has the advantage of adjoining the new Browning St Industrial Estate at the Southern entrance to Tokoroa.

"The new industrial estate is on the old Tokoroa sawmill site, which Carter Holt Harvey has split into an industrial park," says Bradley. "This makes the property that we are marketing ideal for automotive operations, a contractor's yard, distribution, manufacturing, machinery sales - in fact, any activity with a light or heavy industrial leaning."

It is security fenced and the front and side yards are paved, allowing for large vehicle turning, plus parking.

"The site is owned by Tokoroa Towing and Wrecking, which previously occupied it. This opens the way for a visionary owner-occupier who recognises a good opportunity to become established in this key location or for an investor to attract solid tenants," says Bradley.