Investors jockey for position to buy equestrian centre

Media Release

6.3.2017

Investors jockey for position to buy burgeoning equestrian centre.

A burgeoning equestrian centre designed as a stabling and dressage arena training facility for young horse riders in mid-Northland has been placed on the market for sale.

The freehold land and buildings at 12 Parry Road in Mangapai just south of Whangarei have been developed over the past four years as a show-jumping venue, which doubles up as a short-stay horse accommodation business.

The 4.15 hectare property features three horse box stables, an adjacent large high-stud implement shed and workshop for potential configuration as a tack room facility, a 65 metre X 35 metre horse arena with jumps, and a separate two bay implement shed which can be used to store feed and property maintenance equipment.

The Mangapai property and infrastructure assets are being marketed for sale at auction on March 31 by Bayleys Whangarei. Salespeople Vinni Bhula and Catherine Stewart said the venue had considerable opportunity to ramp up the number of horses which could be accommodated on site, and develop a regular clientele for utilising the show jumping arena.

Mr Bhula said income analysis on the revenue potential for the property showed each stable could be let for between $150-$250 per week depending on the level of services provided to the tenant animal – ranging from feed through to regular exercise and training programmes.

“Additionally, there is the potential to accommodate a further five or six horses in the paddocks. A generally acknowledged fee for grazing and hosting horses outdoors is between $50 - $145 per week, again dependant on the level of animal service provided,” Mr Bhula said,

“Pasture throughout the property has been re-sown over recent seasons with a specific horse grass mix to minimise the amount of rye under foot. Paddocks are variously separated by a mix of four-strand electric fencing and established

wind-break hedging.”

Mr Bhula said the show jumping arena could additionally be hired for between $10 - $15 per hour per horse, or up to $60 a month on a regular usage contract. The property also has a 122 square metre three-bedroom home and a large area suitable for storing up to five horse floats for clients.

“The flat topography of the property allows for easy pasture grazing management. There is also ample space for the addition of a staff dwelling on the property and for the expansion of the existing stabling infrastructure to potentially treble the number of stalls available, as well as space for adding in a covered training facility,” he said.

“While the genesis of the infrastructure to support an equestrian business is installed and operational, the opportunity is being left up to a new owner to complete the venue’s potential. To date, no business entity has been established – leaving the way open for any new owner to pursue their own avenue of expertise in this field.”

Ms Stewart said Northland’s most famous equestrian - television personality Vicki Wilson who was a central character on the reality TV show Keeping Up With the Kaimanawas - had demonstrated the region’s potential for establishing a horse-based business.

Vicki Wilson’s Showtym Sport Horses equestrian centre is based at Hukerenui, midway between Whangarei and the Bay of Islands.

“City-dwellers from Whangarei are increasingly looking to maximise their personal recreation time, and to that extent are ever-more looking for a ‘lock up and leave’ valet-type leisure services – whether that be for the boat, the car… or the horse,” Ms Stewart said.

“From an equestrian perspective, it’s a similar scenario for residents living at the fast-growing Marsden Point community who don’t have the lifestyle section capacity to accommodate a pony, but are seeking to keep their pet in immediate proximity so they can enjoy two or three visits a week for training or purely from a recreational perspective.”

Marsden Cove is approximately 18 kilometres to the east of the Mangapai property.

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