The Rich List Laundy and Karedis families have prevailed in the $192 million race to buy the famed Sheraton Grand Mirage Resort on the Gold Coast from Star Entertainment Group and Hong Kong-listed Far East Consortium.
A consortium of the two families, which already which owns a number of well-known beachfront hotels including the Manly Pacific and Crown Plaza in Terrigal in NSW, has agreed to pay $52 million more than the $140 million the casino company and developer paid for it in 2017.
It’s a lower figure than the $200 million-plus the vendors were originally asking, but the sale represented a multiple of 21 times estimated calendar year 2023 EBITDA – an industry standard measure – and a price of about $650,000 per key, Star Entertainment said in a statement late on Monday.
“We had it in due diligence at $200 million last year. It’s still a really good price,” said commercial agent Sam McVay, who marketed the property with Dan McVay of McVay Real Estate, Karen Wales and Steven King of Colliers and Adam Bury and Taylor O’Brien of JLL.
“It’s the fourth time Dan and I have sold it. We like it.”
The families were bidding against Hawaii-based Outrigger Hospitality Group for the 295-room resort spread across 3.45 hectares of leasehold land and boasting 215 metres of beachfront, originally developed by the late businessman Christopher Skase, The Australian Financial Review reported last month.
The Laundy and Karedis families – worth $1.5 billion and $972 million respectively according to the Financial Review Rich List – are also eager to expand their hotel portfolios after being an underbidder on the Sofitel Brisbane, which was sold to Singapore’s CDL in March for $178 million.
The Laundys have also been buying accommodation hotels on their own, including the 72-room Mercure Centro Hotel in Port Macquarie, which the family acquired for about $25 million last year.
Article source: www.afr.com