Mark Bouris lists his Astor apartment on Sydney's high society Macquarie Street

YBR boss Mark Bouris has had his pad in The Astor on Macquarie Street, Sydney quietly listed for sale for the past few months.

It was in 2006 when he bought the five-bedroom, two-storey north-east corner apartment from then Astor chairman Peter Kernaghan.

There's no price estimate available to Title Tattle from its listing agents, Lisa Steel and David Newgrosh, but it might have $10 million-plus hopes given its lavish renovation, and noting a two-bedroom 11th-floor unit comes with a $3.15 million asking price through McGrath Estate Agents.

It has an estimated 440 square metre space over what were three separate apartments.

Its also been available for rent at $3950 a week.

{yoogallery src=[images/stories/2012/12/dec20bouris]}

It's best known for when occupied by entertainer Barry Humphries, before it sold for $800,000 in 1987, and then extended with the addition of another adjoining apartment.

It comes with sweeping semi-spiral staircase to the upper level, where there is a "magnificent master bedroom suite" with private study, walk-in dressing room and ensuite bathroom.

The very private Mark Bouris has resticted internal photos to just the one image, although all who've been through say its a stunning apartment.

Title Tattle last inspected the apartment back in 1986 when its was Dame Edna's possum pit. At the time it was also a split-level triplex. The then selling agent was Tim Mansfield at the Andrew Gibbons agency whose pioneering selling technique included a three minute promotional video. The price back then was $1.25 million for the then seven bedroom apartment, with the apartment split back into two leaving one with the gracious wrought iron staircase for grand entrances.

The Astor is the 12-storey, 1920s company title block that once dominated not only the city skyline but Sydney society.

Despite being the city's oldest apartment complex - and facing serious competition from many nearby new developments – it continues to attract buyers, especially when a modernised apartment comes with parking elsewhere on the strip. Especially after the elegant Iain Halliday-designedrenovation benchmark set in the mid-1990s after style-setters, ad man John Nankervis and wife Amanda bought their $535,000 third-floor deceased estate unit. 

Bouris took up his ownership having previously had digs elsewhere on Macquarie Street, in the Bennelong complex.

Over the years the block of apartments has been home to Lisa Rochfort, who was the managing director of Australian couture jewellers Fairfax & Roberts, adman Harold Mitchell, Pioneer founder Sir Tristan Antico, broadcaster John Laws and artist Portia Geach.

Being company title, keeping track of pricing and sales figures is a little difficult, though in 1932 the eighth-floor north-east corner block was passed in at 4300 pounds.

Peter Kernaghan had knocked back $3.82 million when he sought to sell it in 2002.

The 1101 Astor listing, which had initial $3.35 million asking price,  is a north-east facing, two bedroom apartment.

Its possibly the apartment rented by the Sydney Harbour Bridge engineer Lawrence Ennis, of Dorman, Long & Co, who would look through his telescope to check on the progress of the bridge's construction.

The Astor was Sydney's highest residential building from 1923 until 1960 and its off-the-plan prices ranged from 1500 pounds to 2700 pounds.