Motel chain goes up on block

One of New Zealand's largest privately owned accommodation chains - which includes three Rotorua motels - has gone up for sale.

The SilverOaks Group, worth about $40 million, includes Rotorua's SilverOaks Geyserland, SilverOaks Resort Heritage and the Gwendoline Court Motel as well as two properties in Auckland and one in Wellington.

Auckland-based Dennis and Dawn Wilson own the group with their son, Greg, but are selling up to retire after 40 years in the hospitality industry. The six properties are being sold by Bayleys either as one combined portfolio, or individually, through a tender campaign running until August 2.

Bayleys Rotorua agent Mark Slade said as marketing had only just begun it was difficult to accurately gauge the level and type of interest in the sale.

"There are obviously more buyers that could afford to buy one or two of the properties but who knows, there might be one buyer that wants the lot," he said. "We're expecting local interest in the local properties, some out of town interest in them and possibly international interest in the whole lot."

Mr Slade said at this stage he preferred not to put a value on the Rotorua properties, but would let the market determine their worth. He said while all had seen better days there was real potential for a buyer to step in and refurbish or redevelop them.

The Geyserland is a 68-room property overlooking the Whakarewarewa Thermal Valley with the capacity for the building of additional rooms, the Resort Heritage is a 41-room apartment style complex with a range of leisure activities and amenities while the Gwendoline Court Motel has 18 units. All are located on Fenton St.

Others in the group are the SilverOaks Oakwood Manor Motor Inn (53 rooms) and the SilverOaks Inn Silver Point (35 rooms) in Auckland plus the SilverOaks Hotel in Wellington (64 rooms).

Paul Dixon of Bayleys Auckland, who is heading the campaign, said the group was believed to be the second largest privately-owned portfolio of large accommodation providers in New Zealand after the Scenic Circle group.

"The chain's Rotorua sites lean towards the leisure market, while the Auckland and Wellington operations are more corporate focused," he said. "Tariffs for all properties within the SilverOaks group are firmly in the mid-range bracket commensurate with three-star rated hotels."

Mr Dixon said most of the hotels were in a fairly 'tired' stage of their lives and varying degrees of investment would be needed to restore them to former glories as well as modern interior décor - in the bedrooms and communal areas. However, he said the vendors' price expectations would reflect this.

"The opportunity exists now for an investor to purchase a substantial chain in one go to either add to any existing properties or to establish a footprint in the New Zealand market from which growth can be launched," he said.