Harvey Norman co-founder Ian Norman snaps up NSW central coast's most spectacular mansion: Title Tattle
The most spectacular new house on the NSW central coast (pictured above) – with state-of-the-art mod cons including self-cleaning glass – has been snappily sold for $6.5 million to Ian Norman, the co-founder of the Harvey Norman discount store chain that dates back to its earliest days in 1961.The mansion had been listed for sale with $6.75 million-plus hopes last October through Mat Steinwede of McGrath Terrigal. It’s set on a 586-square-metre block on cliffs just south of The Skillion. The recently completed three-level residence was built by the rag trader Ghassan Ghazal, who bought the Scenic Highway vacant block for $1.5 million in January 2010. Title Tattle gathers there was exchange and settlement all within a fortnight.
It beat the central coast’s previous $5.6 million Avoca record. It’s set to be Norman’s semi-permanent residence. It features vast expanses of glass to take full advantage of the ocean and coastal views. The four-bedroom, six-bathroom house has a glass lift, a floating glass staircase (with LED lighting), an aquarium, a cinema room (fitted with electronically operated recliner chairs) and a climate-controlled, 1,000-bottle wine cellar. The open-plan living and dining areas open onto a cliff-edge garden with terraces, lawn and an infinity-edge pool. On the nearby Wamberal beachfront, Gazal has built another house, which he apparently intends to keep. Norman is the low-key co-founder of the Harvey Norman retail chain with Gerry Harvey. Filings lodged with the corporate regulator show Dimbulu Pty Ltd, a private company controlled by Ian Norman and his wife, Shirley, is Harvey Norman’s second largest shareholder, with a stake worth some $350 million.
Alastair Provan, the long-time Bell Potter Securities executive, and his, wife, Jan have spent $8.8 million on their high-rise apartment in newly completed complex The Residence overlooking Hyde Park. The one-time headquarters for the NSW Police has been gutted and refurbished by architectural firm Scottcarver to accommodate 87 upmarket apartments. The College Street complex was marketed by CBRE with the initial sales through Laing Real Estate, Pagdens, and Christies International.
Interior decorator Garth Barnett has spent $2,254,500 to buy into the Altair, Rushcutters Bay complex. It last sold at $2.1 million in 2007, and was briefly listed in 2010 through Di Jones at $2.3 million. The 17th-floor apartment comes with three bedrooms and two bathrooms totalling 206 square metres. It was first sold in 2001 by the developer, Walker Corp, at $1,375,000.
Byron Bay-bound businessman Neville Miles and his wife, artist Beryl, want $5 million plus for their Surry Hills warehouse (pictured above and below) at its February 25 auction.
The Bennett Place warehouse that dates back to the 1870s was most recently renovated in 2009-10 by Hare + Klein. It sits on a 247-square-metre block at the corner of Bennett Place and Marshall Street. The building spans three levels with 780 square metres of living space. It last sold at $3.1 million in early 2009.
Clyde Cottage (pictured above), the one-time Queen Street, Woollahra childhood home of Dame Joan Sutherland, has been sold for $4 million. The much-admired yet dilapidated, house in a prime position on the cafe strip had last sold for $6.45 million in late 2007. The 803-square-metre property that comes with Stephen Dunkley-secured development approved plans will have its restoration and extension undertaken by Singaporean businessman Ronald Ooi, who in January 2011 oversaw the sale of his 40-year-old family company the securities and investment broker, Kim Eng, for a sum of S$1.8 billion ($A1.35 billion) to Maybank.
Ooi, who had a 15% stake, has assumed a new role as executive advisor at Maybank Kim Eng, which has adopted the tiger symbol as its corporate logo. Clyde Cottage has been bought by Ooi and his wife, Erica. Clyde Cottage had been listed through Damien Bickmore-Hutt at Bickmore-Hutt Realty, who was initially seeking $6 million-plus buyers. Buyers were advised that the costs of repair and extensions were at least $3.75 million before landscaping based on a Heymann Cohen quantity surveyor report. A $5 million total project cost was forecast by the valuer Jason Smith who in 2009 envisaged a $15 million completion value.
The two-level, four-bedroom house became Sutherland’s home after her father died suddenly on her sixth birthday in the early 1930s. It was the home of her grandfather, Alexander Alston, a master builder who built the upper storey and extensions at the back. It currently has 270 square metres of space on both levels. It was her home for 19 years – where she was inspired by listening to the voices of Dame Nellie Melba and Enrico Caruso on a borrowed gramophone. Its been reported Sutherland, as a child, sang to the birds from a swing under a camphor laurel tree in the backyard of Clyde Cottage, which is National Trust classified because of its historic importance and its architectural interest. Several years before her death Sutherland noted: "Unfortunately, from the time my family gave up the house, the deterioration set in.”
Sadness is being expressed at the death of John Coote, one of the great interior designers who buoyed Melbourne's property credentials, especially during the 1980s. His Melbourne client list included the Lews, Foxes, Elliotts and Kimberleys. His 1987 Corrie Perkin Good Weekend piece was headlined - John Coote turns new money into old. The Australian born, RMIT-trained, Pimlico Road, London interior designer died last weekend in Indonesia of a suspected heart attack. He was 62 years old, and only recently embarked on his latest project - a 17th century villa in Italy. He was last in the local headlines during his 1991 divorce from Andrea Coote over the settlement of "Coote Castle", the 18th-century Irish mansion Bellamont Forest (pictured above), which John had reclaimed as his family's ancestral home. The property is officially known as Bellamont Forest, and Coote, who was born in Victoria's Wimmera, bought back the 400-hectare family estate in 1987 after 100 years out of family ownership and then embarked on a 22-year restoration. The Palladian villa was listed at €4.5 million on its early 2010 listing through Knight Frank inconjunction with William Montgomery/Sotheby's. John and Andrea, who's since remarried, apparently later made up. A memorial service will be held for him at St John's Anglican Church in Toorak on February 6.
Title Tattle aims to tell you as soon as we know – often before it happens – so the word is that Maggie Beer has expanded her Barossa Valley holdings. It’s a neighbouring eight-hectare stone fruit orchard. It seems the South Australian food industry icon couldn't face seeing it turned into grape vines. It was the late 1970s when the former Sydney urbanite packed up for the Barossa Valley with husband Colin, who is now CEO of the food business that reputedly turns over more than $10 million a year and employs 74 staff, as well as running vineyards in the Riverland district and a winemaking business. Title Tattle recalls when Colinwon a Churchill Fellowship to study pheasant farming.
And don’t say that Title Tattle told you, but one Sydney eastern suburbs entertainment industry couple is in a bit of a property conundrum after they upgraded first without selling. Then to secure their own sale they rather bizarrely bought the intending buyer’s own house in an interesting twist on the increasingly used ''subject-to-sale'' transaction trend. So now burdened with two properties they are considering just what to do on the big buy, which is shortly due for settlement.
