About Us | Australian Property Trust

Founded in 2004 off the back of the current trustee entity, ECS Group, the trust has expanded in varying property markets, allowing diversification to capture every corner of the exciting Australian property arena. 

These properties include hotels and leisure, commercial, retail, pubs and gaming, medical and biotech, major development, and land subdivision. Since 2004, the trust and its related entities have been involved with over $1 billion of property through direct ownership, finance, and development.  

The relationship with many reputable hotel management companies has developed over the past twenty-five years, initially when ECS Group managed hotel refurbishments and redevelopments for the likes of Rydges Hotels & Resorts & Accor.

Australian Property Trust launched its non-traditional specialised finance arm in 2014 supporting property developers and investors nationally with a bespoke finance solution that shares their vision and goals long term to ensure a mutually beneficial relationship.

Mr. Mark Etherington, Managing Director of ECS Group (Aust) Pty Limited and CEO of the Australian Property Trust, commenced the journey in 1986 and soon formed the building company, which in turn served as the platform for the trust. One of our key objectives is to identify properties with future value-add potential. Either through refurbishment, redevelopment, rebrand or relaunch, preferably all of the aforementioned, these assets quickly generate equity, which enables further expansion at an extremely aggressive speed.

Proof of this objective's success is that no third-party investors are required to achieve the current portfolio value. Via the key banks, the trust has continued to expand at a very low gearing.

By utilising value-add principles, leveraging the in-house building companies' expertise, and empowering the management companies it engages, the Australian Property Trust is, in essence, a one-stop investment and development vehicle. 

The business model is very sound: engage the external services required, place them under an accountability and performance structure, utilise their expertise to complete the necessary tasks, and, as the driver of each task, the Australian Property Trust manages the investment and ensures it continues trading efficiently. 

To create a long-term return, where risk is mitigated through low gearing, active management will protect value-add strategies and ensure equity gains. 

It will be a constant objective to identify properties where we can create stronger revenues through the above initiatives. A combination of securely leased assets and going-concern operations will allow rapid expansion until the founder finally releases the opportunity to the outside investment world.