St George Dragons star Ben Hunt buys Shire home
It has taken some time, but St George Illawarra Dragons star halfback Ben Hunt has settled into Sydney during the off-season, buying a family home after his move from Brisbane.
He and nutritionist wife Bridget didn’t buy into the St George heartland, but are setting up in the Sutherland Shire with their son Brady and two pooches Leeroy Brown and Rowdy.
And the Hunts have timed their purchase nicely. Ben signed a contract with the Dragons at the beginning of 2017, when prices in Sydney were still soaring. But the family has now been able to buy into a subdued market.
The home sat on the market for around 60 days, failing to sell last year until its price tag was reduced to $1.67 million. The couple paid $1.61 million through Cripps & Cripps Property Cronulla agent Graeme Miller.
CoreLogic calculates the suburb has seen an average 7 per cent change in median price over the past 10 years.
The property was built nine years ago, after the original home, a 1970s weatherboard, traded for $610,000 in 2002.
The architect-built four-bedroom home sits on an 865sqm parcel and had an estimated build cost of $350,000. Environmentally sustainable, the insulated home features windproof Safetyline Jalousie louvre windows.
There’s also a heated concrete slab and wood combustion fire.
Former Bronco Hunt’s six-year contract at the Dragons puts the 28-year-old among the NRL’s top earners.
NRL stars tackling the property game
Bridget Hunt has studied nutritional medicine (BHSc) and also has a diploma in professional pilates instruction.
Hunt still owns a property in Bridgeman Downs, northwest of Brisbane. He built in 2014, having paid $375,000 for the 500sqm block a year earlier. The four-bedroom house is now a $670/week rental.
This article was first published in the Saturday Daily Telegraph.