From mega mansions worth mega millions to truly unique abodes, these properties have captured the imagination of Australians keen to peek inside fascinating homes.
But Aussies are not only looking at extravagant dwellings out of their reach – they are also putting lifestyle and space front and centre in their search for their own dream home.
A look at the most-viewed listings on realestate.com.au over the past year shows many are the sort of homes most of the population can only ever dream about.
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Not surprisingly, dream homes are the type of properties that consistently pop up in the rankings of most-viewed listings, PropTrack senior economist Eleanor Creagh said.
“For a majority of people it’s not just that you are never going to be able to afford one of those homes, but you may rarely get the opportunity to step inside one,” Ms Creagh said.
“With these listings the opportunity to get one foot in the door is certainly drawing views as people like to look through the pictures and like to look inside these incredible homes.”
The luxury end of the property market has performed particularly strongly during this latest real estate boom, which has driven the total value of Australia’s housing stock to almost $10 trillion.
“We are a real estate-obsessed nation and you’re always going to have dreamers looking at aspirational property,” Ms Creagh said.
There are many reasons properties end up on most-viewed lists, including that they’re fascinating to look at, have features people have never seen before, or have gone viral on social media.
“If you can dream it, it’s in some of these homes,” Ms Creagh said.
“There are imaginative design features going beyond the limits of what the average person would have in their home. I think that’s probably a factor behind why some of these homes are getting so many views.”
The homes capturing local and international attention
Many of the most-viewed listings have not only captured Australians’ attention but also international interest.
74 Bacton Road, Chandler
Among the listings attracting international interest was the Brisbane “wonderland” that topped the national most-viewed list with a massive 119,000 views on realestate.com.au over the past year.
The Chandler property has a six-bedroom main residence, two-bedroom guest house, an ‘entertainment house’ that includes games arcade, a separate office building, and room in the garage for up to 35 cars.
Plus there’s a home theatre, outdoor cinema, soccer field, two gyms, two spas, a tennis court, a basketball court, and a resort-style pool, all set among lush bushland on one hectare.
“It’s super unique – it’s a little wonderland,” selling agent Heath Williams from Place in New Farm said.
“There’s not a lot of properties around that offer all that it offers, all in one home.”
Mr Williams said the property attracted a high volume of inquiries and multiple offers, with the strongest interest from interstate and international buyers.
“We are currently in the very final stages of negotiation at the moment,” he said, adding that current talks were with an overseas party.
The property looks set to break Brisbane’s house price record, Mr Williams said, which currently sits at $18.48 million.
Apart from having “every imaginable amenity”, Mr Williams believes the experience of being stuck at home during COVID lockdowns and restrictions strengthened the home’s appeal.
“If you have the means and the ability then why wouldn’t you want to be able to create something where you’re almost happy to be locked down in.”
60 Hopetoun Road, Toorak
Another of the most-viewed listings nationally over the 12 months to February was the lavish Toorak home of acclaimed Australian music promoter Michael Coppel.
It amassed about 103,500 views after hitting the market for the first time in 25 years.
Described as one of Melbourne’s finest homes, the six-bedroom, seven-bathroom estate sold for an undisclosed price – rumoured to be within its $30 million to $33 million selling guide.
The grand estate, set on more than 3000sqm with manicured gardens, a pool, and a tennis court, was the most-viewed listing on realestate.com.au for 2021 and has continued to clock up views in 2022.
325 Woolooware Road, Burraneer
Coming in third nationally with 97,000 listing views was a seven-bedroom, 19-bathroom trophy home in Burraneer in Sydney’s Sutherland Shire.
Nautilus, with six kitchens and a “bat cave” subterranean entry, brought with it pricing expectations of more than $50 million and rumours of interest from actor Chris Hemsworth.
Its entrepreneur owner purchased four adjoining homes and spent a reported $30 million over four years building the masterpiece.
There have been no reports of the 3695sqm palatial home’s sale and the listing is no longer on realestate.com.au.
178-180 Old Mount Barker Road, Aldgate
Chateau Avalon in the heart of the Adelaide Hills certainly appealed to anyone keen to be the king or queen of their own castle, attracting 84,000 listing views on realestate.com.au – the fourth highest number nationally.
“I had calls from all around the world about this property,” Williams Real Estate principal Stephanie Williams said.
Ms Williams, who conducted many FaceTime viewings for offshore buyers, said the architecture and design features were the standouts, especially its seven cylindrical towers.
“The first introduction is the significant architecture of being all cylindrical, but when they get inside and see the opulence and grandeur, the staircase and timber and how they have this gallery feel with all the art
work, people were looking through in disbelief at how amazing it was.
“It certainly is a statement in architecture but also a statement for Australia. You just don’t find something like that every day.”
The new owners of the five-bedroom residence, which features stunning sandstone and curved windows, are locals.
Ms Williams did not disclose the sale price, but said it was a record for Aldgate.
“In Aldgate you are 15 to 20 minutes to the CBD, so you have this amazing acreage with its exceptional chateau or castle, in excellent proximity but offering a lifestyle where you could be out in the country.
“It really is a delight. There is a story that royalty has actually stayed in this house.”
47 Lansell Road, Toorak
Another Toorak mega mansion also made the national most-viewed list, in fifth place, with about 73,000 listing views – and smashed the prestigious suburb’s price record with a $43.1 million sale price.
It also marked an Australian price record for a home sold by auction, and was Victoria’s biggest sale of 2021.
The impressive property features five bedrooms, four bathrooms, several living and entertainment areas, including a cinema room, three kitchens, and its own wellness retreat.
1-2 Adare Court, Berwick
Featuring alongside the mega mansions with mega price tags was a Tuscan-inspired manor in an outer Melbourne suburb that attracted nearly 69,000 views – the eighth most-viewed listing nationally.
A family spent more than three years building the luxury four-bedroom Berwick home, which listed last year with a $6 million to $6.5 million price guide.
Incidentally, Berwick was the most popular suburb nationally for serious house buyers in 2021.
“The Tuscan style does resonate with a lot of people as it oozes character and is a timeless style,” Daniel Boyle from OBrien Real Estate in Berwick said.
“I believe people can appreciate quality when they see it and this property has been built to the highest of quality and standard with authentic materials sourced from Europe. It truly is a one-of-a-kind masterpiece.”
Mr Boyle said there was strong interest in the property and multiple offers were received close to the asking price, but a deal was not finalised.
He said the owners chose to remove the listing last year due to the extended periods of COVID lockdowns impacting inspection opportunities, with the property currently available for sale in an off-market capacity.
“Given a shortage of land in this premier location, rising building costs due to COVID and the fact many of the materials, fittings and fixtures were sourced from Europe, this is an amazing opportunity for the prospective buyer,” Mr Boyle said.
18 Teague Street, Victoria Park
This one-of-a-kind property has gone viral in the short time it’s been listed for sale.
It amassed an astounding 71,200 views in just one month, propelling it into seventh position nationally for the most-viewed listings on realestate.com.au over the year to February.
With a bejewelled staircase, mirror ball columns, and an array of Venetian glass chandeliers, the opulent retro mansion in Victoria Park in Perth’s southern suburbs makes a real statement.
“It’s created a lot of buzz for sure,” selling agent Jos Welsh of Professionals – Belmont recently told realestate.com.au.
“It’s
a very unique iconic home but it’s not going to suit everybody either.”
Custom built and belonging to a prominent Italian family since 1979, the home has earnt itself a heritage listing as a statement of significance on the Town of Victoria Park’s Municipal Heritage Inventory list.
Pandemic drives demand for more space and lifestyle
PropTrack data detailing the most in-demand suburbs in terms of their average views per listing demonstrates the ongoing COVID-induced shifts towards larger homes with more bedrooms, as well as lifestyle properties.
Ms Creagh said the shift in preferences continues to drive housing market activity.
“It’s really underpinned by an increase in demand and desire for larger homes, bigger block sizes, being close to the beach or waterfront, or outer suburbs with bigger homes and bigger block sizes,” she said.
“That’s a result of, for many, more time spent at home and a continuation of remote work trends. Space and lifestyle have become a much more important consideration.”
A number of coastal lifestyle hotspots feature among the suburbs with the highest views per listing over the past 12 months: Blairgowrie, Portsea, and Sorrento on Melbourne’s Mornington Peninsula, and Burraneer in Sydney’s Sutherland Shire.
“A key feature of demand trends since the onset of the pandemic is the increased desirability of lifestyle and amenity-rich regions,” Ms Creagh said.
Topping the national list of the most in-demand suburbs based on views per listing is Melbourne’s Middle Park.
Marshall White – Port Phillip director Nicholas Hoo said Middle Park’s proximity to the beach and to Albert Park Lake is the major factor behind its popularity.
While many people sought an escape to the coast, particularly the Mornington Peninsula, or to the country during COVID, Mr Hoo said Middle Park provided a similar lifestyle without the need to leave the city.
“It’s the best of both worlds. They’re getting the lifestyle that they would want if they were down the beach, down Peninsula way for example, but they’re still close to town.”
Middle Park has slightly larger blocks than in the neighbouring suburbs of Albert Park or South Melbourne, Mr Hoo added.
“It’s a tightly-held suburb. Because it’s so tightly held, generally when something comes up for sale that is some significant size, it is well inspected.”
Median house prices among the most in-demand suburbs vary from $940,000 in the historic greater Hobart suburb of Bellerive, and $1.089 million in Stirling in the Adelaide Hills, up to $3.3 million in the waterfront Sydney suburb of Putney, and $3.675 million in Portsea on the Mornington Peninsula.
Housing boom and luxury market fuel the property obsession
The housing boom has added to the broad interest in the property market and piqued people’s fascination with mega mansions, Ms Creagh said.
“Property has been such a hot topic for Australians this year and there’s been a record pace of price growth, and that’s meant that interest in the property market has surged as a result,” she said.
New data on Tuesday showed residential property prices surged by 23.7% over 2021, which was the strongest annual growth since the Australian Bureau of Statistics began keeping those records in 2003.
Australia’s 10.8 million residential dwellings are now worth a combined $9.9 trillion – up $2 trillion in a year and $512 billion in the December quarter of 2021 alone.
Ms Creagh said demand for luxury property has soared over the past year, with the number of locations in Australia’s $3 million suburb club doubling again in 2021.
Surging household wealth, strong savings, and record-low mortgage rates have allowed many people to take on more debt, particularly in the luxury market, she said.
“Closed international borders and more time spent at home had people reassessing their housing needs with many opting for lifestyle and housing upgrades,” she added.
The post Property-obsessed Aussies dreaming of luxury, lifestyle, space and mega mansions appeared first on realestate.com.au.
