Joe Hockey finds buyer for redundant Hunters Hill home

The Hunters Hill peninsula-based Boyd family have been pinpointed as the most likely buyers of the redundant home of Joe Hockey, the ambassador to the United States and his investment banker wife, Melissa Babbage.

The property came down from marketing websites on Friday evening.

There was no official confirmation of any sale, but no further open for inspections are scheduled for the trophy home which was listed with $8 million plus price guidance.

Listing agent Brad Pillinger had hoped recent Chinese New Year tourism celebrations would bring offshore interest, but the rumoured strongest interest came from the longtime local family.

Hockey and Babbage intend upsizing to another historic Hunters Hill home, set on almost 2400 square metres.

The pair have secured a reputed $8 million deal for Wybalena House, a grand six-bedroom sandstone 1870s residence. The deal was secured via a put and call option last month when a call-option fee was paid and released.

Their redundant Federation mansion, Te Roma cost $3.5 million in 2004 when Hockey was a Liberal MP in the Howard Government.The four bedroom house with study and media room has been renovated by heritage architect firm Clive Lucas Stapleton.

Te Roma, built in 1905 on its 1400 square metre Woolwich Road block, has been leased since 2015, when Hockey took the diplomatic posting.

Top end market observers suggest Hockey had been caught in cooling market conditions, as the torrent of billionaire buyers from China has turned to a trickle.

The Hockey family retain ownership of their South Coast retreat at Stanwell Park bought in $782,500 in 2002. 

They sold their Forrest, Canberra residence for $1,515,000 in 2016.

The Hockey’s cattle farm holdings in Malanda, north of Cairns, were sold in 2016.

This article first appeared in The Sunday Telegraph.