- Bayleys agent Ryan Johnson is selling the $300 million Seascape tower "as is, where is" in Auckland.
- The sale includes an entire city block with significant interest from global buyers.
- Stage one of the sales campaign closes Thursday, with the process potentially concluding in October.
Bayleys agent Ryan Johnson was having breakfast in Singapore with robots clearing the table when OneRoof called to check in on the Seascape, the $300 million, partially-built Auckland apartment tower he is selling “as is, where is” on behalf of receivers.
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Johnson, the agency's national director of commercial property sales, was on a global roadshow in a country packed with skyscrapers and talking to would-be buyers about the high-rise that was destined to become New Zealand’s tallest residential building before the collapse of its developer, Shundi Customs.
The sale is not just for the Seascape but for an entire city block, on Auckland's Customs Street East, which also includes the heritage Britomart Hotel known as the White Rabbit, and Ballantyne House.
Johnson describes the property as an “irreplaceable asset” and said it was attracting some serious interest.
Bayleys head of commercial property Ryan Johnson: “We've had 44 [interested buyers] in our data rooms - that's a huge amount." Photo / Fiona Goodall
After breakfast, Johnson and colleagues had 13 meetings scheduled, including with hotel chains and branded residences, although he declined to name any of the interested parties. Other countries on the roadshow, he said, were Hong Kong, the US, and Australia.
Stage one of the sales campaign closes on Thursday, and while Johnson said offshore interest has been significant, that does not mean a foreign entity will end up buying the Seascape.
The roadshow is where interested parties can question Bayleys, who are selling with global real estate partner Knight Frank, but it’s mainly where the sellers can vet the buyers.
“We’re really just running the ruler over everybody and joining dots with the hoteliers and branded residences and developers, and the debt side for those lenders that want to be involved, and then offshore capital that wants to partner up with local partners.”
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Interest was such that Johnson has no doubt the Seascape will sell: “We've had 44 [interested buyers] in our data rooms - that's a huge amount," he told OneRoof.
“The data room is for those who sign NDAs (Non-Disclosure Agreements) and start spending money - looking at documents and doing their due diligence.”
Once potential buyers have submitted an expression of interest by 4pm on July 2, the process moves to stage two, where a certain number are selected to have access to more sensitive information.
The favoured candidate at the end of stage two would then be allowed to conduct full due diligence, which might require another two or three months. An actual sale might not happen until October.
An artist’s impression of what the 56-storey Seascape would look like once completed. Photo / Supplied
The Seascape penthouses were pitched to buyers as the ultimate statement in high-rise living. Photo / Supplied
Johnson would not be drawn on price but said there was already a significant value in the property. “That five-level basement is irreplaceable. You would not build that again on the Auckland waterfront. That is a huge asset,” he said.
Johnson told OneRoof in May that the basement of the Seascape was one of the best basement car parks in the CBD, “like five levels of basement car parking near the waterfront. That in itself is a structural feat.”
He did not think that the tower would be demolished. “Basically, someone will close it in, in terms of weather-tightness. Someone ultimately will finish it," he said in May.
According to demolition experts, pulling down the tower would be tricky and costly.
The Seascape was launched to much fanfare almost a decade ago, with developer Shundi Customs promising it would be at 187m, the country’s tallest residential tower. But the project went awry before completion.
Peter Ward, managing director of Ward Demolition, told OneRoof earlier this month that demolishing the Seascape would be complex and expensive – but probably simpler than the demolition of the 28-storey Hotel Grand Chancellor in Christchurch following the earthquakes there in 2011.
Experts believe demolishing the Seascape would be a costly exercise. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
The tower has been a feature of the Auckland skyline since construction began in earnest in 2019. Photo / Supplied
That building cost about $10m to bring down, and demolishing the Seascape would likely cost considerably more, but “anything you build you can de-build”, he said.
“They built it up – you’re just going to reverse engineer it. The last piece they put on there with the crane will be the first piece that probably comes back off.”
The building was safe for a few years, but the longer it was left, the steel and other components would degrade, he said.
Mike Woods, Auckland director for Prendos Surveyors, said he had no idea about costs, but was curious about what might happen with the Seascape. “You’re going to need all kinds of investigations: What’s the quality of the work? Is it actually compliant? If you can’t see things, what do you have to do to get those satisfactory inspections?”
Due diligence, he said, would include finding out what compliance documents were in place, and that would likely cost a couple of hundred thousand dollars, but those were expected costs for a purchaser.
“It’s information you absolutely have to know. It might cost you $200,000 to find this out, but that information is worth millions.”
- 69-105 Customs Street East, Auckland Central, is for sale, deadline closing July 2
