Buyer in luxury Dune Main Beach contracts cancelled by Andrew Projects under sunset clause
A buyer in an exclusive beachfront apartment building says he’s been dudded by a developer after multi million-dollar contracts in the tower were cancelled at the last minute, despite a billionaire buyer’s planned legal move.
Gold Coast
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A buyer in an exclusive beachfront apartment building says he’s been dudded by a developer after multi million-dollar contracts in the tower were cancelled at the last minute.
Retail mogul Solomon Lew is among five buyers to have settled their apartments at the freshly-completed Dune Main Beach in the past fortnight, with the billionaire having paid $16.5 million for the three-level penthouse.
But, despite the project earlier being publicised as “sold out”, more than half the apartments are yet to settle after developer Andrews Projects invoked the sunset clause on some original buyers.
Mr Lew’s apartment is held by a company directed by his business associates, with shares held by directors of his high wealth accountancy firm.
Another of the well-heeled buyers who have settled at Dune is Richard Bouris, former owner of JB Hi-Fi, and his wife Alison.
Veteran Sydney stockbroker Brent Potts and wife Pauline have also bought in, along with Sunshine Coast businesspeople Peter and Judy Lauder.
Property records show only five of the apartments had settled as of this week, with the developer still the registered owner of seven.
The high-end apartments were being spruiked online last week by property agents Kollosche.
One off-plan buyer, who signed up at $5.5 million but had their contract cancelled by the developer, said their apartment had since been back on the market from $8.5 million.
The buyer said Andrews Projects had earlier asked them to stump up an extra $1.5 million on the delayed development, which was initially slated for completion in late 2022.
“We had already sold our houses and were waiting with excitement for our new home,” the buyer said.
“The bottom line is we are in trouble as we now can’t afford to buy anything close as the prices have gone up so much while we have been waiting.”
The buyer, who asked not to be named, said the developer had asked multiple buyers to sign contracts to pay an extra $1.5 million.
He said he and four other buyers had been phoned personally by a furious Mr Lew who said he would be seeking legal advice.
Mr Lew, whose net worth was most recently estimated at $2.3 billion, heads up Premier Investment Group, owner of brands including Peter Alexander, Smiggle, Jay Jays and Just Jeans.
“Two weeks before the sunset clause due date, we all get a call from (Mr Lew’s) lawyer saying that Solomon had come to an agreement with Andrews and we are now on our own,” the buyer said.
“We (felt we) only had two choices at this stage, accept his proposal of an extra $1.2 to 1.5 million dollars or take back our deposits.
“As I am retired, it was impossible for me to get the extra money and I had no choice but to hand the apartment back to (the developer).”
The Gold Coast Bulletin has seen an email to buyers from Mr Lew’s in-house lawyer Stephen Kenmar in February confirming he’d received the briefings and that a legal team, including a King’s Counsel, had been assembled in Brisbane to pursue the “Dune Main Beach matter”, but the dispute never made it to court.
Questions sent to Mr Lew and his media team at Premier Investments have gone unanswered.
Mr Kenmar declined to comment.
The buyer’s contract was terminated by the Andrews Projects in early April, citing delays on completion of the project.
A statement on behalf of Andrews Projects, via a public relations firm, did not answer questions on its contract with Hutchinson or how many original buyers had progressed to settlement.
It also ignored a question about how many contracts had been cancelled under sunset clauses or if it had asked buyers for extra funds.
“The construction industry, like many others, has faced significant challenges over the past few years including disrupted supply chains globally, delays and price fluctuations in construction materials, in addition to labour shortages,” the statement said.
“Despite our best efforts, Dune was not able to be delivered within its original timeline.
“While navigating these unforeseen circumstances, we remained committed to transparency, integrity and proactive communication with our valued buyers; the majority of whom were understanding and supportive of the challenges and remained committed to the project.”
The statement said buyers whose contracts had not continued had their deposits refunded with interest.
“Any claim regarding legal proceedings or threats taken against Andrews Projects is simply not true,” it said.
“We are thankful to Hutchinson Builders for delivering this world-class project to the highest of standards during such a tumultuous time.
“Those who have settled are incredibly happy with the end product, including the penthouse purchaser.”
Andrew Projects is also developing the 224-apartment project Cascade at Robina, slated for completion in late 2025.
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Originally published as Buyer in luxury Dune Main Beach contracts cancelled by Andrew Projects under sunset clause
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