Weekend Gold Coast Bulletin - Property
Unfinished mansion attracts 18 bidders
‘Worst house on the best street’ offers rare opportunity for buyers to take the home to the next level
AN unfinished mansion which sat untouched for 20 years on one of the Gold Coast’s most prestigious riverfront streets attracted 18 bidders when it went under the hammer. About 100 people – many curious locals – gathered for the weekend auction, where 170 Monaco St, Broadbeach Waters sold for $1.705m.
Marketing agent Mitch Palmer, of Ray White Broadbeach Waters, said the fourbedroom, three-bathroom home with a commanding brick facade was the “classic worst house on the best street”.
“Yes, it needs some serious TLC, but this is a rare opportunity to take this blank canvas to the next level,” the listing stated.
Mr Palmer said he was inundated with interest for the forgotten home, despite market trends of the last quarter showing buyers gravitating towards new or recently renovated homes over fixer-uppers.
“There’s no ceiling in the kitchen, holes in the walkway, the carpets are gone and it’s got no driveway,” said Mr Palmer.
“The pool is just a shell, and it’s all been left in disrepair for the last 20 years.”
While the “big and tall” street frontage is somewhat presentable, interior walls and floors throughout are stripped, except for in one green-tiled bathroom, and the rear gardens are tangled with weeds.
While Mr Palmer didn’t disclose details about the circumstances of the sale, public records show the property was last sold to
Inge Brossmann for $217,000 in 2000. A house was built two years later. Regarded as Gold Coast real estate royalty, Monaco St has been home to several CEOs and entrepreneurs, including nightclub boss Billy Cross and wife Jackie, and SEEK website CEO Andrew Bassett.
“Rarely does a waterfront opportunity with this much potential hit the market, and this is widely regarded as Broadbeach Waters’ most exclusive street,” Mr Palmer said.
The highest sale on record in Monaco St was $14.5m for a glamorous double-storey Beverley Hills-inspired mansion designed by Jared Poole and built in 2019 on a 2,390sq m parcel with 11.5m of Main River frontage.