Savills bring new director onboard to Melbourne capital transactions team
Savills Australia is welcoming a new director to help lead the Victorian business’ capital transactions division.
With 13 years’ experience in commercial property agency and valuations, James Girvan returns to Savills with $3 billion worth of commercial property transactions under his belt.
Girvan has relocated from Sydney to Melbourne to fill the role.
Some of the notable transactions that Garvin has been involved in include 231 Elizabeth Street for circa $350 million, 20 Hunter Street for circa $200 million, and 55 Clarence Street for $170 million.
He aims to set about “finding a home” for the capital that had not been able to break into the Sydney CBD market.
“Many local and offshore groups that have missed out on core Sydney CBD opportunities are now turning their attention to core Melbourne stock,” he said.
“As the development pipeline comes to fruition in the next two years, and with the current low vacancy and potential for rental growth, Melbourne will become a pivotal point of interest for investors.”
The move follows the appointment of Ben Parkinson as state director of Capital Transactions in October 2017, and the successful sales of 50 Franklin Street and 800 Collins Street late last year.
Parkinson said several local institutions were looking to re-weight their portfolios, with the Melbourne market providing tenant diversity given the even distribution across tenant sectors.
“There has been massive net absorption throughout the past few years and Docklands, among other precincts, is at capacity.
“Although the recent change in the city’s planning laws limits the availability of new sites, the population growth is creating pent-up demand for office space, with prime rents expected to increase by about 7.0% in the short to medium term.”
