Byron Bay’s Beach Hotel sold for $70m

The beachfront Byron Bay pub developed by John Cornell has been bought by a private equity firm for $70m.

The Beach Hotel in Byron Bay

The Beach Hotel in Byron Bay, developed by Paul Hogan sidekick John Cornell, has sold for an aggressive $70 million to a Melbourne-based private equity firm backed by the wealthy Liberman family.

The vendor, racing car driver Max Twigg, vehemently denied to The Australian last week that he was selling the pub in the iconic northern NSW township, adding: “I am a happy owner, I have been for ten years.”

But it was today confirmed the hotel, overlooking Byron’s Main Beach, has sold under a long settlement agreement to Impact Investment Group, in a record-breaking deal.

A decade ago Mr Twigg paid about $44 million for the Bay Street hotel, built by Mr Cornell in 1990 for about $9 million.

It is understood to have been sold by CBRE Agents Wayne Bunz and Daniel Dragicevich.

“We’re looking forward to settling this transaction in six months’ time,” said a spokesman for Impact Investment.

“It’s a great hotel, and we’ve already made a lot of progress planning our environmental upgrades and how we’ll work with the operator and locals to deliver real positive impacts for the Byron Bay community.”

The hotel’s licensee, Melbourne restaurateur John van Haandel, has exercised his option to continue running the popular hotel under the remainder of his long-term lease arrangements.

The hotel, Byron Bay’s largest venue, hit the market mid last year with price expectations of between $75m and $80m.

Impact Investment Group has more than $400 million in funds under management. Investors include wealthy individuals, families, institutional investors, corporations and foundations.

The Melbourne-based Libermans are among Australia’s richest families, with a wealth estimated by BRW in 2015 of $2.5 billion.