Georgian estate Loombah could smash Hunters Hill's price high with $30m sale

Hunters Hill is poised to reassert its place at the forefront of the north shore’s trophy home market as the historic Georgian estate Loombah hits the market with $30 million hopes.

A sale at that level would smash all house records north of the Harbour Bridge, including the high of $25 million set last year when Swans chairman Andrew Pridham bought the Mosman mansion Hopetoun.

Anthony and Carolyn Johnston, owners of the rubbish collection giant United Resource Management and major sponsors of the Manly Sea Eagles, became only the fifth family to call Loombah home when they bought it in 2000 for $4.5 million.

The house next door was added in 2006 for $2.55 million as a guest house with gymnasium and billiards room, creating a 5400-square-metre holding.

A major renovation and extension completed in 2012 doubled the size of the original house creating a nine-bedroom residence, with a tennis court, two swimming pools and a right of way to a waterfront boat shed and pen.

Oliver Stillman, of Sotheby’s International, and Matthew Ward, of Ward Partners, are asking for expressions of interest, and buyers have been told a guide of $30 million.

Few of Hunters Hill’s largest estates rival Loombah in terms of size,  with the exception of billionaire Lang Walker’s vast 7200-square-metre waterfront holding Milthorpe and the late publisher John Armati’s The Haven on 5800 square metres.

Loombah was built in 1879 for distinguished lithographer Arthur Stopps, who remained there until he died in 1931.

It was later owned by artist Clive Wallis, who left 13 lithographic plates depicting nudes and brothel scenes from the 1940s stashed in the rafters of the garden shed that were not found until years after he died in 1983.

Former Woolwich Pier publican Peter Haigh bought it in 1988 for $3.95 million, and it was sold by its mortgagee in 1991 for $2.35 million to former chairman of the Australian Jockey Club and Australian Turf Club John Cornish and his wife Pamela.

Trophy home sales on the north shore have long been left in the shade of the bullish eastern suburbs harbourside market, with Mosman’s $25 million record set last year in its strongest performing prestige market on record still falling well short of the $100 million national high set in Point Piper.

After a trophy home bonanza last year, this year has seen a dramatic shortfall in trophy listings. The highest house sale recorded in 2019 is about $23.5 million for the Rose Bay home of property baron Stephen Burcher.

The highest house sale on the Hunters Hill peninsula was recorded in 2017 at $22.18 million when the Woolwich waterfront mansion Vailele sold to glass manufacturing businessman Wang Xiande.

Hunters Hill’s suburb high remains the $18 million sale of Cate Blanchett and Andrew Upton’s historic Bulwarra mansion two years ago.