$25m sale show of confidence in Coast
A $25 million Mermaid Beach sale equalling a Queensland record for a completed house is being termed a giant adrenaline shot for the Gold Coast property market.
The sale involves the beachfront family home of BreakFree accommodation group founder and ex-AFL footballer Tony Smith and his wife Simone.
The buyer is a businessman from elite Melbourne suburb Toorak.
The price matches the figure former major Billabong International shareholder Scott Perrin achieved on the Mermaid beachfront in 2016 for his Tidemark mansion.
The only higher residential sale has been $27 million paid in 2008 for four beachfront Mermaid lots that slipped out of Smith control during the GFC.
Harry Kakavas, the prestige agent who handled the Smith sale, yesterday said the $25 million deal, given that it was made during the COVID-19 crisis, was an enormous endorsement of the Coast and its lifestyle.
“It’s more than a confidence boost – it’s a very big adrenaline shot,” he said.
“Nobody who can afford to spend $25 million does so without absolute faith in the property and the location.
“The Gold Coast is a winner when people of this calibre bring their money to town to buy landmark properties.
“Invariably, others see what’s happening and head here too – we’ve seen that happen with three Melbourne billionaires who have bought on the Mermaid beachfront.
“The Melbourne buyer has indicated the house will be a holiday home for he and his family.”
Valuer Tod Gillespie, a director of Herron Todd White, said it was encouraging for the Gold Coast market to see luxury homes transacting at such price levels.
“The market will take confidence from the top end of town paying record prices for high-value assets,” he said.
Mr Kakavas said Mr Smith approached him to sound out potential buyers after noting his role in two recent sales in Multi-Millionaires’ Row,
Hedges Ave – one for $11.25 million and the other for $11 million.
The Smith house, with a floor area of 1000sq m, has four ensuite bedrooms, a selfcontained granny flat and north-facing pool with builtin trampoline. It has views north to Surfers Paradise and south to Coolangatta.
The property, held by Mrs Smith, is on a 2112sq m site at the head of Heron St.
She paid $12 million for the property, then home to the 17-unit Mermaid Lodge low-rise, in 2014 in a deal also involving Mr Kakavas.