Lederer swoops on Corrimal centre

Billionaire Paul Lederer has bought Stockland Corrimal in a play valuing the centre at $70 million.

Paul Lederer, owner of the Western Sydney Wanderers, at Pirtek Stadium. Picture: Mark Evans

Billionaire Paul Lederer has struck a fresh property deal, swooping on Stockland Corrimal in a play valuing the centre north of Wollongong at about $70 million.

The group snapped up the neighbourhood centre, anchored by a Woolworths supermarket and Dan Murphy’s store, in a direct deal.

Stockland has been looking to offload some of its retail holdings and said “in line with our strategy to recycle capital, we have entered into an agreement with the Lederer Group to divest the Stockland Corrimal shopping centre”.

The sale is expected to be ­finalised in the coming weeks and the Lederer Group will be ­responsible for leasing and managing the centre.

The listed company earlier offered Stockland Cairns — a 49,532sq m subregional shopping centre in Queensland’s north — and also an interest in the expanded Stockland Green Hills mall, in East Maitland, NSW. It came close to a deal with TH Real Estate but that did not go ahead.

Stockland is also selling its centre in the Newcastle suburb of Jesmond, which was last valued at $160m. The centre, built on 5ha and anchored by Woolworths, Aldi and Big W, as well as 75 specialty stores, has new casual dining and medical precincts. The Corrimal centre, which spans a gross lettable area of 9,795sq m, was last valued in 2015 at $75m on a capitalisation rate of 6.75 per cent.

Stockland picked up the asset in 2003 and it cost the group, including additions, $45.3m. The centre has 38 specialty stores and generates annual sales of $98m.

Mr Lederer, the Western Sydney Wanderers chairman, is also undertaking another property play with funds giant Charter Hall. His property operation is buying a building in the northern Sydney suburb of St Leonards from an office fund the listed group is relaunching.

Lederer Property is buying the tower from Charter Hall’s Direct PFA Fund, that has been repositioned as a trust focused on government-leased tenants.