Buyers embrace auctions Seven Queensland properties worth more than $38m have been snapped up with buyers in a changing market happy to go “toe-to-toe’ with other ­bidders at auctions. Burgess Rawson partners Andrew Havig said buyers and sellers were embracing the auction concept and childcare centres and service stations ­remained popular. “Auctions provide the transparency that buyers want,’ he said. “We’re finding that those EOI (expressions of interest) campaigns … are not working as well as they did because in a changing market buyers want to see another bidder going toe-to-toe with them.’ There was $38.3m worth of properties sold in Queensland. They included: * Affinity Education Taigum, $7.125m (5.15 per cent); * Mayfield Early Education, Gordonvale (Cairns), $4.775m (5.5 per cent); * ForHealth tenanted Springfield Medical and Dental Centre, $6.49m (5.72 per cent); * Tranzmile tenanted industrial property at Kingaroy, $1.7m (6.91 per cent); * EG Group service station Brendale, $9.625m (5.71 per cent); * United Petroleum service station Yamanto, $6m (6.10 per cent). Mr Havig said despite interest rate rises well located and performing service stations were selling for tight yields. “We have seen strong interest in metro fuel and convenience retail sites over the last couple of months with all the national fuel retailers posting significant profits, leading to confidence in the underlying businesses,’ he said. Mr Havig said the ForHealth Medical and Dental Centre in Springfield attracted 12 registered bidders. “Bidders were attracted to the fact that it was an all-in-one medical offering,’ he said.

The Courier Mail