Max Twigg selling his Mermaid Beach five-bedroom villa, which comes with a 22-metre rooftop pool
Max Twigg, who turned trash into a pile of cash, is out to sell a gem in what is a decimated Gold Coast property portfolio.
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Max Twigg, who turned trash into a pile of cash, is out to sell a gem in what is a decimated Gold Coast property portfolio.
The 50-year-old GT endurance racing driver is chasing a buyer for a beachfront Mermaid Beach home he acquired for $10m in 2008.
He bought it three years ahead of a major property setback in which he lost $10m on another home overlooking the ocean at Mermaid.
Then, two years ago, he effectively “lost” four Gold Coast properties as the result of a court stoush with his mother and sisters.
He also had to surrender a new $650,000 Porsche, registered as Turn One.
Max, when based in Melbourne in the late 90s, began building up a waste-management business started by his late dad and held in a family trust. It was sold to Cleanaway for $155.8m in 2007.
The Twigg riches saw Max buy the Beach Hotel at Byron Bay for $44m. The hotel was sold to a funds management group for $68.2m in early 2018.
Max might be hoping for another major “earn” with his four-level villa in Mermaid Beach’s Albatross Ave, a home which has had previous owners such as prestige property agent Michael Kollosche, management-rights player Russell Leary, and Melbourne investor Tim Rice.
It’s being sold as the elite Mermaid beachfront strip runs hot, with sales cresting $20m.
There was no hot streak when Max took his $10m hit in 2011 – the GFC was battering the property market.
Max had spent a pre-GFC $17.7m in 2007 buying a Hedges Ave house from management rights operator Frank Picone and wife Adele.
It was a time when the Mermaid beachfront market was being inflamed by put-and-call options, trades and swaps.
Max sold the house mid-GFC for $7.7m. The following year he tried to sell the $10m Albatross Ave villa, asking $6.95m.
Another sales push was mounted in 2017 and now a new one has been ignited.
Max, between 2017 and 2019, bought investment properties at Mermaid Beach, Miami and Palm Beach.
A family feud erupted over Max’s use of trust money from the sale to Cleanaway and ended in court, with Max losing the case in 2020 and a subsequent appeal. His mother and two sisters won $30m compensation, including four Gold Coast properties, $9m in cash, and the Porsche.
The Albatross Ave villa has remained with Max but not for long should the latest sales campaign be successful.
The five-bedroom villa, which comes with a 22-metre rooftop pool, oozes luxury.
It comes with a lift, cinema, study, and four-car basement garage with turntable – ideal for someone who shares the Twigg passion for fast cars.
Max, in terms of motor-racing, has enjoyed some success, winning 17 of the 346 races in which he has competed since 2005. His track record includes eight pole positions and 12 fastest laps and cars he’s driven range from Porsches to Mercedes and Audis.
Fast Max, who has made several forays to Bathurst for endurance events, also has tackled events in Malaysia and has competed on Germany’s famous Nurburgring circuit.
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