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Herald Sun
28-06-2025
- Business
- Herald Sun
Victoria: Priciest homes revealed including Toorak record-buster
New and old rich-listers splashed an eye-watering $540m-plus on Victoria's 20 most expensive homes of the past 12 months. A record-busting sale reported to fall between $115m to $135m for Toorak mansion Coonac topped the pile. It was also the nation's biggest deal for the 2024-25 financial year although industry sources indicated the transaction likely fell at the range's lower end. RELATED: Arrotex boss billionaire Dennis Bastas firming as buyer of $100m+ mansion PropTrack: Melb six months from record prices Geelong trophy home Raith on track to break record at circa $9m Other Toorak listings clocked up individual circa-$70m and $40m sales. Elsewhere, luxurious pads in Canterbury, South Yarra, Brighton and the Mornington Peninsula scored eight-figure sales. But it was the circa-1867 Italianate mansion Coonac that smashed Melbourne's $80.88m benchmark. Industry insiders linked the off-market sale to Kay & Burton managing director Ross Savas and chair Gerald Delany. While it's not been officially confirmed, billionaire Dennis Bastas was widely tipped to have purchased Coonac. Mr Bastas runs a healthcare empire through his leadership roles at Arrotex Pharmaceuticals, myDNA and DBG Health. Mr Savas said the upper end of the Melbourne market has remained resilient. 'Many are taking a generational view — prioritising long-term security, lifestyle alignment and legacy over short-term market fluctuations,' he said, 'At the same time, favourable economic conditions, including the low Australian dollar, continue to attract international interest — particularly from expatriates and global buyers looking to establish roots in Melbourne.' The luxurious six-bedroom mansion at 2-4 Macquarie Rd fetched a figure in the vicinity of $70m shortly before Christmas. Automation platform Neota chairman John Lord and his wife Sue sold the home where visitors are greeted with a sweeping marble staircase, and are likely to enjoy a dedicated basement cinema or the home's temperature-controlled wine cellar and tasting room. Forbes Global Properties' Michael Gibson handled the listing – along with another $40m Toorak pad that changed hands off market. Mr Gibson said there was often multiple buyers for homes prices at $10m to $30. 'The premier market over the past year has been as strong as ever … one thing we are short on is properties to sell,' he added. When it came to luxury features it wasn't uncommon for homeowners to want double-level basements for entertaining, exercising and storing car collections, said Forbes Global Properties director Robert Fletcher, who oversaw a $29m Toorak deal in March. 'I think people who have a large amount of cars tend to look for space for between six to eight cars,' he said. Forbes colleague, senior associate Tracy Tian Belcher said some buyers were more hesitant to buy amid uncertainty about many cuts will be made to Australia's official cash rate across the second half of 2025. Ms Belcher said that even if clients were quite well off, the 13 hikes interest rates across the nation between May 2022 and November 2023 had affected many of them – while reporting on current economic conditions could impact people's emotions. 'Last year, one of my buyers was involved in a six-month long negotiation process for a Toorak home,' Ms Belcher said. Melbourne Sotheby's International Realty managing director Antoinette Nido and colleague Max Ruttner oversaw a $25.6m South Yarra transaction in December. 'Look at me addresses' were important to many recently cashed-up buyers, Ms Nido said. 'What's notable is that a lot of young business people who have made money in IPOs are doing very well,' she said. 'People who you have never heard of will call and when you ask how much they want to spent, it can be $40m to $50m.' Marshall White group sales director John Bongiorno said demand in the Melbourne prestige market's top end had consolidated in the past 12 months as the city's population boomed. 'I think that there are more buyers in the $10m-plus category,' Mr Bongiorno said. 'The amount of people out there with substantial wealth, it's a far bigger than what it was 12 months ago, two years ago, five years ago.' Marshall White handled the $30m-plus sale of a French Provincial-inspired Canterbury house boasting a 16-car showroom, eight bathrooms, a cinema and day spa with a sauna in March, listed by agents Andy Nasr and Marcus Chiminello. Many top-end buyers were taking a long view, prioritising the security, prestige and practicality of homes over price movements, Kay & Burton Stonnington director Darren Lewenberg said. 'These aren't short-term flips, they're generational homes,' Mr Lewenberg said. Many homes that transacted had been fully rebuilt or renovated by architects and interior designers well before being listed. 'Buyers at this level don't want to lift a finger. They want to walk in and start living,' Mr Lewenberg said. Industry Insider Property founder and prestige buyers agent Andrew Date said the surge in off-market deals was one of the most notable shifts in 2024–25. 'Most of the biggest sales never hit the portals. They're done over lunch, through networks, and only involve a few key people,' Mr Date said. 'These homes are so rare, they're not just about location, but land, architectural pedigree, and lifestyle.' Mr Date said prestige demand had also crept further afield especially towards the Mornington Peninsula. Additional reporting by David Bonaddio VICTORIA'S MOST EXPENSIVE HOME SALES, 2024-25 FINANCIAL YEAR Coonac, Toorak Price: $115m-$135m Agents: industry sources linked the off-market sale to Kay & Burton's Ross Savas and Gerald Delany. 2-4 Macquarie Rd, Toorak circa $70m Agent: Forbes Global Properties' Michael Gibson Address withheld, Toorak $40m Agent: Forbes Global Properties' Michael Gibson 38 Monomeath Ave, Canterbury circa $30m+ Agents: Marshall White's Andy Nasr and Marcus Chiminello. 27 St Georges Rd, Toorak circa $29m Agent: Forbes Global Properties director Robert Fletcher 177-181 Walsh St, South Yarra $25.6m Agent: Melbourne Sotheby's International Realty Antoinette Nido and Max Ruttner 5 St Ninians Rd, Brighton $23m Agents: Marshall White's Ben Vieth and Andy Nasr 10 Struan St, Toorak $22m Agents: Marshall White's Marcus Chiminello and Nicole French Address withheld, South Yarra $21.2m Agency: Withheld 12 Lansell Rd, Toorak $21m Agent: Kay & Burton's Gowan Stubbings 7 Gawith Court, Toorak circa $20-22m Agents: Marshall White's Marcus Chiminello and Nicole French 3520 Point Nepean Rd, Sorrento $20m+ Agents: Kay & Burton's Liz Jensen and Gerald Delany 6 Macquarie Rd, Toorak circa $20m Agents: Marshall White's Marcus Chiminello and Nicole French 10 Highgate Hill, Toorak $19.3m Agent: Kay & Burton's Oliver Booth 4 Grant Ave, Toorak $19m Agent: Forbes Global Properties' Mike Gibson 8 Robertson St, Toorak $19m Agent: RT Edgar's Mark Wridgway 3786 Point Nepean Rd, Portsea $19m Agents: RT Edgar's David Gillham and Ilze Moran 11 Berkeley Street, Hawthorn $18,888,999 Agents: Jellis Craig's Perry Zhou and Elsa Li 11 Kent Court, Toorak circa $18m Agents: RT Edgar's Tim Brown and Sarah Case 14 Grandview Grove, Hawthorn East $17.5m Agents: Marshall White's James Tostevin and John Bongiorno 444 Musk Creek Road, Flinders circa $17.5m Agency: Forbes Global Properties Sign up to the Herald Sun Weekly Real Estate Update. Click here to get the latest Victorian property market news delivered direct to your inbox. MORE: Leo's Fine Food & Wine Kew sale linked to James Packer Time-capsule house of Aussie artist to the stars for sale Luxe hotel hits market for just $2 — but there's a catch
News.com.au
09-05-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Arrotex pharma boss billionaire Dennis Bastas firming as buyer of $100m+ Coonac mansion in Toorak
Billionaire pharmaceuticals company owner Dennis Bastas is firming as the likely buyer behind Melbourne's priciest ever home sale. But it might not have long as the city's most expensive residence, with suggestions crypto casino billionaire Ed Craven's efforts to revive a St Georges Rd home dubbed the suburb's 'ghost mansion' could have it worth as much as $160m. Former Essendon president Paul Little made headlines earlier in the year selling his home, named Coonac, in a $100m+ deal that industry insiders have pegged as worth anywhere from $115m-$120m, though was initially reported by the Australian Financial Review as $150m. It is Melbourne's priciest ever sale, but likely short of the $130m Sydney-based house price record for Australia. A nine-bedroom Sydney penthouse set the nation's overall home price record at $140m in 2019. Kay & Burton's Ross Savas and Gerald Delaney are understood to have helped ink the deal, but have yet to comment on it. With the sale understood to be subject to an exceptionally long settlement in acknowledgment of Mr Little and his wife Jane Hansen, the University of Melbourne chancellor, still overseeing the renovation of their future home in South Yarra, title documents are yet to change hands and confirm the new owner. Reportedly worth a hefty $1.8bn, Mr Bastas chairs Arrotex Pharmaceuticals, myDNA and DBG Health — with his companies recently collecting MCoBeauty for about $500m. In February, when initially contacted about rumours he had purchased the home, the billionaire said he was unsure why other parties were naming him and said 'we already have a nice Toorak house' — referencing another mansion in the suburb dubbed the Wayne Residence for its Batman-like basement garage. But he didn't specifically say he had not purchased the home. Those in the know around Toorak have continued to link him to the sale, with industry sources today indicating they still believed him to be the purchaser. But he might not be the owner of the city's priciest pile for long, with ongoing work to build a new mansion on nearby St Georges Rd by crypto casino billionaire Ed Craven already starting to emerge from the ground. Locals are pegging that home's future value as worth anywhere from $100m-$160m. RT Edgar Toorak boss Jeremy Fox said it was hard to imagine Mr Craven's build cost would come in for much less than the $80.88m he spent acquiring the site in 2022. Between the St Georges Rd upgrade and Mr Little's sale, Mr Fox said it was clear Melbourne's richlisters were stepping up. 'It shows how successful a lot of people in Melbourne are, and how they love living in Melbourne,' Mr Fox said. 'And that's a positive for everyone.' Paul Conrad, the architect designing the property, is on the public record citing a $150m end-value figure for the home. Morrell and Koren buyer's advocate Matthew Cleverdon said the city's elite were 'still looking for a consistent supply of high-end homes'. 'With the interrupted year so far, some vendors will choose to wait until spring when there's less public holiday interruptions and less turmoil, with plenty of high-end buyers eagerly awaiting more choice,' Mr Cleverdon said. However, there is still at least one home listed for sale with hopes of a $100m+ sale. The Myer family have Toorak mansion Cranlana listed for sale at 62 Clendon Rd, Toorak, with a $96m-$105m price guide. The 1.14ha property is possibly the only other address in the suburb that could rival the record-setting Coonac for size, but has been awaiting a buyer since September last year. It is being represented by Marshall White's Marcus Chiminello, who is also working to sell a luxury penthouse at the top of Tim Gurner's Saint Moritz development on behalf of real estate and media guru Antony Catalano. Mr Chiminello has also this week listed a six-bedroom South Yarra mansion with a $31m-$33m asking price at 53-57 Park St as 'coming soon'. Records show the 900sq m address is owned by Vincent Sofo, a nightclub and venue operator who previously owned St Kilda's popular Espy hotel.
