The Court House Hotel in the NSW far north coast has been put to market, offering a diverse business with upside in the State’s arts and lifestyle precinct.
Located in the middle of main street Murwillumbah, the two-storey Court House occupies an 898sqm block, offering public bar, bistro, gaming room with 21 EGMs, alfresco footway seating at the front and beer garden at the rear, and 14 accommodation rooms – six with an ensuite.
Murwillumbah is just 30 kilometres from Gold Coast Airport, and 130 kilometres from the Brisbane CBD. It has a local population of more than 9,000, and excellent ‘pubs per capita’ ratio.
The Court House is one of only hotels two in town with gaming machines, showing average weekly gaming revenue for FY19 surpassing $20k.
It has been owned since 2014 by Brisbane-based investors Andrew Scrivenor and Tom Bennett, who after five years commuting semi-regularly have determined to test the market.
“We both live in Brisbane, and while we are not at the pub all that often, we really want something a bit closer to home at our stage of life,” explained Scrivenor.
“It has been a great investment for Tom and I, and we have been very lucky with the consolidation of hotels in Murwillumbah and growth in gaming during our tenure, so it isn’t without a touch of regret that we sell.”
Scrivenor and Bennett engaged HTL Property’s Blake Edwards and Glenn Price, who note the upside potential across departments.
“Only five of the hotel’s 21 gaming entitlements are in a smoking solution, and the venue is rarely trading to the full extent of its 3am licence,” reports Edwards.
Price, HTL’s Queensland director, points to its high pedestrian traffic and low proximate competition.
“The pub is located in the busy Murwillumbah CBD, on the north-western shore of the Tweed River, which is where about 80 per cent of the residents of the town live.”
Closely following the significant sale of the Coolangatta Sands on the other side of the border, market expectations on the Court House should see sale price north of $7 million.
The freehold going concern of the Court House Hotel is being sold via Expressions of Interest, closing Thursday, 5 September.
