1. A Chunk of Double Bay’s Iconic Gladswood House for $5m+

    An apartment in one of the Sydney harbourfront’s most iconic mansions listed today through agent Ken Jacobs with $5m+ expectations. Apartment 2 is a three-bedroom, single-level apartment that contains elements of both the original mansion footprint and the quasi-graceful 1990s tack-on that faces the harbour. We last saw this apartment on the market spanning the years 2008 through 2010, when the apartment failed to sell, as far as we could ascertain. Ken Jacobs is now trying his luck with the sale and the price expectations certainly aren’t modest. The sales history for the 7-unit mansion conversion offer slight insight into the bullish price hopes for the cozy apartment. Units in Gladswood House first traded hands after its extensive renovation and extension in 1998 and only two of the seven have since then traded hands. Here’s the rundown:

    • Unit 1: $3.4m, 1998
    • Unit 3: $2.325m, 1999
    • Unit 4: $1.806m, 2005
    • Unit 5: $4.625m, July 2010 **best comp, similar size as Unit 2**
    • Unit 6: $2.425m, 1999
    • Unit 7: $2.15m, 1998

    All impressive figures, no doubt, but they don’t quite reveal the status that Gladswood House once maintained. The Victorian Gothic mansion was constructed between 1862-64 out of land sliced from the Point Piper estate. Initially named ‘Seaford House’, then ‘Glenyarrah’, the name ‘Gladswood House’ was adopted in 1913 and stuck. The manse was constructed on a 3 acre block of land with its main entrance accessible from New South Head Road. After an initial subdivision in 1927 and a subsequent slicing in 1937, the property now rests on a 1/3 acre harbourfront parcel on the cul-de-sac Gladswood Gardens where it shares neighbours with a host of inter-war apartment blocks and one particularly impressive modern house. From 1937 onwards, the mansion served as a boarding house. 


    An 1880s image of Double Bay pier, taken from Darling Point, with ‘Gladswood House’ (then named ‘Seaford House’) prominently dominating the local landscape. A c1870s picture below reveals surprisingly mature landscaping for the 10-year old mansion.
     

    Beginning in 1989 and continuing through the ’90s, the property was the subject of much debate, as Jonathan Chancellor reported, when erstwhile Sydney power players Alan Bond and Dr Robert Hampshire both jockeyed to acquire the house. Neither were successful in their acquisition and the home was developed into its existing seven apartments in 1998. The restoration of the public spaces was extremely well-executed, but the Radical Terrace can’t help but mourn the uninspiring modern extension at rear with its drop ceilings and complete lack of character channeling the greatness that once was Seaford House Glenyarrah Gladswood House.


    Impressive public spaces (above); uninspiring private spaces (below).


    A very Sydney GPO-like integration of old and new in Unit 2’s entrance foyer (above) and bathroom (below).
     
    The baronial master bedroom with its original fireplace and extensive ceiling woodworking, below. 

    BONUS SOURCE: Kick-ass run down on the historic property from NSW Heritage here.

    The listing: 2/11 Gladswood Gardens, Double Bay

    Click below for more images and a floor plan!

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  2. Double Bay Apartment of Many Flips Now Flipping Once Again

    Unit 2 in the harbourfront Double Bay block of 3 units ”villas” at 17 Gladswood Garens has traded hands many times since first developed in 1990. However, since its last sale of $5.8m less than two years ago, a Nick Tobias-designed renovation suddenly has given the apartment new price aspirations. According to Domain.com.au, the slightly above average unit wants $9m+, which seems slightly unbelievable to us. When contacted for an exact price, the agent never responded. Go figure. That chunk of money will buy you a full-floor with four bedrooms, a tandem 2-car garage and a shared pool on the water. The block sits at the tip of the highly desirable cul-de-sac Gladswood Gardens (home to an impressive 19th century Gothic mansion-turned-apartments). But even that address can’t save this property from its biggest shortcoming: a pretty gnarly stank tends to emanate from the gutter a couple metres away that churns out sewage into the Harbour. 

    Click below for more listing photos, information, and a pretty slick floor plan.

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  3. Nice Scoop, Margie!

    It hasn’t even hit the open market yet, but Margie Blok landed a solid property scoop: the listing of 75 Bay Street, one of Double Bay’s last-remaining original harbourfront homes. The home has been in the Pockley Family since the 1940s. The home was constructed in 1920 for Merriweather family and has a “tree of local significance” on the property. Seriously. Expect a price well in the eight-digits for the home, boatshed, and 1091sqm of land, despite its poor shape. Michael Dunn of Richardson & Wrench has the listing. 

    And just for fun, here’s an 1874 image of Double Bay with what appears to be the Victorian Gothic style home (at right, near edge of wharf) that the current home likely replaced in 1920. 

    Images courtesy of Google Street View, SMH Title Deeds dated 14 July, and the State Library of Victoria

  4. 1830s Double Bay Gothic Transformation Still Wants $6m

    Mort’s Cottage, one of Double Bay’s earliest intact homes, has re-emerged on the market after a several month absence. Last sold in Apr 2005 for $3.02m, the home underwent a $300k renovation and addition under the design of Thomas Jacobsen Architects. Not surprising given the historic nature of the property, the Woollara Council took over a year to approve the Development Application. And then, shortly after the glassy modern addition was completed (hello, mullet house!), the house emerged on the market through Di Jones agents Jane Schumann and Gary Sands in late 2011. A few months after the initial listing, Susan Wellings at SMH’s Domain reported in Dec 2011:

    “The owners of Mort’s Cottage (circa 1835) have unexpectedly found a property they adore, so they’re eager to sell their own historic five-bedroom, three-bathroom sandstone home - one of Double Bay’s earliest - on a level block just 200 metres to the harbour foreshore. As a result, they’re reducing their asking price from $6.5 million to offers above $5.5 million for the house…”

    Well, we’re not sure if the home’s owners ended up purchasing that “property they adore” anyways, but Mort’s Cottage is back on the market, this time with pricing indications that appear more optimistic than in December.

    The cottage itself was constructed in 1839 (not 1835 as indicated by the property’s site, 1835 was when the property was first subdivided and sold). It took its present name of ‘Mort’s Cottage’ from Thomas Mort who occupied the house beginning in 1848. However, 38 Ocean Avenue also took the following names over the course of its 175-year history:

    • Lillian c.1883
    • Posendorf c.1895
    • Namoi c.1916
    The home is considered to be of “Victorian Rustic Gothic Style” (considering the home was built after Victoria’s reign began in 1837, we won’t deride that piece of historical commentary) and has some kinship to another featured property built 30 years later - Glen Rhoda. Although we can’t find any historical imagery to back this claim, we presume the “gingerbread” wooden gables were an addition in the second-half of the nineteenth century and not around at the time of construction. 

  5. ‘Teralla’ - Double Bay Grande Dame for Sale, Ready for a Flip

    The four-bedroom Victorian Italianate home with swimming pool was purchased by Mark McIvor for $4.7m in Nov 2005 and apparently “extensively renovated” shortly thereafter, although we can’t quite tell what was renovated. Apparently the McIvor’s are short on dough these days and the sale is under receivership, thus garnering a bit of a discount.

    The pricing expectations are hovering around the $5m+ mark. And with such an easy floor plan to work with, the Radical Terrace suggests the future buyer chuck in an easy $1mil to spruce up the interior and make for a larger master bedroom and a more functional backyard and you easily have an $8m+ “town residence”. That said, there seems to be a certain price barrier for non-waterfront homes in Double Bay that rarely gets crossed, and since the NIMBYs of the 20-28 put a halt to some much needed development in the area, Double Bay may never be the “Beverly Hills of Australia” it once was, making any investment a small gamble…

    Bart Doff of Laing+Simmons Double Bay has the listing: 20 Cooper St, Double Bay.

  6. Double Bay Waterfront for $10m

    As Jonathan Chancellor broke on his Title Tattle blog, a $10m+ Double Bay waterfront emerged on the market earlier this week. The home is, indeed, radical (save for the frightening bathroom that marries the design sentiments of a 1990s Gold Coast luxury with a the materials found in a display home in Campbelltown). The home was designed by Gerry Rihs and last traded for $7m in 2007. The home is in a quiet position but may unfortunately may be a bit too close to the location of an exceptionally smelly sewer that has in the past depressed Double Bay waterfront prices. 

    Jamie Upton of Savills has the listing. 30 Stafford Street, Double Bay

  7. PlanningAlerts.org.au Launches Beta for NIMBYs Everywhere

    A not-for-profit website launched by a team of volunteers has launched its beta site. Simply enter your home address (or any address of interest) and you’ll get handy notifications of every development application that pops up in your area. This is perfect for all the Double Bay residents who want to squash any attempt at making their suburb relevant once again! Another beneficiary of this website? Paddington NIMBYs who want to encourage Oxford Street’s continued slide into irrelevance! Wahoo!

  8. Park Front and Harbour Views in Double Bay

    A prominently positioned home fronting Double Bay’s Steyne Park emerged on the market with a bullish $7m+ expectation. 1 William Street last sold $2.6m in June 2001, and seeing that the broker babble indicates the home is offered “for the first time ever”, a new home was presumably constructed since 2001 (even though The Radical could not find any DA documentation in Woollahra indicating such). Nonetheless, the best part of the home is likely from the outside (and even then, it just looks like a bit of a Michael Suttor knock-off with a few too many neo-classical features). The inside leaves much to be desired for the price you’ll be paying for the home fronting a well-travelled road. But, damn it, living on Steyne Park would be mighty nice!

    Michael Pallier (who was once Australia’s leading seller of Mercedez Benz for four consecutive years!) of Raine & Horne Double Bay has the listing

  9. Ashington’s Mixed-Use Development Finally Gets Approval

    NIMBYs and Woollahra councillors alike spent a good deal of time, effort, and money opposing the best (and only) idea to revive Double Bay since it began to lose its lustre in the mid-90s. Since Westfield revived Bondi Junction and since Paddington upped its boutique-filled precinct, Double Bay became the domain of cheap and ageing Russians and Scots boys with nothing better to do but loiter.  Now, in the former Ritz-Carlton location, Double Bay will land a Palace Cinemas, retail space, and apartments. Ashington, the developer, compromised by greatly reducing the square metrage of the planned development. The PTW-designed renderings look pretty damn good if you ask me. Jonathan Chancellor breaks the story here.