Well-Executed - But Controversial - Cremorne Point House Flip To Auction for High-$3mils

7 Green Street’s front edifice today (above); and at the time of its Oct 2009 sale for $1.53m (below).

7 Green Street, just a tennis ball’s throw away from the east side of the quant Cremorne Point Foreshore path, will auction off in February with expectations in the high-$3mil range. The newly-constructed home is uniquely positioned for the peninsular suburb where most homes sit under strict heritage protection that make new constructions a rarity. 7 Green Street was the result of a mid-century subdivision of land resting up the hill from the Heritage-listed mansion (turned apartment block) ‘The Laurels’. The home built in the 1960s or 70s was deemed a ‘Neutral Item’ from a conservation standpoint, owing to its incongruous concrete and brick construction in the midst of the dominant Edwardian and Federation style of its neighbours. This all boded well for the current owners of 7 Green Street who acquired the 4-bedroom home on a triangular and petit 400 square metre block in 2009 for $1.53m only to tear down the home and move the pool from the east side of the property to the south. 

The new construction is a well-executed and understated take on Hawaiian Colonial architecture (despite unfounded estate agents claim of a ‘Hamptons-style’), at least from the exterior aesthetic. The construction of the home, however, was far from understated. A basic Google Search of the property yielded many a North Sydney Council meeting minutes indicating a back-and-forth on every aspect of the home’s construction. One disgruntled NIMBY neighbour went so far as to nark on the owners of 7 Green Street, claiming the “demolition works had been more extensive than [originally] approved” (they weren’t). Lawsuits even transpired from the exchange, costing the North Sydney Council $44k. Way to go, neighbours. You can thank the owners of 7 Green Street later for increasing your home’s value. 

The resultant 4-bedroom, 3-bathroom home ticks most boxes required of a luxury home on Cremorne Point these days. The addition of an exceedingly large attic-floor bedroom and bathroom even grants the home harbour glimpses. But the Radical Terrace can’t help but wonder if the house flip was worth the headaches (and the cost) the owners likely dealt with over the course of their three year ownership…but, as always, the auction in February will be the judge of that. 

The listing: 7 Green Street, Cremorne Point

Click below for more images of the property and a FLOOR PLAN!

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Iconic Bellevue Hill Apartment Block Strata Titles, Renovates, and Flips

An iconic piece of mid-century architecture has been redeemed! After a steady decline from its 1957 construction, the ‘Baxter’ apartment block at 85 Drumalbyn Road in Bellevue Hill has been refurbished by a property developer under the design of architects Melocco & Moore with interiors by degin firm SJB. The block of apartments sold for $4.4m in Nov 2011. Almost immediately after closing on the property, the new owners lodged a DA with Woollahra Council for a $312k renovation, landscaping works, and strata subdivision of the 9 units. Several months later, in June of this year, they lodged an additional DA for a $50k conversion of an office into a studio apartment, bringing the total number of apartments in the block to 10. Although those totals seem to be understatements of any renovation work, if we’re to base our profit breakdown off the publicly available numbers, it reveals some pretty friendly numbers for the developers. The listing agent is quoting the ten 2-bedroom apartments between $695k and $955k. 

85 Drumalbyn Road pre-renovation.

The block was designed and built by Hungarian-born architect L.T. Rayner in 1957 as a personal investment property. The architect had just returned to Sydney after completing architectural work for the 1954 Melbourne Olympic Games (and a 1955 Toorak apartment block) and pushed forward the rather daring and modern apartment block in the ‘International Style’ for the steep site, complete with coloured spandrel panels, extensive use of concrete, and a flat roof.

The location is slightly subprime, being in that hiccup of Drumalbyn Road where the road is divided. However, its situation amongst other small apartment blocks is fitting, and the price point is easily justifiable. Radical Terrace is eager to understand how the public market will value such a specific architectural style that, until recently, has not been inherently well-valued by the market. 85 Drumalbyn Road: we’ll be following you.

Chris Russell of Mondell Property Group has the listing: ‘Baxter’, 85 Drumalbyn Road, Bellevue Hill

Click below for the floor plan for that crazy small 10th apartment, and the floor plan for apartments 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, and 9.

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Quick Flip for a Mullet House in Brighton

The front (above)…and the back (below).

It was only in January 2011 that ‘Lothlorien’ at 29 Sussex Street in Brighton traded hands for just over $3.7m. Now, the property is back on the market with price expectations hovering around its last sale price. The 5-bedroom home maintains its c1890 High Victorian facade in the front but takes a crazy post-modern turn at the rear. We’ve seen mullet houses before on this blog, some have turned out exceptionally well (we’re looking at you, still unsold ‘Barwon’); this is not such a property. But the home’s prime position between New Street and the Bay in Brighton coupled with a 979sqm allotment ought to garner this property some interest. Without seeing a floor plan, it’s impossible to ascertain if it will be an easy fix to improve the rear extension, but here’s to hoping. 

Marcus Gollings and Jonathan Dixon of JP Dixon Real Estate have the listing: ‘Lothlorien’, 29 Sussex Street, Brighton

More images below.

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Well, That Was Quick: ‘Laurel Park’ Flipping for $4.3m+

Just twelve months ago, Laurel Park in Burradoo’s famed (and fatigued) Golden Triangle sold for $3,525,000. The John Sulman-designed home was one of the original Southern Highlands estates to accommodate Sydney’s summering set when it was built in 1886-87. (Believe it or not, Sydney’s 19th century elite wanted to escape the heat of their city’s summer, not bask in it.) The home originally sat on 100 acres and was built for John Macintosh who sought a cooler refuge for his ailing daughter.

The current owners seem to have pulled a Simone Semmens and subdivided a portion of the property in April while renovating the interiors of Laurel Park to grab a maximum return. It was a strategic subdivision: siphoning off the land fronting the well-trafficked Moss Vale Road while maintaining the prestigious Osborne Road entrance for Laurel Park. The renovation was also strategically wise, albeit standard for a flip: refreshed and modernised kitchen, wallpaper galore, some nice staging furniture, and the best mudroom we’ve seen this side of the Hamptons. A $4.3m sale of the home, plus whatever proceeds they’ll score from an adjacent parcel of land will likely yield a healthy profit. Let’s just hope the home doesn’t face the same fate of many other Burradoo properties at present: languishing on the market for months…and years…

Michael Maloney of Richardson & Wrench Bowral has the listing: ‘Laurel Park’, 81 Osborne Road, Burradoo

The subdivision plans from April 2012.

Click below for more photos and a FLOOR PLAN!

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Yet Another Flip on Paddo’s Hopetoun Street Looking to Break the $2m Barrier

If Paddington is a barometer for the overall health of the Sydney real estate market, then I’d like to argue that Hopetoun Street is a barometer for the Paddington market. The tiny street, subdivided and developed in 1890, is situated within close walking proximity to the William Street boutiques, Oxford Street transportation corridor, and Five Ways. The consistency in terrace size (~4.5m wide), precedence for off street parking, and precedence for attic conversions all seem to speak well for house flippers. 

Just a few months ago, the Radical Terrace featured 9 Hopetoun Street, a home that was acquired for $1.5m in Oct 2011, lodged a $400k renovation scheme, and is now shopping around with an exact price of $2,395,000 after passing in at auction last month. That home underwent a truly intense renovation that looked, to us at least, to be a complete over-capitalization for the size of the home and its Hopetoun Street location. If does indeed sell for $2.395m, it will be the first home on the street to break the $2m mark, boding well for today’s feature property.

40 Hopetoun Street, on the other hand, underwent a much more by-the-book renovation. The current owners picked up the terrace in July 2010 for $1.55m and within 2 months lodged plans for a $250k renovation that saw the reconstruction of the ground floor, the addition of rear lane parking, and an attic conversion. And now they are shopping offers in the low $2mils ahead of its December auction through Belle Property agents Matt Bognar and Scott Aggett. The renovation ticks all the boxes for a Paddington renovation: the addition of an ensuite, an attic bedroom, a ground floor powder room, off street parking, and a nice, modern kitchen. But with such a small parcel of land and such a tiny amount of square footage, it begs the question: is Hopetoun Street really a $2m section of Paddington? I mean, the coffee at Alimanteri is good, but is it really that good?

The listing: 40 Hopetoun Street, Paddington

Click below for more images and a FLOOR PLAN!

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Bellevue Hill Sees Another Big Flip on Victoria Road for $8m+

Just two days after we wrote of an 8-digit listing on a prime stretch of Victoria Road, a neigbhour across the street has jumped on the open listing bandwagon and is strutting its Mock Tudor-meets-Federation Free Style-self with $8m+ expectations. ‘Hurlingham’ at 100B Victoria Road is a 5-bedroom, 4-bathroom home built in 1916 that sits on a rather small battleax block of 893sqm. It wasn’t always this way for Hurlingham. For its first four decades of ownership, the home spanned across what is now 100 and 100C Victoria Roads, sitting on a far more impressive 2,000sqm block. 

1943 aerial with the red outline showing the contemporary parcel line. Note the gravel driveway sweeping up from Victoria Road; contemporary aerial image below showing the home now sandwiched between two post-war creations.
 

Even still, the architectural significance of the home remains in spite of the loss of land. In 1916, at a time when the flamboyant Federation style with its iconic terra cotta tile roofing was taking off in the “new money” suburbs of Mosman and other pockets of the Lower North Shore, the restrained use of an Anglified Mock Tudor with its shingle roof at ‘Hurlingham’ was fitting for a new home in Bellevue Hill that aspired to possess a history that did not otherwise exist. Even its name is more evocativeof an English country retreat than the more playful (and often times Indigenous or location-based) names of Federation homes. 

The home last traded hands for $5.755m in December 2010 and underwent a minor interior refurbishment (purely a spruce up of the materials). The renovation is beginning to look increasingly commonplace in top end Australian homes: whitewashed interiors maintaining the original features, dark flooring, and a new kitchen. What we can also say for certain is that the owners did not spend $2.25m on the renovation, meaning this home joins another well-intentioned (albeit, far more successful) house flip in the 2023 post code. A side-by-side floor plan comparison reveals the changes consisted of slightly modified bathrooms, the addition of a large walk-in-wardrobe, an extended front porch, a BBQ pavilion, and a tweaked pool area.

2010…

…AND NOW!
 

2010…
 
…AND NOW! 

Bill Malouf of LJ Hooker Double Bay has the listing: Hurlingham, 100B Victoria Road, Bellevue Hill 

MORE RENOVATION PHOTOS BELOW!!

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Radical Terrace Approved: Castle Cove Mid-Century for $3.5m+

Hot off the heals of a Neutral Bay home that seems all too primed for a flip, the Radical Terrace has come across a 1964-constructed single-story home in Castle Cove that is also just a pretty basic renovation away from being a contemporary Sydney landmark. The four bedroom home has a solid floor plan, with all secondary bedrooms boasting a bathroom. The living areas all well-oriented to panoramic Middle Harbour views and maintain many original and iconic period fixtures. And there’s even a pool house! On many fronts, this home is the closest to a Hollywood Hills/Trousdale Estates home than any we’ve seen in Australia.

Working against the home is a price point that’s more Castlecrag than Castle Cove and an oddly situated master bedroom that appears to look into the neighbour’s home instead of the harbour vistas beyond. Nonetheless, we’ll take it. And we’re pretty confident that a $500k renovation could add far more than that amount in value to the home. Surprisingly, Modern House does not have the listing; instead the listing honours go to Neil Adam of Adam First National. The property is to auction with $3.5m+ expectations. 

The listing: 51 Headland Road, Castle Cove

Click below for more photos!

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Cremorne Point Home Begging for a Flip and $5m+

Perhaps the only thing the Radical Terrace loves more than the finished product of a good flip is a home that’s ripe for a good flipping. Enter an inter-war Arts and Crafts fronting a reserve park above Sirius Cove situated on a generous 1300sqm parcel. The heritage-listed home at 138 Milson Road possesses a transecting gable roof clad in concrete tiles and aesthetically-pleasing projecting bay windows. It last traded hands in Aug 2005 for $4.2m and has not been changed one bit since.  Current listing agents Matthew Smyth and Emma Binskin of McGrath Lower North Shore are shopping the home around with $5m+ expectations, a surprisingly fair price when the Radical Terrace backs away from a potential future value of the home. 

The case for the flip is many-fold: large existing footprint, Harbour Bridge views, Reserve-front position, being one of the few single-family homes on the harbourside of Milson Road (most have converted to apartment blocks), a large parcel of land. But perhaps most importantly is the $7.25m sale of next-door neigbhour #136 back in Dec 2003. Granted, 136 Milson Road is more architecturally distinguished with its rusticated brick exterior, features a pool, and sits on a slightly larger block, but it still maintains a solid high-price precedent for the stretch of Milson Road. 

The downsides of this property? It’s view is blocked by heritage-listed trees (those damned trees!) making for a slightly awkward south-west view corridor. Also, the garaging manages the best view of the property with the remainder of the house sloping down from the street. That said, whomever the owners were at the time of the garage addition managed to integrate the home decently well into its hillside position. 

Although there are some wonky aspects to the floor plan, it’s mostly an easy fix. At the very least, a complete change of interior materials and fitout would dramatically increase the home’s value. At the very most, the addition of a pool and the reconfiguration of the floor plan to orient itself more toward the harbour (and the transformation of the entire upper level into a large master bedroom) would all add even more value. It may never be a $15m home closer to the tip of Cremorne Point with a less obstructed view (hello, 33 Milson Road), but at it’s best, 138 Milson Road is an $8.5m abode; and it’s worst (which it’s not), it’s a $3.8m shack; but right now, it’s a $5m+ home looking for a flip. 

Click below for more photos for 138 Milson Road, Cremorne Point

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A Bronte Flip for the Ages…and for $7m

Just three years ago in September 2009, an 1883 Victorian Italianate detached home in Bronte traded hands for $5.3m. It was one of our favourites back then, thanks in part to it being one of very few colonial stock homes in the beachside suburb, but thanks also be to bathroom/living room combo that bridged the utility of a bathroom with the leisure of a lounge room. Nonetheless, just over a year after the new owners acquired the 5-bedroom abode, they lodged plans for a $500k Mary Ellen Hudson-renovation with the Waverley Council that sought the addition of a back porch, staircase, solar panels, and a spa. Only the porch and staircase made it to the final product and the remainder of the renovations were entirely cosmetic interior fit-out based. The renovation is definitely just lipstick on a pig, but it’s damn good lipstick on one of the best pigs out there. 

Unfortunately, there are only two views that we could come across that truly capture the “before/after” nature of this flip. Also of minor sadness is the lack of any new interior photos aside from the new and vastly improved kitchen/living room and the garden level “summer room” (great name, great aesthetic). 

Bethwyn Richards and Ben Collier (the latter whom handled the 2009 transaction of this property) of McGrath have the new and improved listing and are either “quoting $6.5m+” or “in the vicinity $7m”, depending which agent you ask. But we don’t blame them, it’s a difficult property to price; there are very few properties of this nature in Bronte aside from the heritage-listed 1845 Early Victorian homestead Bronte House that gave the suburb its name. However there is one property that shares many a similarity with 424 Bronte Road and that’s Bronte’s price record holder 19 Evans Street. That home sat on a far larger 2,711sqm parcel (424 Bronte is 904sqm) of higher land and sold for an impressive $13.05m after a stunning renovation of its own that saw the addition of a third-storey that captured water views and a large pool. Fun aside: Bethwyn Richards handled that transaction. However, despite 424 Bronte Road situation on a far busier street, it is a level walk to the beach and that’s always a bonus. 

Assuming the home trades hands above $7m, it will be Bronte’s highest priced non-view home…and will make the current owners a nice chunk of change on the side. And considering the size and quality of this house, we have a tough time believing the home will trade for anything less.

The now (above) and the before (below).
 

The listing: 424 Bronte Road, Bronte

Click below for more images of the home as it currently stands and that awesome bathroom/living room at the time of its 2009 sale.

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Radical Reinvention of a Darlinghurst Terrace

We’re not too sure when the Radical Terrace became a blog that seems to cover house flips more than anything else, but we definitely don’t mind. Few things reveal more about a neighbourhood’s ambitions than a flip: both in to what degree the renovation is capitalised and to what amount the market values it. For the better part of the 1990s and 2000s, Darlinghurst terraces were given a very specific flip treatment: converting the attic into a fourth bedroom, the upgrading of a kitchen, the removal of a sunroom, and the addition of car parking, if applicable. These days, many of the same aspects of the transformation continue yet to a far higher spec with little bits of architectural flamboyance tossed in; in more extreme cases, the rear (and smallest) bedroom is transformed into a master bedroom with ensuite and balcony. And seeing that some of the first “flipped” terraces in Darlinghurst are now flipping for a second time, we’re treated to learn where the suburb is heading…and, if 441 Liverpool Street is anything to judge by, we like what we see.

441 Liverpool Street today (above), and after its 2010 sale below (c/o GoogleMaps).

The terrace, situated in a desirable “Paddinghurst” location, was last seen on the market in July 2010, when it traded hands as a 2-bedroom, 1-bathroom, 1-car spot for $1.265m. And two years later? 4-bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, and 2 car spots. What happened? Quite a bit apparently! We could describe the transformation, but the pictures below do a far better job. BresicWhitney agents Nic Krasnostein and Darren Pearce are on the hunt for $2m+ when the property auctions. That’s a big price, especially seeing that it will be the first terrace on this particularly leafy stretch of Liverpool Street to sell above $2m. However, comps such as 453 Liverpool ($1.97m in Nov 2011) and 455 Liverpool ($1.95m in Apr 2010) speak well for a big price for 441: 441 is built to a better spec and sits at a higher elevation.

The listing: 441 Liverpool Street, Darlinghurst

Click below for more photos.

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Over Capitalising? Or a Savvy Flip on Paddo’s Hopetoun Street?

A very narrow (4m wide) terrace on the flip-favourite Hopetoun Street in Paddington is to auction with low-$2mil expectations. The home sold less than one year ago in October 2011 for $1.5m. Quite quickly, the new owners acted on an existing $400k DA application and gut renovated the tiny terrace to an alarmingly high spec. Granted, most of the additions are stunning: exposed brick and high-end wainscotting on the walls; salvaged parquetry flooring; bespoke joinery; a new attic bedroom; ensuite bathroom; extensive glass skylighting. Yet somehow all these additions combined together seem a bit “much”. And, quite likely, the owners could have skimped on some of their fit-out and still been able to muster up a comparable price. 

Homes on Hopetoun Street command a premium despite their small size (most blocks are around 100-125 sqm) with renovated terrace selling between $1.4m and $1.8m ($1.818m being the highest price recorded on the block). The small block sits mid-way between Five Ways and Oxford Street and is adjacent to the William Street boutique corridor. However, what really drives appeal to Hopetoun Street terrace is the rear lane access and high precedent for off-street car parking on the east side of the street, along with a leafy street scape and a narrow street through-traffic typically avoids. All in, 9 Hopetoun Street may shift the values for its neighbours up a bit; but it will be a hard renovation act to follow, that’s for sure.

The listing: 9 Hopetoun Street, Paddington

Current floor plan (above); the floor plan when the home traded hands in 2011 (below).

Click below for more images and before and afters!

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Reinvented Stables Make for Quick Flip in East Melbourne

Located on a cobblestoned back alley behind a row of historic Victorian town residences (one of which being a recent Radical Terrace featured property) in East Melbourne, an extensively renovated brick stables has listed with expectations in the low- to mid-$2mils. The home last sold in a liveable, but uninspiring state in July 2011 for $1.13m. In the last 13 months, the owners have quickly added a third story master bedroom, reconfigured the interiors, and highlighted exposed brick and wooden beams. The property’s CBD-close location makes and massive master bedroom makes it an ideal bachelor’s pad or pied-a-terre. Cheers for good use of glass and a showstopper of a staircase. Jeers for a boring bedroom. Marhsall White agent James Redfern has the listing.

The property as it appeared in 2011 (above) and today (below). See ya later weatherboard!

Click below for more images, floor plan, and listing information.

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Fast Flip in Hawthorn’s Grace Park Estate Wants $6.5m+

A Victorian home in Hawthorn’s Grace Park Estate is back on the market after undergoing an extensive renovation and extension by Dean Dugdale (whose lack of a web presence doesn’t help the Radical Terrace). The c1898 Victorian villa features an iconic (and desirable) Hawthorn brick. However, it didn’t always have that now-iconic coating. The home sold with a painted brick exterior in sorry (but in tact) condition in Aug 2010 for $3.5m. Now, listing agents Nick Elmore and Tom Aylward are hunting for a $6.5m+ buyer. The 4-bedroom, 4-bathroom home is situated at number 51 on Hawthorn Grove, a popular street with a consistent front of Victoria villas (save for the Stockbroker Tudor at 51A) on narrow blocks. The tight-packed nature of the road gives it an almost storybook appearance. 51 Hawthorn Grove sits on a 843sqm lot that stretches deep to rear lane garaging for four cars. The renovation saw the addition of a hulking mass of a second story and kitchen/great room at the backside of the property while maintaining the heritage significance of the front edifice (earning the home mullet house status). The original house footprint is maintained, save for a bulging (but damn cool; cheers for a clerestory!) master ensuite bathroom. On the downside? The modern extension seems fairly disjointed from the Victorian original and is a pretty standard looking flip. Check out the City of Boroondara’s take on the renovation when its development came through here. 

Click below for more images and listing information.

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South Yarra Stunner Lists for $5.5m+

Situated in a quirky pocket of mid-century apartment blocks and modern townhouses, ‘Barwon’ - an elegant c1881 Victorian mansion on 1266sqm of South Yarra land listed with price hopes around “in excess of $5.5m”. The Percy Oakden-designed and heritage-listed home traded back in Feb 2005 in less-than-stellar shape for $2.8m. Extensive renovations have gone on in the years since 2007 when the first of permits was submitted to Heritage Victoria; and the result is Radical Terrace-approved. The four bedroom home includes a massive master with ensuite, pool, pool house, an exceedingly discrete double car garage, and interiors featuring a collection of different flooring materials that work well together from polished aggregate concrete to distressed and polished floor boards. The seemingly reasonable house price likely suggests Barwon’s situation on a slightly drab block, as opposed to the more desirable Domain-adjacent location of 58 Millswyn, a (creepily) similar South Yarra Victorian mansion asking over $8m. Even still, we’d take ‘Barwon’ over Millswyn any day. 

Jeremy Fox and David Colbran of RT Edgar Toorak have the listing: 38 Cromwell Road, South Yarra

Not Quite the Flip They Hoped For…

Remember our tale of the house flip hopefuls over at 58 Cascade Street in Paddington from February? Back then, we factored in that the owners were about $3.288m deep on their acquisition and renovation of the property. The property, which failed to sell with $4m+ expectations last month, has now lowered its asking price to $3.5m. Agents Hamish Robertson and Joe Abboud of McGrath maintain the listing.