Revitalising our cities
By Jonathon Cassidy, Asset Manager, Quintessential Equity

‍

At Quintessential Equity (QE), we find unloved and overlooked buildings and breathe life back into them. I am passionate about creating communities and workplaces that tenants want to be a part of, places that I am proud of. As an asset manager, I get to see the whole journey.

Evaluating the opportunity

Once a building has been earmarked for purchase and our transaction team has submitted an offer and it has been accepted, we then have a small due diligence period to better understand the asset, looking for any potential pitfalls or further opportunity prior to settling on the building.

We need to ensure the asset is true to QE’s values. The time pressure can make this the most intense part of property’s lifecycle.

8 St Georges Terrace, Perth

Reconstructive surgery

Once the asset has settled, we immediately begin to engage our eco-system partners to develop the refurbishment program for the building. Additionally, we will engage leasing agents and our marketing team to begin to promote the building and our vision.

This includes what we plan to achieve with the refurbishment program to attract new tenants.

It takes great imagination to convey to tenants what the completed product will be when works are just commencing but this is a part of the challenge. As we move further through the program, tenants can begin to see the journey we are on together and this is when we begin to see traction with leasing. Initially, tenants can’t see what we visualise as landlords but once they understand our thought process and that we are committed, they want to be a part of the journey with us and be part of what we are creating.

39 Brisbane Ave, Barton, Canberra[/caption]

Bringing new life

I love entering an old building and imagining all the ways we can bring it to life. Working with an existing building always has constraints, but those constraints force you to be inventive and creative.

Having the opportunity to make our cities better is my passion. Walking through my home city of Melbourne with the buildings and laneways, full of life and activity can be something that's hard to visualise until you're living and breathing it. I love having the opportunity to bring that feeling to cities that haven’t experienced it yet, one building at a time.

For more information about our recent and upcoming projects, contact us HERE.

‍