Ashmont Inn Transitions After Nearly Half a Century of Stewardship

Leading national brokerage agency, HTL Property, is particularly proud to announce the successful sale of the Ashmont Inn Hotel in the NSW city of Wagga Wagga; and marking the conclusion of almost fifty years of continuous ownership.

Exclusively managed by HTL Property’s Blake Edwards, Paddy Dalton and Sam Handy, the off-market campaign generated very strong interest from seasoned operators, with the hotel ultimately acquired by respected hoteliers.

“We’ve decided to again back some young guys into a little pub in Wagga Wagga, and we’ll see how they go before looking at other opportunities with them” advised Stu Laundy.

“Our family loves the industry, and as such has a long history of backing people and have done so very successfully with numerous parties across multiple sub-sectors within the asset class” Laundy concluded.

Constructed in 1978 and held by the same highly regarded family ever since, the Ashmont Inn is emblematic of a generation of regional hotels built, operated and retained with long-term intent.

“Like many others, this genesis of transaction was a generational decision” advised HTL Property’s Paddy Dalton.

“The Mathot family built this venue, backed it through decades of change, and chose the timing carefully. With the outcome respecting both the legacy of the asset and the future it now enters” Dalton added.

Situated on a substantial 4,995 sqm* landholding within the Ashmont Mall precinct, the hotel benefits from a well-balanced operating profile comprising a bistro, public bar, wagering facilities, 20 gaming machines and a retail liquor outlet. Significantly, the property also carries approved development consent for an outdoor beer garden and family-oriented precinct, materially enhancing its medium-term growth profile.

“The venue has traded reliably, but with minimal reinvestment over time” commented HTL Property Director, Sam Handy.

“That combination of defensive cashflow with embedded upside continues to resonate strongly with experienced operators who understand where value is created” Handy offered.

HTL Property Director Blake Edwards, who has overseen an incredible ten of the last eleven hotel sales in Wagga Wagga, said the result reflects a broader recalibration of investor focus toward major inland cities.

“Wagga Wagga has matured into a true regional capital. Population growth, infrastructure investment and institutional presence are translating directly into sustained hotel demand. Buyers are increasingly prepared to underwrite long-term fundamentals rather than short-term volatility” Edwards advised.

The transaction follows HTL Property’s recent sale of the Flour Mill site in central Wagga Wagga, acquired by veteran publican Peter Griffiths and earmarked for redevelopment into a major hospitality and entertainment precinct.

Together, these transactions highlight the accelerating reinvestment cycle underway across the expanding regional city assets, the Ashmont Inn sale stands as a clear signal: experienced operators are backing scale, continuity and long-dated relevance in regional hospitality” concluded Dalton.

HTL Property is exclusively responsible for the successful sale of multiple metropolitan and regional traditional hotel assets totalling well in excess of AUD$100m in the three weeks since Christmas Day, 2025.

In addition to Wagga Wagga’s Ashmont Inn, successfully transacted sales by HTL Property over the once typically quiet Christmas and New Year period have included the Wallacia Tavern in Sydney’s Western Suburbs, the Metro Hotel, Bundaberg (Qld), the Delatite Hotel, Mansfield (VIC) and Kuleto’s Bar, Newtown.

“The compelling sale of multiple traditional hotel assets right across Australia in the past three weeks highlights the strength of our network, valued client base and patent market attentiveness” concluded HTL Property’s National Pubs Director, Dan Dragicevich.

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