Fiji resort land under hammer

The Fiji National Provident Fund (FNPF) has appointed Bayleys Real Estate to sell the partially completed Momi Bay Resort development in Fiji by mortgagee auction.

The auction will be held at the Intercontinental Fiji Golf Resort and Spa, Natadola Beach, Natadola, Fiji at 1.30pm on Wednesday, July 22.

Up for sale is the first stage of the development which encompasses over 350 residential sites, and a partially completed nine-hole golf course, club house and hotel complex.

The FNPF has recently taken over the Momi Bay property, 30 minutes' drive southwest of Nadi, as mortgagee in possession, and has said it has no intention of being involved in developing the property in the immediate term.

The sale will be managed by Bayleys Real Estate's executive chairman John Bayley and special projects manager Russell Adams in conjunction with Philip Toogood, managing director and partner of Bayleys Real Estate (Fiji) Limited.

Bayleys was the marketing agent for the first stage of the development and had sales agreements on over 80 per cent of the residential sites, many of which have spectacular elevated views over the resort area and golf course and along the Fijian coastline.

Adams said most of these purchasers had opted to have their deposits, which were held in interest-bearing trust accounts, refunded because the development had not been completed on schedule. However, there were 30 purchasers whose deposits remained in a trust account with Trustees Executors.

"A number of the original purchasers have expressed disappointment that the development has not been finished because it is in such a fantastic location," Adams said. "It is possible their interest could be rekindled if a new developer completed the development to the high standard that was originally envisaged for the project ..."

Before work stopped in late 2006, Momi was one of the largest resort projects being undertaken in the South Pacific.

Considerable structural construction work was completed on the resort's distinctive Fijian canoe-style bures as well as on Fiji's first over-water bungalows, located on a large lagoon. Three of six guest room blocks have been roofed and work is also well advanced on the remaining guest accommodation and facilities.

The first nine holes of the 18-hole championship golf course designed by Thomson Perrett to USPGA standard had been bedded down and the club house was also taking shape.

The residential sections are positioned on layered natural corridors from the forested highlands behind the resort, through the golf course and down to the white sand beaches, with building platforms selected for their views.

The first stage of the development encompasses 43ha of crown foreshore lease plus a mix of freehold and native lease titles.

"The outstanding location remains and the bones of a potentially world-class development are there," says John Bayley. "The necessary consents are still in place and the Fiji Government would like to see the project finished.

"At this stage we don't know what it might sell for because a sale of a project of this type and scale has not been attempted before in Fiji. But we will get a gauge of what interest there is and where the market is sitting over the next month or so ..."

Adams said the property would be marketed globally with the assistance of Bayleys' international affiliate Cushman & Wakefield which is one of the world's largest commercial real estate companies.

"They have a particularly strong presence in the resort and hotel sector and they will be helping us flush out any big international players that might be interested in picking up the project."