Emma and Tom Lane sell apartment in Sunland Group’s 272 Hedges for $9.2m
A well-known couple has made $2m in less than a year on their Millionaire's Row apartment. Here's what it sold for
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Tom and Emma Lane, founders of The Farm at Byron Bay, have turned a $2m profit on a Hedges Ave apartment, selling it for $9.2m after owning it for less than a year.
The couple paid $7.2m for the two-level 27th-floor apartment in Sunland’s 272 Hedges tower in February this year.
The Lanes’ apartment had been listed in November at expressions of interest around $10.75m, and was subsequently set for a January 15 auction. The $9.2m sale is yet to settle.
The apartment was sold by Michael Kollosche and his colleagues Rob Lamb and Harry Kakavas.
Mr Kakavas owns the sky home next door to the one sold by the Lanes, for which he paid $5.47m in February, while Mr Kollosche and his wife Denise paid $6.5m for a four-bedroom sub-penthouse on the 41st floor.
The Lane apartment sale comes after it was revealed Sunland founder Soheil Abedian and his wife Anne bought the tower’s penthouse apartment at what appears to be a bargain price.
Transfer documents show Mr Abedian, founder of the publicly-listed development group, settled the purchase on December 1, this year.
The Abedians paid $5.89m for the jaw-dropping two-level penthouse – substantially less than the amounts paid by owners of the smaller apartments underneath.
The date and price of the transaction were not entered into property database CoreLogic until after they were revealed by the Gold Coast Bulletin.
What Soheil paid for Hedges Ave sky home
December 13, 2022: Soheil and Anne Abedian have bought themselves a spectacular Mermaid Beach apartment at what appears to be a bargain price.
Mr Abedian, founder of publicly-listed Sunland Development Group, and his wife confidentially settled the purchase of the largest apartment in the group’s 272 Hedges tower development on December 1.
However, title documents have revealed they paid $5.89m for the jaw-dropping two-level penthouse – substantially less than the amounts paid by owners of the smaller apartments underneath.
Sales in the tower have been strong since they launched, with the $5.5m resale of a 318 sqm apartment last month setting a new record price per square metre of $17,460.
At that rate, the 1103 sqm Abedian apartment could have yielded $19.26m.
Planning documents lodged with Gold Coast City Council show the Abedian’s top-floors apartment features four bedrooms, six bathrooms, a sauna, steam room and multiple indoor and outdoor living areas.
Despite the luxury, they paid significantly less than the $8.12m Ansel and Jacqueline Clark paid for the single-level, three-bedroom sub penthouse below in May last year.
Meanwhile, Tom and Emma Lane, founders of The Farm at Byron Bay, paid $7.2m for their two-level 27th-floor apartment in February this year.
The Lanes’ apartment is currently on the market with the buyers reportedly hoping to get $10m for it.
The apartment was bought by the Abedians from a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sunland Group, Sunland No. 36, which is directed by Sahba Abedian and company secretary Grant Harrison.
While there was no record of the deal on ASX-listed Sunland’s financial reports, Mr Harrison said the Abedian purchase had been unanimously approved by the Sunland board, with Soheil and Sahba Abedian not participating, after they asked to buy it in 2017.
They requested to purchase at its list price or valuation, whichever was higher, less a staff discount of 5 per cent, which is available to all Sunland staff members.
Mr Harrison said the list price of the apartment at the time of the approval was $6.2m, under a pricing structure set for all the apartments in consultation with the group’s external marketing agent.
“The apartment was also externally valued which confirmed the contract value,” Mr Harrison said via email, adding the board had followed stringent Corporate Governance principles when considering the request.
Mr Harrison said the group had used an “arm’s length” exemption under the Corporations Act in not putting the Abedians’ request to a shareholder vote.
“Factors considered in determining in this transaction and others are (that the) terms of the contract will be the same as a usual contract; an independent valuation is conducted to ascertain the market value of the asset; the valuation has been instructed without input from the related parties; the transaction does not impact adversely on the company and its shareholders; and the benefit is being provided without prejudice to Sunland’s financial position,” Mr Harrison wrote.
“Settlement of the transaction will be disclosed in the Group’s Audited Financials for this financial year when published.”
Other owners in the beachside tower include real estate supremo Michael Kollosche and wife Denise, who paid $6.5m for a four-bedroom sub-penthouse on the 41st floor in May last year and his colleague Harry Kakavas, who paid $5.47m for a 27th-floor apartment in February this year.
Harvey Norman Commercial was the major appliance supplier for the project, with director Steve Cavalier apparently liking what he saw and buying in at $1.95m in a rebated sale.
Mr Cavalier, a long-time Hedges Ave resident, is downsizing from the beachfront Hedges home he sold for $21.75m earlier this year.
Other familiar faces have also bought in 272 Hedges, including Kirsten Peever, who with mining husband Tom, this month settled the three-level beachfront home at number 133 for $17.5m.
The Peevers apartment in 272 Hedges was bought for $4.6m in May 2022.
Other Gold Coast penthouses to have sold in the past two years include the 970sq m, two-level Glasshouse at Burleigh for $20m off-the-plan and the Soul supertower penthouse for $15.25m.
Meanwhile, the penthouse of the De-Luxe tower, being built on the site of the Old Burleigh Theatre, is on the market for $23m, while the highest sub penthouse of the proposed Chevron One tower on Chevron Island has a $22m price tag.
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