Bishop’s Court mansion tipped to smash the $10m price barrier
After decades of discussion, the Anglican Church has finally decided to sell its historic Bishop’s Court estate at North Adelaide — and it is likely to smash Adelaide’s record sale price.
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Stately North Adelaide mansion Bishop’s Court – one of the Anglican Church’s most significant and historic assets – is up for sale.
After decades of indecision, the Anglican Synod has overwhelmingly voted to sell the sprawling 163-year-old North Adelaide estate, which is expected to smash the record for Adelaide’s most expensive residential property.
Real estate industry figures have predicted the property may be the first to break through the $10 million price barrier in Adelaide. Anglican Archbishop Geoffrey Smith yesterday said while the sale was necessary, it would provoke “a lot of sadness’’.
“It will still be Bishop’s Court … the connection with the church is very strong. The first bishop built it and all the bishops since have lived in it, it has that history,’’ he said.
“It will be very, very sad to lose that connection, but times change and things move on. It is time, really, to make the value of the place available.’’
The sale of the 5330sq m estate in Palmer Place, which has housed Anglican bishops and archbishops since 1856, has been an on-again, off-again affair for decades.
The sale was last seriously considered in 2005 and has been a source of minor discontent within the synod. Voted down then, it was again examined in 2008, when the Adelaide diocese was buckling under the burden of a $7 million loan to fund payouts to victims of child sexual abuse.
In 2015, the synod resolved to explore subdividing the property to release some of the value of the asset, but this option, too, did not proceed.
Late last year, Archbishop Smith placed the sale back on the agenda, resulting in a motion at last weekend’s synod being overwhelmingly passed.
A more modest residence for Archbishop Smith will be purchased using some of the proceeds, with the remainder released for projects within the diocese.
He said the proceeds would be used for a variety of purposes, including improving services in Adelaide’s growing northern suburbs, training and leadership development.
“We are hoping to strengthen the parishes so they can do more in their own communities, that is the point,’’ he said. Prominent agent Jamie Brown – who sold Ivanhoe, the Gilberton property that holds the record for an Adelaide residential sale with its $7 million price tag in 2015 – said the property was “unique.’
“That precinct is the most tightly held and valuable land in Adelaide,’’ he said.
“But it is not just its position, the property is one of Adelaide’s most historic homes and perhaps our most prominent residential building.
“This is as good as it gets, I would expect it to reach double figures.’’
