Commercial Confidential: Brisbane property, leasing news and gossip

A leading Brisbane agency boss has resigned after 30 years in the industry — and not even he is sure about his next move.

AFTER almost 30 years in the commercial property industry, Glen Wright has decided on a change of direction.

Wright, who been Queensland managing director of Cushman & Wakefield for the past four years, has resigned. His last day in the top job will be on Friday.

Commercial Confidential: All the latest Brisbane property news, gossip, leasing and sales information

Commercial Confidential: Brisbane property, leasing and sales news and gossip

Commercial Confidential: Brisbane property, leasing news and gossip

He told Commercial Confidential he “wasn’t sure about the future but I’ll be involved in the property industry in some way”.

In the meantime he’ll take five months off for some much needed R&R including a trip to Argentina.

Wright started his career in 1991 under Phil Ainsworth at King & Co, before joining CBRE for a two-year stint in Sydney.

He returned to Brisbane and started Wright Property in 2002 as a “one-man band”.

The agency grew and prospered while at the same successfully negotiating the global financial crisis.

After being courted by DTZ, Wright Property was bought by Cushman & Wakefield in 2015 and Wright became its first Queensland managing director.

“Leaving has been something we’ve been talking about since the start of this year,” he says.

“In terms of what’s going to be next I felt I wanted to have a break.

“But I’ll certainly be around the place helping clients and also staff, many who I’ve worked with for over 10 years.”

Glen Wright back in 2002.

Fund manager probed

AN INVESTIGATION has been launched into the micro-cap fund manager behind the proposed $180 million redevelopment of the historic Waltons Building in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley.

The Australian Securities Exchange has confirmed it was “examining” the $6 million Millinium Alternatives Fund (MAX), controlled by Millinium Capital.

The ASX suspended MAX from trading, a day after a meeting of unitholders was held to vote on whether to oust the Millinium Capital as the fund’s responsible entity.

Through an ASX announcement on the “results of a purported general meeting” Millinium Capital said resolutions to amend the MAX Constitution and remove it as the responsible entity and replace them with WA outfit Primary Securities failed with 28.19 per cent for and 71.81 per cent against.

In the ASX statement MAX said the meeting was “improperly convened” and proxy unitholders and Millinium boardroom representatives were barred from the gathering.

However, it seems that some unitholders saw the vote a different way and believe the resolutions were carried.

Regardless, an ASX spokesman said it was an ongoing investigation.

“The stock will remain suspended for the time being,” he said.

Meanwhile, Millinium is due to settle on the Waltons site at 240 Brunswick St and 11 Overells Lane on September 20.

The former Overells building which is part of the Waltons department store site in Fortitude Valley.

Lots on the block

RAY White Commercial Gold Coast is gearing up for a major auction program next month buoyed by the strength of interest from investors chasing value and income in a low-interest-rate environment.

Ray White Commercial director Greg Bell says the strength of the commercial market on the Gold Coast continues to defy expectations.

“The market nationally remains quite robust, despite a difficult economic climate,” he says.

“The volatility of the share market is starting to steer people back to property, and particularly commercial assets where returns have been very stable.

“This is possibly the best environment I have ever experienced to buy commercial property because of the yields and the quality of tenants.

“The Gold Coast market in particular is underpinned by strong migration levels, increasing demand and the low interest rate environment.

“Quality commercial assets offer returns of 5 to 6 per cent and this is arguably better than any asset class available at the moment.”

Ray White Commercial has listed eight properties to go under the hammer on October 3.

The properties include an income-producing redevelopment site at Southport, a vacant retail/commercial shop in Surfers Paradise and the largest vacant industrial site at Ballina’s Southern Cross Industrial Estate.