Le Fanu hits the market: The 125-year-old Perth home that underwent a $12m renovation

With its commanding beachfront presence and grandeur of yesteryear, it’s hard to believe that this landmark piece of West Australian history in the prestigious beachside suburb of Cottesloe was headed for demolition.

The 125-year-old, heritage-listed home, known as Le Fanu, was derelict with crumbling limestone walls, a collapsing roof, rotting flooring, shattered floor tiles and graffiti until a mystery buyer purchased it in 2009 with the determination – and the dollars – to bring it back to life.

The $12 million restoration project was carried out by Zorzi Builders and was designed by architect Ian Hocking, who is one of WA’s best-known heritage practitioners.

Set on an oceanside 1492-square-metre block, Le Fanu was built as a single-storey holiday cottage with five rooms for the manager of the Western Australian Bank, Henry Diggins Holmes, his wife Marion and their children, in 1893 and it was then known as Banksia.

The Federation Queen Anne style home was among one of Cottesloe’s first residences when built and underwent considerable alterations from 1898 to 1900. In 1945, the Anglican Church took over the residence and named it Le Fanu in homage of Henry Frewen Le Fanu, the Bishop of Perth between 1929 and 1946. It was used as a meeting place for religious groups.

In 1973, it was bought by an Esperance farmer who failed to restore it as a beachside holiday abode and it fell into ruin.

More than three decades later, Zorzi Builders embarked on one of their most ambitious restoration projects in the company’s history after the current owners bought it in 2009.

The project took more than two years of planning and liaising with the State Heritage Council and the Town of Cottesloe, as well as almost three years of labour, during which more than 300 of Zorzi’s tradesmen and artisans spent “hundreds of thousands of hours” to restore Le Fanu to its former glory.

David Reynolds, Zorzi Builders’ business development director, said many eager tradies would work after dark and on weekends to finish their jobs. “They’d try to sneak back in and get on with it. It was quite unique.”

Where possible, original features of Le Fanu were saved. Restoring, retaining and individually numbering salt-affected limestone bricks, which were more than 100 years old, for reuse was an arduous task.

Shattered floor tiles had to be salvaged to be reinstated and were reused as a feature in the home’s entry.

The restoration has paid homage to Le Fanu’s historic past with marble flooring, a grand use of timber, high ceilings, soaring columns, custom-made cornices, architraves, mouldings, skirtings and restored original fireplaces.

Other features include wrought-iron arched doors, an immense outdoor area and courtyard, a sweeping balcony that capitalises on the ocean views, a full home automation system, a state-of-the-art security system with cameras, as well as a wine cellar and tasting room, a marble-floored 10-car garage and a lift to connect the home’s three levels.

Selling agent Pamela Wilkinson, of The Agency, says Le Fanu boasts the grandness of yesteryear with modern conveniences and described the residence as akin to a piece of rare art. “It would suit someone who likes attention to detail,” says Wilkinson.

She says bringing Le Fanu back to life was a project of love by the sellers, who never lived in the residence.

“It is so unique. It’s known by everybody, even in Europe. It would be a treasure to own it.”