The Sydney publican who is expanding his property portfolio

Sydney publican Ben May has had a busy 12 months expanding his hospitality empire, but he has also found the time to dabble in residential property.

The co-owner of Joeys, which is the born-again Barrenjoey Boatshed in Palm Beach, and the proposed beachside mega-venue Terrigal Pavilion on the central coast, is looking for a buyer for his Tamarama pad that comes with an asking price of $16 million.

The Tamarama home is a stone’s throw away from the beach.

Since it was last purchased, the five-bedroom home has had a full renovation designed by architect Kelvin Ho of Akin Atelier, who has worked on the likes of Merivale venues and Camilla and Marc stores, turning it into a quintessential designer beach pad.

May bought the 386-square-metre home in 2020 for $5.45 million from producer Jonathan Shteinman, who has worked on films like Rabbit-Proof Fence.

Restaurateur and publican Ben May has taken on new ventures in Palm Beach and Terrigal.Credit: Alex Marks

It looks like he will be staying in the area though, claiming a stake in the billionaire enclave of North Bondi. May’s company emerged as the $7.85 million buyer of the three-bedroom unit of Naomi Fuzi, wife of Grant Fuzi, co-chief executive of Blue River, an impact investment service.

But the unit is far more humble compared to his $10 million Palm Beach pad, Porta Rossa, that he purchased from fashion designer Heidi Middleton, founder of Sass & Bide, late last year.

May’s Tamarama home is being sold through McGrath’s William Manning and Luke Hogan.

The Tamarama property was redesigned by architect Kelvin Ho.Credit:

The price of a view

The founders of Bondi Backpackers George and Ruth Verebes have offloaded their Rose Bay home with iconic gun-barrel views of Sydney Harbour for circa $20 million, sources close to the deal say.

No doubt a home with a commanding panorama of the city skyline and the Harbour Bridge would attract top dollar, but it is an impressive result for the couple given they bought the home for $900,000 in 1993.

The two-storey home has been owned by the Verebes since 1993.Credit:

It was sold through Daphne Sauvage and Michael Pallier of Sydney Sotheby’s International Realty, who both declined to comment.

Suburb record

Former used-car dealer Tony Denny has sold his North Wahroonga acreage for a suburb record after looking for a buyer since May.

While Sam Outch of Di Jones declined to comment on the precise sale result, he said it fetched more than the North Wahroonga record of $7.15 million set in 2019 for a block about half the size.

Tony Denny has traded in the used-car market to focus on property investment.Credit: Louise Kennerley

It’s not to be confused with the suburb record of neighbouring Wahroonga, which was set by neurosurgeon Mark Winder and his wife Emma Cowan, paying $14.5 million for the home of tech entrepreneur Dominic O’Hanlon.

Denny purchased the almost one-hectare block in North Wahroonga which came with a rundown three-bedroom house in 2019 for $4.5 million.

The block returned to the market with a $9 million price guide and development application approval for subdivision into three lots. The property was part of an investment by Denny’s boutique development and lending business Central Real Capital, which has helpfully offered vendor finance to the buyer.

Settlement details will confirm the ultimate buyer.

Former Sydneysiders Kimberly Amos and Stephen Eakin have created an earthy-toned home in Byron BayCredit:

Departing Byron Bay

Owners of the Byron Bay hotel The Atlantic Kimberly Amos, an artist, and Stephen Eakin, a former banker, have listed their home in the heart of Byron Bay with a guide of $8 million to $8.8 million.

Sotheby’s International Realty Byron Bay Will Phillips said the pair are selling up to travel overseas as their three sons live abroad.

“To buy 1000 square metres right in the heart of town, it’ll be years before the next one comes up,” Phillips said.

The former Sydneysiders have done well for themselves, making the most of the expensive holiday market on what was meant to be a year’s sabbatical in Byron Bay.

The house has been rebuilt and transformed into a dreamy home with an earthy ambience befitting the coastal town since they last purchased it for $885,000 in 2006.

In that time, the pair have shored up an impressive portfolio of properties and cashed in on Byron’s property boom too.

Perhaps their most notable property was their River Hawk Ranch in Brunswick Heads which they sold for $18.5 million to Helen Sali, wife of former Swisse vitamin company chief Radek Sali, setting a house price record in 2021 for the NSW North Coast hinterland.

They might be selling up and travelling overseas, but they have well and truly made their mark in town.

Lucy Macken is on leave.