John Musca of JLL’s Hotels & Hospitality Group in conjunction with Elliott O’Shea of JLL’s Metropolitan Investments have successfully negotiated the sale of 116-118 Jonson Street, Byron Bay. The prime 4,287sqm site was privately owned for over 37 years, operating as ‘Byron Bay Backpackers’ a local institution of a kind. The Expressions of Interest campaign saw over 150 direct enquiries and multiple bids, with the successful purchaser acquiring the site on cash unconditional terms.

The sale campaign which was run late in 2020 benefitted from buoyant market conditions, as domestic and offshore capital sought to purchase one of the last remaining sites of scale in the shire. Specifically, Jonson Street has been a key area of focus for Byron’s commercial market with developments including the Mercato & Palace Cinema complex, a proposed 4-star hotel on the former Woolworths site and a new hospitality and retail complex planned for 90-96 Jonson Street. In addition, the virtual ‘sell-out’ success of the currently under construction Jonson Lane, South Jonson Street mixed-use development, recently served as a barometer for Byron demand with 25 of the 26 apartments sold prior to market.

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Byron Bay offers a world-class lifestyle that attracts over 2.2 million visitors annually. Its tourism base is driven by domestic travellers, drawn to its relaxed and eclectic mix of beaches, culture, music and produce and already quantifiably benefitting from Australia’s renewed domestic travel and remote working focus. In terms of median house price, the shire is now recognised as Australia’s most expensive residential city.

The transaction comes on the back of the recent sale of 90-96 Jonson Street for $29.8 million, also subject to proposed site optimisation plans, and with the Mercato complex and adjacent former Woolworths site currently being offered to market via an Expression of Interest program.

JLL’s Director and Head of Metropolitan Investments, Elliott O’Shea stated that “the site was sold on a cash unconditional basis with no development approval in place. This displays the high demand throughout the process from both domestic and offshore capital, who were attracted to the strong residential market demand for Byron Bay.”

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JLL’s Managing Director of Hotels & Hospitality Group – Australia, John Musca said that “the outcome is further testimony to the global investment community’s recognition of Byron Bay as being at the beginning of a strong commercial and community growth cycle which will see it further evolve as one of the Top 5 places to live in the world. Council have done a great job in navigating the necessary expansion of the town’s infrastructure, business and services whilst preserving its beautiful skyline and unique atmosphere, with Jonson Street identified as the most appropriate location to facilitate essential development.”

Michael Grassi, Head of Development at Podia stated, “We are thrilled to add this rare site to our growing pipeline of projects. There is no other place globally quite like Byron Bay and together with architects Richards & Spence, we are developing a scheme for the site that will contribute positively to Byron Bay’s identity and its town centre.”

Katie Wilson, representative of the long-time family owners said that “it was a really emotional sale for our family and we couldn’t be happier with the outcome and how John and Elliott at JLL steered the process, they really were exceptional from start to finish.”

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