Source: AMANDA SHEPPEARD, The Daily Telegraph
A STUNNING Queenscliff oceanfront trophy home has taken just four days to sell for a whopping $12 million — and the new owner inspected it only once.
The sale of 3 Pavilion St is a new suburb record that eclipses the previous record of $10 million, set in October 2017 with the sale of 7 Crown Rd, Queenscliff.
Jake Rowe, of Rowe Partners Real Estate, said the luxury oceanfront home had been on the market for just four days.
More than 20 groups inspected the property at its first open, including the eventual buyer. It was the first and only time they saw the property before they entered negotiations to buy it.
Mr Rowe said this was not unheard of, but was not common.
“Sometimes you just know,” he said.
He said there were a number of potential buyers chasing it from the first inspection. The property was not due to go to auction until September 1, and it had a price guide of $11 million-$12 million.
Mr Rowe said buyers agent Peter Kelaher, of PK Property, represented the buyer, a family from Wahroonga, who have not been identified.
However he said the buyers had missed out on other properties and were very keen to secure the Queenscliff home.
The sale is a significant milestone this year for Mr Rowe, who has notched up record sales in Allambie Heights, Manly, North Manly and now Queenscliff.
“I think this shows that the top end is still performing very well,” Mr Rowe said.
And it marks the end of an era for David and Presia Eyles, the proud owners of 3 Pavilion St.
They have loved every minute of the time they have lived there and have taken none of it for granted.
Mr Eyles still remembers the first time he and his wife Presia laid eyes on what was then an old house at 3 Pavilion St.
It was 2008, and the property market was in the grip of the GFC, so there were not many buyers around.
“I reckon I was the only guy in Sydney buying a flash house that weekend,” Mr Eyles said.
He has always loved the ocean, and even though the house wasn't much to look at, the location was a dream come true.
“I think it's every Australian kid's dream to live close enough to the ocean without actually falling in,” he said.
“It wasn't a trophy home when we got it, it was a trophy location.”
Mrs Eyles shared his enthusiasm for the property.
“My wife took me to a corner of the house and said 'we've got to have it', and when your wife says that, you have to make it happen.”
The couple have four children, who were teenagers at the time, and they set about designing a home that was both practical to live in, would make the most of the breathtaking view, indulge their love of entertaining.
They even held their daughter's wedding reception at the house — a grand affair for 170 people.
It's easy to see how much this family have loved and lived in their amazing tri-level home, which really has to be seen to be believed.
With views from just about every angle — even the bath — it's a visual feast on any day, whether it is whales frolicking on their annual migration or the pure beauty of a full moon lighting up the ocean on a cloudless night.
There are multiple living areas inside and out, a level lawn and tropical gardens. Rows of outdoor lounges surround a fire-pit, which sits next to the heated plunge pool, deep enough to float in while you admire the view.
“It has been a dream come true home for us, and we have never taken it for granted,” Mr Eyles said.
“But it's time for us to downsize now — we just hope that someone who really wants it gets it.”