Newcastle becomes pub hotspot with six deals in six months
Newcastle has become a sought-after destination for Sydney publicans and investors with six prominent venues in the region changing hands in the space of six months, all to Sydney buyers.
In the latest deals, the Belmont Hotel on Lake Macquarie and Salamander Tavern in Port Stephens sold off-market to separate Sydney buyers for a combined $20 million through hotel brokers Andrew Jolliffe and Dan Dragicevich of HTL Property.
They follow Sydney investment house Iris Capital, led by Sam Arnaout, acquiring the Sydney Junction Hotel in Hamilton, the Gunyah Hotel in Belmont and the Argenton Hotel in Glendale last September for about $30 million
Mr Arnaout followed this triple-swoop by also buying Elemore Vale’s Shaft Tavern in December for about $12 million.
The Belmont Hotel was bought by Sydney publican Don Hodge, adding to a portfolio that includes Warners at the Bay on the Central Coast, acquired last May.
The large-format venue covers 3753 square metres and includes 23 gaming devices. It made unfortunate headlines in Newcastle this week after an alleged assault of a pub manager by a patron.
“We’ve been deliberate in searching for acquisition opportunities such as the Belmont Hotel, and given our ownership of the nearby Warners At The Bay, feel that there will exist some potential operational synergies,” Mr Hodge said.
The vendor was The Irvin Group, led by Joe Irvin, which owns multiple venues in NSW and Queensland.
The Salamander Tavern was sold to another prominent Sydney publican.The vendor was an entity controlled by John Robertson, Richard Shorten and Stuart Burgess.
Mr Dragicevich said the sales reflected a number of recent and significant Newcastle region hotel sales to experienced Sydney hoteliers, “who are investing time assessing the many opportunities found in an area so close to Sydney”.
“The major city markets will continue to enjoy greater prominence in terms of both volume and weighting, but the emergence of a patent appetite for A grade properties in significant regional markets such as Newcastle, northern coastal NSW and south-east Queensland has never been as strong,” he said.
