Altona, the Point Piper harbourfront sells for possible $50 million plus
Altona, the Point Piper harbourfront mansion, has been sold - having been listed on and off the market over the past six years with $50 million plus hopes.
The inveterate record price setting house has been bought by Chaimovich Investments Pty Ltd, a company whose sole director and shareholder is Xiuzhen Ding, a 75 year old Shandong, China-born resident of Ormond Esplanade in the Melbourne bayside suburb of Elwood.Chaimovich Investments was established in March this year. Ding has only one other known company directorship, Moszkowski Investments which was registered in February this year.
His gracious 1920s Elwood abode, purchased for $4.2 million, is not owned by Ding, but rather by Shengli Chang, a 44 year old Nanjing, China born, co-director of the Moskowski company. It's the house known as Fontainebleau, the former reception centre which sold through Brighton agent Nick Johnstone in 2010. The ultimate beneficiary of Chaimovich Investments is not known.
Altona was sold by Deke Miskin, a former teenage magazine publishing industry entrprenuer, and his wife, Eve on March 28, but had remained a tightly held, yet whispered rumour until its confirmation.
The same reputed buyer names kept coming up as its supposed buyers - all followed by the ensuing denials from the likes of the Queensland property developer, the Oxford Street fashion retailer, and the King Street wharf accountant.
No sale price has emerged - $54 million is the unofficial tip through - but the Miskin couple always harboured $50 million plus hopes for the Wunulla Road property which comes with a tennis court block included in the sale.
The prominent Point Piper harbourfront home was for the first time advertised with an asking price at a record-setting $US56.9 million (A$54.5 million) last September.
It was subsequently featured as the Wall Street Journal (Asia) edition house of the day when listed through Ballard Property.
The home of entreprenuer Deke Miskin and his wife, Eve, has been actively market for the past two years.
The sale documentation suggest the purchase was overseen by Clayton Utz lawyers Rory Moriarty, a corporate partner with experience across a broad range of transactions, including Australian and cross-border mergers and acquisitions, takeovers, capital raisings and corporate structuring often involving the Foreign Investment Review Board and Deborah Bailey, whose expertise is in property development law, particularly joint ventures, leasing, acquisitions and disposals, project development, structuring, restructuring and financing.
No local estate agent has yet taken credit for the prestige sale. A half dozen or so estate agents have had the listing over the years.
In July 2007 a $55 million offer by the shopping centre scion David Lowy and his wife, Margo, for Altona was rejected by the Miskins, who subsequently indicated $60 million would trigger a sale.
The Lowys first inspected the property shortly after the actor Russell Crowe inspected the Wunulla Road property.
The recent asking price is almost double the then record price of $28.5 million which was secured when the Miskin's bought from socialite, Fiona Handbury in 2002.
Sydney's priciest sale sits with Villa Veneto, the five-storey Italianate villa sold by recruitment entrepreneur Andrew Banks and his wife, Andrea, in August 2010 to dentist David Penn and his wife, Linda. It reportedly sold in August 2010 for the $52 million plus, details of which emerged in September 2010, with its official settlement on Valentine's Day 2011 following the payment of what appeared to be the second instalment of $44 million to finalise the deal which came with a labyrinth of sales paperwork dated December 2010.
The next highest recorded house price was Coolong, the 4100 square metre waterfront property on Coolong Road, Vaucluse, which the late David Coe sold for $45 million - and similiarly shrouded in the veil of continued secrecy - in 2008 to the expat Ivan Ritossa and his wife, Marina.
Of course Chris Ellison set the WA real estate record when he paid $57.5 million for iron ore heiress Angela Bennett's riverfront property - more of a compound than single residence - in Mosman Park in 2009. The 7,567-square-metre estate sold through Willie Porteous of William Porteous Properties International.
Australia's most iconic residence is a unique private estate with a world class deep waterfront family lifestyle.
"Indisputably one of a kind, the grand Italianate residence was expertly designed by Dods & Zuccon Architects, with luxurious interiors by Andrew Parr of SJB," is how Altona was marketed.
Altona's name dates from its early 1900s owner, Altona James, the wife of judge Augustus Gus James.
The property has terraces overlooking lawns, a heated pool, private jetty and sauna. It also has a rooftop deck.
