Hammer down on car yards in key sites

The Kia car yard at 458 Great South Rd in Greenlane earns annual rent of $120,000.

Lease already renewed on popular Greenlane property while Papatoetoe has redevelopment potential

Two Auckland car yard sales sites, one occupied by a well-established tenant that has just renewed its lease and the other for sale with vacant possession, will go under the hammer this month as part of Bayleys' Total Property portfolio auction.

The first is a 787sq m freehold site in Greenlane at 458 Great South Rd which has been occupied by Winger Motors since 2011 and is producing net annual rental income of $120,000 plus GST.

The property is being marketed by Mike Adams and William Coates of Bayleys Auckland and will go up for auction on June 25.

Adams says Winger, which operates a Kia dealership from the site, has already renewed its lease for a further three years from August 2014 and has one further three-year right of renewal, giving a potential final expiry of July 31, 2020.

In addition to a yard area for displaying used cars, the property has a showroom for new cars and office facility of about 205sq m that was completed in the mid-2000s. It is next to Winger's Hyundai dealership with another Kia sales yard and preparation centre between the two.

"The property is situated in a very tightly held location," Adams says. "It is attracting interest from investors as well as owner-occupiers and developers."

"The rectangular, level site has excellent exposure to busy Great South Rd and ease of access to the main north-south State Highway 1 motorway system along with being well positioned within a popular residential and commercial area."

Coates says nearby business operators include Archibald and Shorter, Renault and Continental Cars.

"Greenlane has a well-established core of motor vehicle dealerships and is likely to remain a popular destination for car buyers," he says.

"Properties there should continue to attract and retain big brand tenants."

The 458 Great South Rd property currently has a Business 4 zoning where low- to medium-intensity light industrial and service uses are the dominant activities and it is zoned Light Industrial under the proposed Auckland Unitary Plan.

Also for sale as part of Bayleys' June 25 auction is a 916sq m car yard site at 2 Great South Rd, Papatoetoe, which is being offered for sale with vacant possession through Tony Chaudhary and Janak Darji of Bayleys Manukau.

The property is between Papatoetoe Intermediate and a medical centre which is part of a commercial strip that includes a superette and a panelbeating business. At present it is used as a second-hand-car sales yard with the ground floor of a large two-level residential dwelling at the rear of the site converted to provide a mechanical workshop and offices.

"The property could suit another owner-occupier and it has redevelopment potential given its highly visible frontage on to Great South Rd, which is the main arterial route connecting the two town centres of Papatoetoe and Otahuhu," says Chaudhary.

The site is currently zoned Business 1 which permits a broad range of small-scale business activities including offices, wholesale trade, retail, cafes and restaurants.

A similar zoning of Neighbourhood Centre is proposed under the Unitary Plan which allows for corner stores or small commercial strips within residential neighbourhoods, with buildings up to three storeys high incorporating residential accommodation on the upper floors.