The former ANZ branch is on the corner of 124 Main St and Geange St, Upper Hutt.
The former premises of the ANZ bank on the corner of 124 Main St and Geange St in central Upper Hutt is for sale along with a small retail property in the same street.
The 646 sq m, two-level bank property was purpose-built for the ANZ on the prominent site in 1978 and is now vacant.
"The property could have a retail, office or residential function," says Paul Cudby of Bayleys Wellington who, with colleague Grant Young, is selling the bank building by tenders closing on April 15.
Cudby says ANZ National Bank dropped the National Bank brand in 2012 and many of their branches around the country consolidated into one or other of the existing bank premises. In Upper Hutt, the ANZ relocated into the National Bank building across the road and rebranded that building.
"ANZ retains the lease paying annual net rent of $87,000 plus GST on the vacant Upper Hutt property which has a final expiry of October 2016," Cudby says.
"However, a new owner-occupier may see value in taking over the building themselves ahead of the ANZ's lease expiry and could occupy the building earlier than October next year.
"Residential living above commercial space has found some traction already in Upper Hutt and this could be a viable option for a new owner to pursue given the demand for rental accommodation in the area.
"For business operators looking for a decent-sized building in a location that has relatively quick access onto main arterials, this property could be a box-ticker," Cudby says.
The building is seismically rated at 72 per cent of New Building Standard and is zoned Business Commercial.
The second Upper Hutt central building for sale is at 49-53 Main Street and comprises a modest 230 sq m single-level retail building housing the long-established medical surgery of Drs Malik and Malik along with the Unichem Maidstone Pharmacy.
"The property has been home to a pharmacy for more than 20 years and the head lease is with Unichem," says Mark Sherlock of Bayleys Wellington says who is marketing it for auction on April 16.
Sherlock says the net income for the property is $41,388 plus GST per annum.
"Having a pharmacy and doctors' surgery co-occupy the building is a dynamic that has worked well for many years," he says.
"The pharmacy lease expires next year which hints at add-value potential although a new owner may be able to renegotiate an arrangement going forward."
The property consists of two interconnecting spaces with the pharmacy having retail and dispensary functions. An internal hallway leads through to the doctors' consulting rooms and a waiting/reception area which is accessed either from Main Street or from the rear car park area and service lane via Royal Street.
"Upper Hutt remains a service town with a local population base of around 40,000 so there is always room for a pharmacy and a doctors' surgery and this has been a useful location for the current tenants," says Sherlock.
"While other retail and business dynamics are fluid in Upper Hutt, core services such as medical offerings endure."
He says that in the wider Wellington region terms, Upper Hutt continues to offer value-for-money for commercial property investors.