John 'Strop' Cornell and Delvene Delaney list last Belongil Beach, Byron Bay land holding

John 'Strop' Cornell and Delvene Delaney list last Belongil Beach, Byron Bay land holding
Jonathan ChancellorDecember 7, 2020

Entertainment industry veterans John 'Strop' Cornell and his wife, Delvene Delaney, who were Paul Hogan's sidekicks in their comedic heyday, are selling their final block of land on their one time vast Belongil Beach compound.

"With no continuing business interests in Byron Bay, we are releasing our remaining real estate holdings there for others to enjoy," Delvene advised.

They sold the main chunk four years ago to Harvey Norman heir Glen Norman for $10 million, the highest sale that year in the tourist hotspot.

The lavish home, completely rebuilt since Norman's purchase in 2015, is a luxury verified Airbnb rental, fetching $5,500 a night, dubbed White Hawk Retreat.

Cornell and Delaney are now selling their final slice of their one time 2.3 acre compound which was bought from the property developer Peter Kurts in 1987 for $375,000.

The three lots totalling 2,089 square metres (pictured above) have been listed through LJ Hooker Byron Bay agent Glen Irwin who is taking expressions of interest until October 28.

While not to the same extent as Wategos Beach, Belongil Beach has seen celebrity buying activity over recent years.

Celebrity chef Shannon Bennett has moved in to his home.

The six bedroom, six bathroom home comes with rooftop garden, sunset bar and natural pool.

The Block judge Shelley Craft and her real estate agent husband Christian Sergiacomi are set to move to the area following their $4.9 million sale of their home in town earlier this year to the fund manager Peter Cooper.

They're currently building a Paul Ullmann-Designed five bedroom home after paying $1.35 million for a block of land in 2017. It is inland on the Belongil peninsula.

It sits just a few hundred metres away from where the couple tied the knot a decade ago.

The top sale at Byron was earlier this year on Wategos. Eli Havas, wife of F45 founder Adam Gilchrist, paid $18.85 million for the longtime Marine Parade record holder.

It had belonged to property developer Danny Goldberg, who paid $15.68 million some 13 years ago. 

This article first appeared in The Daily Telegraph. 

Jonathan Chancellor

Jonathan Chancellor is one of Australia's most respected property journalists, having been at the top of the game since the early 1980s. Jonathan co-founded the property industry website Property Observer and has written for national and international publications.

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