Upper north shore cracks $20m house price level for first time
When it comes to Sydney’s $20 million-plus housing market, often regarded as a benchmark to trophy home status, the upper north shore has long been a non-starter, leaving such big-ticket sales to the lower north shore and northern beaches. But no more.
The Virgona family’s Warrawee home has claimed the crown to the area’s top sales price, selling for about $20 million to a buyer from China.
Despite fervid local chatter about the sale this week, the exact result will be left to settlement given gag orders over the deal by C21 Turramurra’s Gary Ward.
The 1963-built residence on 1975 square metres was previously owned by Frederick Chilton, son of Brigadier Sir Frederick Chilton, and sold to commercial property businessman John Virgona and his wife Anna in 2011 for $2.1 million.
An adjoining block was added in 2012 for $2 million to include a tennis court and a major redesign was commissioned for the original residence by Playoust Churcher Architects.
The Virgona family have form when it comes to the North Shore’s record sales. Parents Maree and Victor Virgona took Mosman’s prestige market into the $20 million range in 2005 when they sold their family compound on Burran Avenue for $20.5 million to billionaire Greg Goodman, and set a Warrawee high in 2010 of $11.5 million when they sold the Bremon mansion across the road.
The Virgonas’ latest sale tops Warrawee’s $16.3 million high of last year and Killara’s high of $16.5 million set in 2021.
Don’t expect the Virgonas to keep the crown long. On Thursday, the Killara residence purchased by Simon Choi and Xinrong Li in 2021 for a previous high of $16.3 million was returned to the market with $20 million expectations by Ray White’s Nicole Zeng and Lisa Davies.
For your money is a 2500-square-metre parcel with a seven-bedroom residence with a gymnasium, home cinema, eight-car garage, four separate living rooms set around a central atrium and Peter Fudge gardens with a tennis court and swimming pool.
Healthy returns in Wombarra
Former Fair Work Commission vice-president Michael Lawler is selling his Wombarra home, north of Wollongong, setting a May 1 auction and a guide of about $3 million.
This is the almost 5000-square-metre property Lawler purchased in 2012 for $1.3 million with Kathy Jackson, the former head of the Health Services Union who three years ago was convicted of rorting more than $100,000 in union member funds to pay for overseas holidays, artworks, entertainment, furniture and a fancy car.
Jackson’s share of the house was transferred to Lawler in 2018, and the couple have since parted ways. It is listed with The Agency’s Jordan Andonovski.
Point Piper’s diminutive offering
One of Thailand’s wealthiest families, the Taechaubols, are taking their pint-sized trophy home on the Point Piper waterfront to auction on June 17.
This is not the first time the three-bedroom house on all of 274 square metres has hit the market since it was built in 2004 at a cost of $2 million on a sliver of the site that was once the Paradis sur Mer mansion.
There was a $15 million asking price when it was briefly listed in 2014, and $30 million hopes of late 2021, but neither campaign produced a sale, paving the way for its latest bid, this time through Monika Tu, of BlackDiamondz, with $25.5 million guide.
It is owned by Orawan Taechaubol, wife of Thailand’s property and finance mogul “Mike” Sadawut Taechaubol, and two of her sons Bee and Ben Taechaubol, the latter of whom is spearheading the sale and chief executive at the family’s Country Group Development Public Company.
Falcone’s sales savvy
Entrepreneur Irene Falcone and her husband Tim Fairservice put their Clontarf home up for sale this week amid more than $10 million expectations.
The sale coincides with news that Falcone’s former corporate baby, the online beauty retailer Nourished Life, is being sold by the recently collapsed cosmetics giant BWX.
As Falcone told this masthead earlier this week, she has no intention of buying Nourished Life back six years after she sold it, and she has since put her business brain to her non-alcoholic drinks retailer Sans Drinks.
The couple purchased the Clontarf house in 2017 for $7.1 million. Clarke & Humel’s Michael Clarke has the listing.
We recommend
States
Capital Cities
Capital Cities - Rentals
Popular Areas
Allhomes
More
