Home Australia Property billionaire Sam Arnaout snaps up landmark Sydney pubs in huge $200million swoop

Property billionaire Sam Arnaout snaps up landmark Sydney pubs in huge $200million swoop

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Billionaire property developer Sam Arnaout bought the El Cortez hotel in Canley Heights, Sydney (pictured, El Cortez)

A man has bought two of Sydney’s biggest bars in a matter of months as he looks to expand his business operations.

Sam Arnaout bought the Cabramatta hotel in western Sydney and the El Cortez hotel in Canley Heights in a deal valued at nearly $200 million.

The property billionaire bought the sites for his Iris Capital operation, which describes itself as a “fully integrated hospitality and development group, driven by a passion for creating places people love”.

No exact dollar amount has been assigned to the sales so far, but industry experts suggest both were record purchases in 2024.

HTL Property directors Andrew Jolliffe and Dan Dragicevich negotiated the sales of both hotels.

Arnaout, who lives near Manly in the city’s east, is a former panelist who earned his $2.5 billion net worth from buying hotels and developing properties.

The Cabramatta Hotel and the El Cortez Hotel are the latest in a long list of properties Mr Arnaout now owns.

Others include the Steyne Hotel, which he bought for $65 million, and the Ivanhoe Hotel, both in Manly.

Billionaire property developer Sam Arnaout bought the El Cortez hotel in Canley Heights, Sydney (pictured, El Cortez)

This is Mr Arnaout's second big purchase in a matter of months after he also bought the Cabramatta Hotel in Sydney's west (pictured, El Cortez).

This is Mr Arnaout’s second major purchase in a matter of months after he also bought the Cabramatta Hotel in Sydney’s west (pictured, El Cortez).

Mr. Arnaout he now handles commercial and residential properties in both New South Wales and Queensland.

‘While Iris Capital operates in a national hospitality and development arena; “Large format hotels on the outskirts of Sydney continue to be very attractive to our business,” he said.

The Cabramatta Hotel and the El Cortez Hotels have a combination 17,000 m² of commercial property ready for development, added Mr. Arnaout.

Redcape CEO Chris Unger, who previously operated both hotels, said their sale will help his business move forward.

“The divestments will provide Redcape with capital to continue its redeployment into other opportunities in line with the fund’s stated strategy,” Mr Unger said.

Dragicevich said selling the property was easy because it was already a well-known hotel.

He added that the fact that both he and Cabramatta are on two separate properties “contributes materially to additional use options from a development perspective.”

His colleague, Mr. Jolliffe, said that the sale of these last hotels prompted The dollar value of Sydney hotel sales will reach $1 billion by 2024, which is equivalent with the record set in 2022.

Both hotels cost close to $200 million and industry experts suggest each deal will break a record in 2024.

Both hotels cost close to $200 million and industry experts suggest each deal will break a record in 2024.

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