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A mansion that landed former Billabong head Matthew Perrin in jail has sold for a record price, fetching double what his ex flipped it for at the height of the controversy.

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The stunning seven bedroom waterfront property at 15 Southern Cross Drive, Surfers Paradise, has set a record for Cronin Island after selling for a massive $12.45m.

The sale price was double what Mr Perrin’s ex-wife Nicole Bricknell sold the home for in January 2012, flicking it for $6.1m three years after he declared bankruptcy.

Ms Bricknell – who owned the mansion – was under pressure from the Commonwealth Bank, which had attempted to seize the mansion to pay for the massive $13.5m in debt Mr Perrin owed the big four financier. Mr Perrin was jailed for eight years

She sold the home to Terry Gavan, a local businessman on the Gold Coast, who waited eight years before landing the mega $12.45m price for the property.

The house sits on some of the most prized real estate on the coast, on a large 1,239sq m block on an island where neighbours include some of the richest people in Australasia.

The property was sold by Ryan Ward and Michael Kollosche of Kollosche – Broadbeach.

They had listed it on realestate.com.au as a “Bayden Goddard masterpiece”.

“The vast layout flows over four magnificent light-filled levels accessible by elevator revealing bespoke interiors designed to maximise views and create an effortless indoor/outdoor flow.”

Among its charms was a 2000-bottle wine cellar, a 12-car garage, eight bathrooms, a 10m infinity pool and a 12m pontoon with jet ski pontoons as well.

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The post Ex Billabong head’s controversial mansion sells for record price appeared first on realestate.com.au.

JUST imagine … you wake up, roll out of bed, turn on the coffee machine – and this gigantic water vista stretches out before you.

Pretty great, right?

From its private, elevated position, this family home at Kingston Beach boasts one of the most mesmerising views over the sand and bay.

The balcony off the kitchen will be the place to be all day long, with the sun beaming in there all afternoon and into the evening.

Knight Frank sales consultant Abi Freeman described No.52 Kunama as a “significant, phenomenal property”.

Abi said there had been plenty of interest in the home from local and interstate buyers, however the mainlanders were waiting for Tasmania’s boarders to open to make an inspection possible.

She said families in particular had been attracted to the home’s size and position.

Alongside showstopping features such as the huge block and water views, many buyers have been attracted to the lower level of the home and the flexibility it offers. There is a lot of space and plumbing in place which may lend it to development as a living area or a home for grandparents or teens.

“People that have walked through the home have called it a private oasis,” Abi said.

“Kunama Close is positioned up and away from the suburb’s main roads in a really tiny little cul-de-sac. It is an exclusive part of Kingston Beach.

“The property sits in an elevated location that looks straight to the water.

“And that view will never be built-out by a neighbour.

“It has that feeling of being in the middle of everywhere but you could be in the middle of nowhere.”

Abi described the grounds, about 3000sq m-plus, as leafy and well-established.

She said a gardener could do amazing things with this property or, for those without a green thumb, the gardens are low-maintenance and will look after themselves.

“There is also a reserve next to the property, which adds to the level of privacy on offer here,” Abi said.

Built in the 1980s and, more recently, thoroughly updated, the home combines modern updates with original features. The sophisticated interiors make a design statement with their clean lines and crisp finishes.

The home’s expansive open-plan living zone is light-filled and spacious with extensive glazing throughout to capitalise on the stunning bird’s-eye views.

The living room has the luxury of woodheating while the combined kitchen and dining room is bound to be a highlight for potential buyers who love to entertain.

Glass sliders open to that sunny deck, further extending the living space for larger gatherings and offering a special spot to relax and admire the ever-changing view.

The sleek white kitchen has an island bench with enough space for four people to sit and have breakfast.

The kitchen has double sinks, gas cooking, plenty of preparation space, and cupboards high and low.

On this first-floor level of the home is a loungeroom, workshop and a big storage space.

Most of the bedrooms are located on the second floor.

The master bedroom offers the luxury of a walk-in wardrobe, ensuite and spa room, making it a true parents’ retreat.

A picture window in this room frames a view of the beach and adds to the luxury. It also opens to a large study with built-in wardrobes.

There are two more bedrooms on this level, serviced by a central family bathroom with a separate tub and shower.

A fourth bedroom with a walk-in wardrobe is on the lower ground floor, next to the rumpus room.

The property is kept warm via a combination of panel heaters and heat pumps.

The NBN is connected and it has solar hot water and solar panels to enhance the home’s efficiency.

The carport provides undercover off-street parking.

This family home’s well-designed and functional floor plan offers relaxed coastal living that should appeal to purchasers seeking an easy-care property with an unsurpassed backdrop beyond.

No.52 Kunama Close, Kingston Beach is priced at “Offers over $1.15 million” and listed with Knight Frank.

The post Large private leafy and with huge beach views, it ticks every box appeared first on realestate.com.au.

Being in this Richmond home is “like wearing Cashmere”, according to its owners of seven years.

“It’s comfortable, light and luxurious,” RT Edgar Toorak selling agent Max Ruttner explained.

Buyers now have the chance to find out if the glorious double-fronted Victorian at 10 Erin Street fits them — it’s on the market with a $4-$4.4m price guide.

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Mr Ruttner said the vendors were a “high-profile architect and designer” who’d raised three children at the four-bedroom terrace house after gutting and recreating its interior.

“It wasn’t a project for them, it was a family home,” he said.

The agent said the house had quickly attracted the attention of “doctors, solicitors, and downsizers who want to be closer to the city” — as well as a long-time admirer.

“I received a phone call from a buyer who missed out on this in 2013 (when CoreLogic records show it sold to the owners for $2.67m),” Mr Ruttner said.

“He said to me, ‘I always promised myself when this came to market for sale again, I would do everything to buy it’.”

Drawcards for buyers included the home’s natural light, “welcoming” tones and colours, and inner-city location walking distance to the MCG, Bridge Road, public transport links and the Epworth hospital.

Its period character is preserved in French Oak parquetry flooring, bay windows, ornate ceiling roses, open fireplaces, and 3.5m-high ceilings

Multiple living areas make up the ground floor, including an open-plan lounge, dining and kitchen space that opens out to Rick Eckersley-designed gardens with a barbecue deck. Parking for two cars completes the yard.

The kitchen is packed with Miele appliances, and also features a Smeg oven, Travertine benchtops and a butler’s pantry.

Two of the fours bedrooms have ensuites decked out in Carrara marble, and all of them can be found on the upper level, which has balconies at each end.

The shared bathroom, which also has marble floors and walls, boasts a tub with city views.

Co-listing agent Jeremy Fox said the house had “one of the best renovations of a terrace he’d seen”.

Its expressions of interest campaign closes August 13.

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samantha.landy@news.com.au

The post Richmond two-storey Victorian house ‘like wearing Cashmere’ appeared first on realestate.com.au.

You know you’ve made it when you can wake up every day to this view, with boats bobbing about in the harbour in the foreground and the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge beyond.

And when you walk into your kitchen, TV room, and the deck off the living and dining room — that same iconic view is still right there in your face.

That’s the case with this four-bedroom, four-bathroom apartment at 4/6 Buckhurst Ave, Point Piper — owned by former Sydney lord mayor Nelson Meers and his wife, Carole — which hit the market on Wednesday with a “high teens” guide via LJ Hooker Double Bay’s Bill Malouf and Margaret Morosi.

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There are no direct comparables, but Malouf points to the $20m deal on an apartment in nearby Wolseley Road in 2018, when property developer Phillip George and his wife, Jane, sold to University of Sydney chancellor Belinda Hutchinson.

And that didn’t have views of the Bridge and Opera House.

“I consider this one of the best waterfront apartments in the eastern suburbs,” Malouf said.

“It’s an opportunity for a penthouse-style apartment with beach access and views of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge.”

Take a look at the floorplan on realestate.com.au — the apartment is huge, measuring 449sq m with terraces.

The block was dramatically transformed about a decade ago, with the original 14 units converted to six whole-floor designer apartments, with all the best fittings and furnishings.

The reconfiguration has allowed a large open-plan entertainment space with a Jetmaster fireplace.

Just one of the attractions is an innovative glass-fronted wintergarden, which can be opened to the elements in the warmer months.

Others are the Caesarstone gas kitchen with Gaggenau appliances, butler’s pantry and coolroom.

Three of the four bedrooms have stylish ensuites and the master has a freestanding bath tub.

The fourth bedroom, which could be a study, has a bathroom right by the door.

Downsizers will love the direct internal lift access. Doors also open to the private four-car garage.

And there’s a temperature-controlled wine cellar. The owners share an infinity pool at the water’s edge.

Nelson Meers was Sydney’s lord mayor 1978-1980, practised for many years as a commercial and defamation lawyer, and in 2005 was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for service to the community.

The post Former Sydney lord mayor Nelson Meers and wife Carole list Point Piper waterfront apartment appeared first on realestate.com.au.

Strong demand for manageable acreage properties drove “ridiculous” levels of inquiry for a grand Lara house on 1.82ha of land.

Harcourts, North Geelong agent Joe Grgic said the imposing four-bedroom house at 45 Houston Road attracted incredible interest.

Local Lara buyers paid $915,000 for the house, which offers more than 460sq m of living space.

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The property is located within the Northern Geelong Growth Precinct, creating an opportunity for land banking, but Mr Grgic said the size of the house and land was the big attraction.

He said the house itself needed work, which put some buyers off once they inspected it.

“It was ridiculous how much inquiry we got and how many people wanted to buy it until they saw it,” Mr Grgic said.

He said many people were seeking extra space, with buyers from Melbourne’s western suburbs looking to move down to Lara.

“There is a huge market for people that want one acre plus just to have that space around the home and to a shed to do things,” he said.

Timber cathedral ceilings and exposed brick feature inside the house, which has three separate living areas, including a rumpus room with a bar and wood heater.

The floorplan also has three bathrooms, a sauna, home office and a double garage.

Large vehicles can be stored in another 19m long shed on the property.

The post Grand Lara house on acreage attracts huge interest appeared first on realestate.com.au.

A SOVEREIGN Islands mega mansion has sold for $6.6 million, the highest sale on the exclusive island enclave this year.

A Gold Coast buyer splashed the cash, drawn to the 1682 sqm property at 91-93 The Sovereign Mile.

The house features several entertaining and living areas across four levels as well as a cinema, gym, resort-style pool and pontoon.

Isaac Kim and Ivy Wu of Ivy Realty Paradise Point handled the mega sale and said it would provide a boost of confidence to the property market.

“We had a lot of interest in this property during COVID-19,” Mr Kim said.

“It’s very good news for everyone who lives on the island.

“There is a pool of buyers ready to buy here but not enough stock.”

CoreLogic records show the property first hit the market 12 months ago with an $8.95 million price tag.

It follow the $5.5 million sale of 1-3 Knightsbridge Pde East through Ray White Sovereign Islands earlier this month.

The post Record $6.6 million sale for Gold Coast mega mansion appeared first on realestate.com.au.

Hong Kongers pushed to breaking point by China’s strengthening grip on the former British territory are increasingly seeking out Australia as a potential new home, real estate search data has revealed.

Amid the introduction of a draconian new security law by Beijing and the Morrison Government’s offer of Australian work rights with a path to citizenship for residents in the territory, interest in the local property from Hong Kong has spiked.

The political unrest which dramatically escalated in June last year, boosted interest in Australian real estate by as much as 34 per cent year-on-year, on Australia’s leading property platform realestate.com.au.

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Due to the latest developments, search activity from Hong Kong has peaked by as much as double that again.

Interest in property in Victoria has lifted by 25 per cent, year-on-year. In NSW over the same time frame it has grown by 36 per cent, in Queensland by 38 per cent and in Adelaide by 65 per cent.

Unusual search activity

“This basically began 12 months ago when we started to see the riots in Hong Kong and since then things have gone from bad to worse for a lot of people and then we have had COVID-19. So, that search activity keeps going up,” said REA chief economist Nerida Conisbee.

“It is a very unsettled economic and political situation. The data tells us that a lot of people there are looking to move and a lot of ex-pats are looking to come home.”

Search activity from Hong Kong is characterised by notable differences from other overseas locations.

“The price point they are looking at is around $1 million and above whereas the more typical price point we get from overseas is lower at $750,000,” Ms Conisbee said.

“That could be due to the extreme pricing of property in Hong Kong.”

Australia as a safe haven

Sebastian James, a buyer’s agent with Hunter James, is witnessing this search interest translate into on the ground transactions.

“We’ve definitely seen a larger than normal level of inquiry from Hong Kong buyers and expats in general this year with many citing global uncertainty as a primary reason,” he said. “There has definitely been a lot of concern on the impacts of security and privacy whilst others are just looking at Sydney as a safe haven for their money.”

Doncaster, Doncaster East and Melbourne are the most favoured Victorian suburbs for those searching from Hong Kong. In NSW, it is Sydney, Chatswood and Epping, in Queensland it is the Gold Coast, Indooroopilly and Brisbane City and in South Australia, Adelaide, North Adelaide and Norwood lead the way.

Ericka Wong, property partner with The Agency in Melbourne focuses on the above suburbs in her role as a seller’s agent.

“On the ground late last year I was meeting lots of people at those four particular suburbs [including Balwyn] at the opens that were from Hong Kong and had come to Australia to specifically look at real estate,” she said.

“This time around we are in lockdown but we continue to get lot of inquiries.

“We have always seen a lot of activity in these areas that are attractive to people from Hong Kong or even mainland China.

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“It’s close to the city, they are areas that have traditionally appealed to the Asian demographic and the schools there are very good which seems to come at a premium.

“There is a lot of investment interest and given Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, their real estate prices over there are crazy for cramped, high density apartments. For what they pay for tiny living quarters over there they can get a house with land here so in many ways it is a lifestyle move as well.”

We are marketing to Hong Kong

Australian property has emerged as a safe investment over several decades and that is even more so the case during this global pandemic.

“The other thing that is happening alongside high levels of search from Hong Kong is that a lot of developers are marketing to Hong Kong,” Ms Conisbee said.

“There is a strong appetite for Australian property over there and offshore buyers are restricted to buying new property. There are a lot of people wanting to get their money out of Hong Kong and relocate and Australia is a very safe economy. There is a low sovereign risk here whereas in Hong Kong there are a lot of unknowns.

“Australia looks comparatively safe to the rest of the world, including the US and the UK and that includes when it comes to how we have dealt with COVID-19.”

Most popular suburb for Hong Kong buyers*

NSW

Sydney 2000

Chatswood 2067

Epping 2121

Lindfield 2070

Killara 2071

Gordon 2072

Roseville 2069

Mosman 2088

Carlingford 2118

Hurstville 2220

QLD

Gold Coast

Indooroopilly 4068

Brisbane City 4000

Eight Mile Plains 4113

Sunnybank 4109

Sunnybank Hills 4109

Toowong 4066

Sunshine Coast

Rochedale 4123

Macgregor 4109

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SA

Adelaide 5000

North Adelaide 5006

Norwood 5067

Magill 5072

Mawson Lakes 5095

Adelaide Hills

Kensington 5068

Unley 5061

Lightsview 5085

Goodwood 5034

VIC

Doncaster 3108

Doncaster East 3109

Melbourne 3000

Glen Waverley 3150

South Yarra 3141

Hawthorn 3122

Box Hill 3128

Toorak 3142

Kew 3101

Balwyn 3103

*Top searched suburbs by state in the last six months to the buy section of realestate.com.au.

The post Interest in Australian real estate from Hong Kong continues to boom appeared first on realestate.com.au.

Formed after the devastating 2003 Canberra bushfires, this magnificent home offers plenty of wow factor including a full-size floodlit tennis court.

The sprawling 2785sqm block heralds a contemporary split-level home with a staggering 342sqm of living space. Other standouts include a in-slab heating to help stave off the chilly Canberra mornings and impressive views to the National Arboretum, Black Mountain and Parliament House.

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Selling agent Tim Burke, from Luton Properties, said the property at 5 Settlement Drive in Duffy was a real opportunity for those seeking the space and surrounds of a rural lifestyle but the convenience of being close to the Canberra CBD.

“This particular area in Duffy was effectively a leftover as a result of the bushfires, so you have something that is a totally unique proposition – a block of almost 2800sqm on an almost semirural feel block in between Weston Creek and Molonglo,” Mr Burke said.

“That whole area was stripped back by the fires and the government kept the area there with a couple of the cottages … It’s a bit of an anomaly, but the result is huge blocks of land, something you would not usually get this close to the city.”

The five-bedroom, three-bathroom residence is centred around an open plan family and dining area with a cosy slow-combustion fireplace.

The master bedroom has a private deck and the ensuite includes a spa bath and a dual vanity. Nearby is another bedroom, which could be used as a study or nursery and the remaining three bedrooms are located at the other end of the home.

Outside, there is a chicken coop, firepit and an abundance of lawn areas, as well as mature trees and hedges.

Additional features include a rumpus room, evaporative cooling and double-glazed windows.

The property is scheduled to go to auction on August 8 at 1pm.

The post Ultimate lifestyle home risen from the ashes in Duffy up for sale appeared first on realestate.com.au.

One of the grandest and most luxurious properties on the Central Coast is on the market for the first time in 23 years.

The stunning property combines Mediterranean styling with Beverly Hills design, and has an indoor pool, life-size chess board, marina berth and an aquarium.

Owned by the late businessman Garry Birks, 32 Albany St at Point Frederick sits on 2469sqm of prime real estate backing onto the Brisbane waterfront.

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LJ Hooker — Terrigal agent Tim Andrews said the stunning property is not only one of the best on the Central Coast, but is located in the region’s premier suburb too.

“This is as blue chip of a suburb as you can get on the Central Coast,” he said.

“Point Federick was the first $1 million suburb in the area and did so 30 years ago”.

Almost all of the 2469sqm of available land has been built on, and boasts a garage moulded into the hillside, a circular driveway and two floors of luxury connected by a lift.

The palatial estate was designed by W. Kohler and features a self-contained studio, games room, two bars and a home office.

The indoor pool, which Mr Andrews said is almost impossible to find on the Central Coast, overlooks the Brisbane Waterway and has a sauna, aquarium, change room and a deck. It is connected to the main floor, which has floor-to-ceiling windows, a mixture of formal and casual spaces, plus three of the four bedrooms.

The main bedroom has a retreat, walk-in wardrobe and an ensuite bathroom with a sunken spa that is almost the size of the bedroom itself.

Other notable features include a life-size chess board, manicured gardens and a deep water marina berth.

Mr Andrews said the property has received strong interest so far from local buyers looking to upgrade, as well as those from Sydney.

“If someone is after the best of the best, than you certainly can’t go past this property,” he said.

“The property is perfect for someone after one level of living, as the lift allows you to move around without needing stairs.”

No. 32 Albany St is being offered by an expressions of interest campaign. A price guide has not been set so far, but homes in the area are easily some of the most expensive waterfront properties on the Central Coast, according to CoreLogic.

The palatial estate last sold in 1997 for $1.2 million.

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The post Point Frederick waterfront regarded as one of the best on the Central Coast is for sale appeared first on realestate.com.au.