Rare retail offer in Northland tourist centre

Four retail units, three flats and two modern townhouses are for sale at 93-95 Vodanovich Road, Te Atatu South. Photo / Supplied

Retail and commercial units in a fully leased block in Paihia are for sale for the first time in decades

A block of seven fully leased shops and offices in a prime location in the heart of Paihia's main retail strip, in the Northland tourism centre, is for sale for the first time in more than 30 years.

The retail and commercial units in the mixed-use complex at 1 Williams Rd have been strata titled, and are to be auctioned individually on April 10 in Bayleys' central Auckland auction rooms as part of the agency's latest Total Property auction.

They are being marketed by Tonia Robertson of Bayleys Auckland, Dave Stanley of Bayleys Manukau and Ross Blackmore of Bayleys Northland.

"The shops have been in one family's ownership for over three decades and that family is now divesting of them to concentrate on other interests," says Robertson.

"The owners have indicated that in the past 20 of the 33 years they've owned this property, the shops have never been vacant for any significant period, with the only vacancy being one small office space of 62sq m, which was empty for a few months."

Robertson says the units are strongly positioned within the most intensively developed retail area in Paihia, about 60m from the waterfront, and benefit from up to 70 cruise-ship visits each year as well as a substantial number of other tourists and local patrons.

The units have substantial frontage to Williams Rd, Paihia's main shopping street, plus frontage to a covered and well-patronised mall area to the rear. Comprising two side-by-side commercial buildings totalling 1418sqm, the property encompasses 468sq m of retail space, 478sqm of restaurant/bar space and 471sqm of offices.

These were built in three stages, with the five retail shops at 1 Williams Rd established in 1965, the mall area with restaurant and bar space in 1981, and first-floor offices in 1986. The properties were strata titled by the vendor in 1994 but have been kept under the same ownership.

The Williams St shops comprise Paihia Dive, Cabbage Tree, Gold 'n' Gifts, Flying Fish and Take Note.

These range from 56sq m to 144sqm and sell a mix of dive and fishing equipment, clothing, books and stationery, jewellery, souvenirs and gifts, and contemporary design objects. In the mall is the popular King Wah Chinese restaurant/takeaway plus a restaurant/bar/caf with pokie machines.

Upstairs, three commercial offices accommodate legal firm P W Jones, chartered accountants PKF Poutsma Lemon and consulting engineering and surveyors firm Fraser Thomas.

Stanley says the units are part of a well-presented commercial complex and, as with other fully leased and well located commercial-retail properties in the coastal resort, do not come up for sale often.

"Paihia obviously has a small offering of good investment property because of its size, and most of it is very tightly held, so it is unusual for people to get an opportunity like this to buy into something that has a very good leasing history.

"The fact that the units are being offered for sale individually also makes them very accessible to smaller investors. Rentals on the offerings ranging from $28,600 per annum upwards puts them in an affordable price bracket for investors looking for exposure to a popular and growing tourist destination."