CLAREMONT’S Bay View Terrace and Rokeby Road in Subiaco are Perth’s contribution to a new list of the 20 most expensive suburban shopping strips in Australia in which to operate.
CLAREMONT’S Bay View Terrace and Rokeby Road in Subiaco are Perth’s contribution to a new list of the 20 most expensive suburban shopping strips in Australia in which to operate.
Sydney’s Oxford Street is the most expensive suburban retail shopping strip in Australia, fetching an average rent of $2,600 a square metre.
NSW held five of the top 20 spots, Queensland four and Victoria one. The survey did not take into account CBD retail assets, which demanded the highest rents in all States.
The study, undertaken by CB Richard Ellis, found that the average rent per square metre for Bay View Terrace (ranked 15th) is $775, while Rokeby Road (ranked 17th) came in at $625.
This is not to say that Western Australian retail lags behind the rest of Australia, however.
In an investment performance index for the past nine years, WA retail was ranked the highest in the country, with a return of 14.7 per cent.
The income and capital return on WA retail investments was higher than any other State, and retail investment Australia wide had higher returns than both commercial and industrial property.
CB Richard Ellis research manager Andrew Woodley Page said Western Australia’s strength came from a high demand backed by housing sector expenditure.
“Retail space is very solid in Perth and has grown 5.5 per cent in the past year. It is extremely tightly held by investors,” he said.
“The great deal of spending on residential underpins retail performance, and WA’s expanding population ensures that demand is there.
“There is a remarkable correlation between housing approvals and the Harvey Norman share price.”
There has been a trend towards strip shopping, rather than centre shopping, in recent years and many traditional retail groups have moved to bulky goods showroom retailing locations.
Despite this, Perron Group general manager Ian Armstrong said shopping centres were still in demand at all investment levels.
“Whereas the commercial building market is subject to the cycles of the economic market, the retail cycle is geared towards population growth, consumer confidence and inflation – there is lower risk with retail investment,” he said.
Mr Armstrong said putting together a retail development was very difficult, but once a centre was running with some major retailers as tenants, they were virtually guaranteed to stay.
