Modern Armadale mansion rockets $1.6 million above reserve

A contemporary mansion in Melbourne’s upmarket Armadale has soared about $1.6 million above reserve.

The five-bedroom behemoth at 12 Barnato Grove has all the hallmarks of a trophy home – an award-winning garden, lap pool, room for a big family and luxury interiors.

A buyer paid $6.74 million at auction on Saturday.

Few properties – even those as special as the Barnato Grove property – achieve such a margin over reserve, making this an exceptional auction.

The price record for the blue ribbon eastern suburb is understood to be $9.6 million, paid in May last year for an Italianate manor at 6 Flete Avenue, according to Domain Group data.

On Saturday, Kay & Burton auctioneer Michael Armstrong kicked off with a vendor bid of $4.6 million and was rewarded with a $5.11 million reply.

Armstrong and his colleagues then went inside to get instructions from the vendor, and when they returned, the property was on the market.

Barnato’s listing agent, Kay and Burton’s Darren Lewenberg, declined to comment on the sale.

The showpiece of the home is open-plan dining and entertaining, which focuses on the sparkling pool, and bi-fold doors that flow to outdoor areas. 

A floating seat in the rear garden, by landscape architect Nathan Burkett, won Best Feature in a Landscape at the 2012 Abode Outdoor Awards.

About 250 people attended the auction for the grand property, which hit the market a month ago with an expected price range of $4.5 million-plus.