Only in Sydney: $15,000 a week rent to find cockroaches – and the landlady – on arrival

When the American director of the Illawarra Hawks basketball team, Jared Novelly, arrived at the penthouse of The Hyde tower last year ready to move into his $15,000 a week rental he was not expecting to find his landlady still in residence.

Nor did he expect to find faulty finishes, a cockroach-infested kitchen, a spider-infested barbecue and pool area on the rooftop, spilled ointments in the bedroom, and bags of dirty underwear and clothes.

He was, however, hoping work had at least started on a list of high-end upgrades, such as the installation of two cutting-edge, self-cleaning toilets at $28,000 a pop, a home theatre fit-out and an electronically controlled television mounted on the wall of the master suite.

The Hyde penthouse was a finalist in the 2011 Asia Pacific International Property Awards for best apartment.Credit: Domain

As Novelly pulled up to the prestigious building opposite Hyde Park in June last year those upgrades were yet to be done, and the landlady, co-founder of the electric whiteboard company ELB, Marie Bolton, was still packing up her home.

It was an awkward start to the arrangement that has descended into an increasingly acrimonious stoush set to be played out in the Supreme Court. Novelly is seeking to enforce the terms of his lease, as well as exemplary and aggravated damages, costs and a revision of the rent.

At the centre of it is a three-storey penthouse designed by Archer Design over 1100 square metres that was a finalist in the 2011 Asia Pacific International Property Awards for best apartment, and comes complete with a 15-metre swimming pool, formal and informal living rooms, four bedrooms, study, scullery, media room and an internal lift.

Marie Bolton purchased The Hyde penthouse new in 2011 for $12.5 million.Credit: Domain

The building was completed in 2010 and Bolton purchased the penthouse new in 2011 for $12.5 million, transferring her ownership to her corporate entity Tamqia Pty Ltd in 2016 for $30.15 million.

It is just one of more than half a dozen properties owned by Bolton’s corporate interests, of which others include a penthouse in Milsons Point, a beachfront house in Narrabeen, and an equestrian estate in Terrey Hills.

Novelly's corporate records show he was appointed a director of the Illawarra Hawks two years ago, but is better known in his hometown of St Louis, Missouri, as a member of the wealthy Apex Oil family, headed by oil baron Tony Novelly.

Documents lodged with the Supreme Court show the $780,000-a-year lease was to start in June last year, with complicated – and contested – terms that were partly written and partly verbal that included an allowed time for the agreed improvements to be done and a period of shared access.

The three-level penthouse includes about 1100 square metres of internal living space.Credit:

Novelly’s affidavit lodged with the court states that the day he moved in Bolton “gestured towards the study, which is the furthest bedroom from the master bedroom, and said words to the effect of ‘why don’t you put your things in that room until I get everything moved out? I will get my stuff out in the next week or so’.”

Faced with the prospect of sharing the penthouse with his landlady, Novelly sent the property manager a text: “I suppose I don’t mind, but she’s planning on staying here tonight with me.”

Bolton didn’t stay, leaving late that night, and returning over coming days to take more of her things away.

As Novelly settled into his new digs the state of the penthouse became more apparent. He claims dirty underwear and clothes were left behind, as were unwanted furnishings and a plastic bag full of undergarments and swimming costumes by the pool infested with jumping spiders.

Novelly has a phobia of spiders.

The rooftop swimming pool has an outdoor kitchen and barbecue area.Credit: Domain

Further, the kitchen was infested with cockroaches, the outdoor kitchen was unclean, half the lights didn’t work, and he had no keys to the storeroom where Bolton had stored her personal effects.

Novelly’s list of repairs also grew in the ensuing months: water damaged carpets, a noisy bathroom exhaust fan, a smoke alarm that went off randomly, broken steam oven and wok burner, defective backup battery in the internal lift, a cracked sink, and outdoor speakers that were “shot”.

In Bolton’s defence she states the penthouse was clean, and denies leaving a bag of dirty clothes behind. She claims the repairs she knew about previously, like the light globes, glass shower door and faulty wine fridge have been fixed, and that other jobs were not done because of limited access.

Even the luxury upgrades like the home theatre and electric toilets are subject to dispute. Of the home cinema, Novelly states it was to include seven seats, but that when Bolton heard they cost $6600 each she allegedly said, “only buy two chairs”.

“What cinema only has two chairs?” Novelly asked.

Bolton’s defence claims an obligation to purchase five new cinema chairs.

As for the Toto Neorest XH II electric toilet, Bolton claimed they couldn’t be installed because they would affect the building’s plumbing, and that cheaper “throne” bidet toilets were substantially equivalent.

As the list of contested terms mounted, Novelly sought a rent reduction of $7500 a week until work was complete.

Fuelling Novelly’s frustration was his struggle to contact Bolton, instead given messages that “Marie is travelling overseas”, “Marie is back, but she is in quarantine now”, and finally, “Marie says that you are in breach of your lease because you have not paid your rent”.

Novelly paid up his rent in full on the basis work would be completed by December 3, last year, only to return from overseas a few weeks before Christmas to find work had not been done in his absence.

On Christmas Eve Novelly reached his limit and commenced legal proceedings. The hearing starts in the Supreme Court before Justice Elizabeth Peden on Monday.

Both parties were approached for comment for this story.