Bondi hoarders' auction cancelled again as Bobolas family make last-minute payment

Sydney’s most infamous Bondi family have won the latest round in their battle to stay in their rubbish-strewn hoarders’ home close to the nation’s most famous beach.   

After a last-minute appearance at the NSW Sheriff’s Office on Monday evening – just moments before their home at 19 Boonara Avenue was due to be auctioned to the highest bidder – the Bobolas’ managed to pay off part of their debt to Waverley Council for the continual clean-ups.   

And with that, the auction, the fourth that had been organised to sell the property and which had been due to start at 5pm, was called off at 5.25pm, leaving the crowd of 90 people, including 17 registered bidders, left to vent their frustration to the agent and auctioneer.

“It’s a saga without end,” said one of the disgruntled hopeful buyers who was keen to buy the one-bedroom, one-bathroom house for around $1.8 million, despite the proviso that he’d have to clear the debris and evict the family. “I can’t believe we’re going through this again.”

“It’s astonishing they can get away with this. They do it at the last minute every time. What are they hoping to achieve?”

Raine & Horne Double Bay agent Ric Serrao said he was extremely disappointed that the auction hadn’t been allowed to go ahead for the freestanding house.

“We were waiting for instructions from the sheriff’s office but now they’ve just called to say a good part of the debt has been paid, and the auction can’t proceed. There hasn’t been another auction date set yet.”

Auctioneer Damien Cooley of Cooley Auctioneers said it was hard for everyone involved, but not least the people who’d turned up at so many auctions now, hoping, in good faith, to buy.

“The frustration comes from those 17 registered bidders,” he said. “And also those neighbours who are watching the rubbish pile up every time and don’t know when it’s going to end.”

The house is owned by Mary Bobolas and her adult daughters Elena and Liana, who bought it in 1970 for $25,000. It was expected to sell for between $1.5 million and $2.5 million.

While the responsibility for evicting the family might put some buyers off, agents felt that others would see the enormous potential of the 550 square metre land holding, with one neighbour on the same street having subdivided his block and built two semi-detached houses on a similar sized lot. It’s also well positioned, close to local shops, schools, cafes and transport.

But the house, and its grounds, are continually packed with mountains of rubbish that neighbours say are magnets for rats and other vermin. Every so often the council mounts a massive clean-up operation, and charges the family for the costs. Those costs are thought to have totalled over $180,000.

Friends and relatives appear to be lending the family the money to put towards the bill. They were unavailable for comment.