Oxford Street centre comes with a large customer base

Demand for retail property is still high on buyers' shopping lists despite the parlous state of the consumer sector.

In the past year, sales of small through to large regional shopping centres have been higher than any other assets class. Owning a mall is more profitable than being a tenant as the landlord can generate profits from other areas, such as car parking fees and land revaluation, to offset flat rents.

As a result, all quality malls are keenly sought after, particularly those that offer redevelopment potential and have a skew towards food courts and supermarkets.

One of the latest to hit the market is the retail complex at Oxford Square, Oxford Street, Sydney. It is the first time in 28 years it has been offered for sale. The sale by a local syndicate of private investors is valued at about $70 million.

According to the sales agent Jones Lang LaSalle, the complex was extensively redeveloped in 2005 with the addition of 190 apartments at the rear of the site, which do not form part of the sale offer.

It is located halfway along Oxford Street, in an area considered to be one of the most densely populated nationwide.

Simon Rooney, the national head of retail investments at Jones Lang LaSalle, said there was expected to be strong competition for the complex given the quality of the retail offer and proximity to the CBD.

"Oxford Square is securely leased to a complementary mix of leading retailers and service providers, including Duffy Bros Supermarket, Liquorland, Chemist Warehouse, NAB and Fitness First, amongst others," Mr Rooney said.

Luke Harris, the NSW retail investment sales manager at Jones Lang LaSalle, said the centre had a large and established main trade area of 17,310 people and customer demand would be high in coming years because of the expected strong population growth in the area due to multiple high-density residential developments.