An oceanfront Tamarama property that sold for $29.2 million in 2022 has changed hands for $20.25 million in a mortgagee-in-possession auction.
The residence at 9 Kenneth Street, owned by hotelier Diane Maloney’s company Winchester 2 Pty Ltd, was sold to a family from Strathfield after the vendor lowered its $24 million reserve during Saturday’s auction.
The property faces the Bondi to Bronte walk, with no road separating it from the ocean. It had been marketed with a guide of $20 million as a potential redevelopment opportunity.
Configured as five apartments and a standalone beach shack, the holding was presented as a blank canvas for a buyer to create a new home.
Three parties registered to bid and all took part. Bidding opened at $16 million, initially rising in $1 million increments before moving through bids of $500,000 and $250,000.
The underbidder was a developer from Sydney’s Hills district, while the third bidder was an Australian man living overseas. Ray White (Phillips & Co) director Alexander Phillips said the property’s reserve had been adjusted to allow the sale to proceed.
“It is a rare, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to live on the waterfront in Tamarama,” Mr Phillips said. “There are not many beachside areas in the eastern suburbs that don’t have a road in front of you. This just had a walkway.”
The company behind the property is listed on ASIC records as being under external administration and/or having a controller appointed. Costa Nicodemou of Newpoint Advisory is the receiver manager, and two mortgages are listed on the title.
Auctioneer Damien Cooley said the result reflected the conditions facing the market. “What we saw yesterday was the registered bidders compete for the property and market value was determined in the current market conditions,” he said.
The sale came during a week in which 1,029 Sydney properties were scheduled for auction. Domain recorded a preliminary clearance rate of 51 per cent from 653 reported results, with 232 auctions withdrawn, remaining below the 60 per cent level regarded as indicating a balanced market.
