World surfing champ Mick Fanning's new Gold Coast home project going just swimmingly

HE could live anywhere in the world but three-time world surfing champion Mick Fanning is spending his winnings on a luxury Gold Coast beach pad.

HE could live anywhere in the world but three-time world surfing champion Mick Fanning is spending his winnings on the Gold Coast building a luxury beach pad not far from where he has lived since the age of 12.

The superstar surfer, who won his third ASP world championship title this month and earns more than $2 million a year, has almost finished the three-storey southern Gold Coast mansion.

Fanning is no stranger to the property market, having picked up a slew of multi-million-dollar properties at the Gold and Tweed Coasts.

He has splashed out more than $12 million in land deals in southeast Queensland and northern NSW alone.

Property records show he paid $3.25 million for the 1030sq m beachfront Bilinga block in March 2011.

Real estate figures estimate it could be worth well over $5 million now with the quality home thrown into the mix.

The new house reflects a beach style, with a big, open design and lots of timber.

There are even two distinct houses on the one block, leaving it available for a variety of uses and guests.

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The white "shack'' has become the talk of the community, who have been watching the place go up and keeping an eye out for Fanning.

While known for his surfing, Fanning is earning a reputation as a keen investor who is setting himself up for life after competition.

He owns four properties in Coolangatta, having paid between $1.2 million and $3.1 million for them each between 2005 and 2007, while he has another shack in Tweed Heads.

It has been a big year for the surfer, known as the "Coolie Kid''.

Fanning netted himself $75,000 in prizemoney by winning the ASP World Championship Tour.

But the real money is in sponsorship.

The BRW Sport Rich list released in December 2012 estimated he was pulling in $2.2 million each year.

Adding yet another world title to his achievement will likely make him even more bankable as a sports star.