PROFIT IN CHILD’S PLAY
Early childhood education centres are a growth industry and a proven category for property investment. “It would be a struggle to think of an alternate sector providing the returns and associated low risks for investors,” says Linda Harley, business broker at Childcare Sales.
The sector is viewed as more secure than other asset classes, because of not only the strength of the leases involved but also New Zealand’s high childcare participation rate.
Although early childhood education is an extensively regulated sector, and the entry barriers are high, New Zealand has more than 4,662 licensed services and about 2,750 of these operate as childcare centres. The latest statistics show more than 134,000 children are enrolled at childcare centres.
The majority of New Zealand’s childcare centres – more than 85% – are run by small independent operators, who might own one or two and be licensed for fewer than 50 places. Included in
