MA Financial, Coombes Buy Central Melbourne Mall From IFM for $110M

MA Financial Group and Coombes Property Group have teamed up to acquire Midtown Melbourne, a retail-led mixed-use asset in the city’s centre, from IFM Investors for A$154 million ($110 million), as shopping-driven assets regain favour with investors.

The nine-level freehold property at 246 Bourke Street sits at the entrance to the Bourke Street Mall and comprises 15,233 square metres (163,967 square feet) of retail and office space, according to a Thursday statement by broker Cushman & Wakefield.

Sydney-based Coombes acquired the asset as its first major investment in Victoria, with MA retaining an ongoing mandate to provide asset and property management services for the property.

“Midtown Melbourne aligns with the investment and asset management capabilities of our core real estate platform,” said Chris Lock, head of core real estate at MA. “This mandate reflects our long-term conviction in high-quality retail and office assets and further strengthens our position as a leading manager in Australia’s real estate sector.”

Midtown Milestone

The transaction marks the largest retail deal in Melbourne’s central business district since 2024 and comes as investors regain confidence in prime city-centre shopping assets amid a recovery in foot traffic and leasing activity, said Cushman & Wakefield, whose team of Oliver Hay, Trent Weir, Leon Ma and Daniel Wolman advised on the sale.

The property sits on a 2,787 square metre site with frontages to Bourke Street, Swanston Street and Little Bourke Street and receives over 4 million pedestrians annually, according to marketing materials. Key tenants include HSBC, Chemist Warehouse, Daiso and W-Cosmetics, with Japanese retailer Muji set to replace Telstra in 2027 with a three-level flagship store.

Cushman & Wakefield said the Midtown campaign generated 125 enquiries and 13 offers, underscoring strong appetite from domestic private capital groups for large-scale retail assets in city centres with secure income and repositioning potential.

The broker said the asset traded at more than A$10,000 per square metre, with buyers attracted by the property’s scale, location and ability to benefit from the regeneration of Victoria capital’s retail core.

The deal follows Melbourne-based IFM’s sale earlier this year of the city’s General Post Office building to local investors for A$88 million, as the pension-fund-backed manager continues recycling capital from Aussie real estate assets.

For MA, the latest retail move comes after the ASX-listed alternative asset manager agreed late last year to acquire Hyperdome Town Centre southeast of Brisbane from Queensland Investment Corporation for A$678.7 million. MA said in Thursday’s announcement that its core real estate platform actively manages A$4.5 billion in retail and office assets.

MA’s push into private credit, meanwhile, has drawn backing from US private equity firm Warburg Pincus for an Australian real estate lending vehicle and from China Merchants Bank’s CMBI unit for an Asia Pacific leveraged-loan fund.

The Midtown purchase also comes amid a busy stretch for privately held Coombes, which was selected in December alongside Lendlease and Mirvac as development and delivery partner for the Hunter Street station precinct above Sydney Metro West.

Victorian Revival

Investors picked up A$287.2 million in Victoria retail properties during the first quarter, with large-format retail continuing to attract strong investor demand, according to CBRE.

The consultancy said rents for super-prime retail properties in Melbourne’s central business district rose 3.6 percent from the fourth quarter and 11.5 percent year-on-year as flagship projects revitalised the city’s core shopping precinct.

Large-format retail rents climbed 12.7 percent year-on-year, supported by resilient household spending and retailer expansion across suburban growth corridors, while regional shopping centres posted 3.1 percent annual rental growth.

Among recent Melbourne retail trades, BWP Management agreed in January to sell the Chadstone Homeplus Homemaker Centre to fund manager Centuria Capital for A$86 million, representing a 1.1 percent premium to book value.

A Charter Hall fund earlier this year acquired Summerhill Shopping Centre from LaSalle Investment Management for A$91 million as part of a A$360 million portfolio purchase spanning three sub-regional propreties, highlighting continued investor appetite for defensive retail assets with stable income profiles.