‘Chilton Hilton’ back on the sales block
Bremon, the grand Warrawee mansion on Sydney’s upper north shore, is on the market for the second time in two years. It’s the one locals have long referred to as the Chilton Hilton given its eight bedrooms and nine bathrooms.
With a huge 3000sq m footprint on its 6400sq m Chilton Parade holding, Chinese shoe king Wilson Xue paid $11m in 2018, cheaper than its price eight years earlier.
The mansion had belonged to the Northern Territory’s briefly mooted first billionaire, oil and gas magnate Jerry Ren, who was bankrupted in 2018. Ren’s former wife, Xia Kong, was the vendor two years ago having paid $11.5m in 2010.
Xue is ambitiously seeking $18.5m for the home initially know as Pantagruel.
Xue offloaded in Mosman recently at a big loss when the home he bought for $23.73m from former Foxtel boss Richard Freudenstein resold at $20m.
Bremon is best remembered when built for oil magnate Pat Burke in the late 1980s, with its architect, Espie Dods, taking inspiration from the colonial Elizabeth Bay House.
Its basement garage is gargantuan, as the Hartogen Energy oilman envisaged warehousing his collection of 29 cars, six boats and 27 motorcycles.
It was in the news in 1990, when construction works stalled. After getting to its roofless lockup stage at a $5m cost, squatters briefly moved in with banana chairs.
Margin Call recalls Justice John Cohen was aghast as Burke’s financiers fought among each other.
Shortens’ sweet deal
Bill Shorten, the former federal opposition leader, and wife Chloe have completed their residential upgrade in Melbourne’s north west.
They secured $1.655m, just above the price guide of $1.55m- $1.65m.
Their home had been renovated since costing $842,000 in 2009, when Shorten was parliamentary secretary for the National Disability Insurance Scheme, something that was later to become a key policy of the Labor government.
Moonee Ponds has a median house price of $1.215m, according to realestate.com.au, but amid subdued volumes as the 2019 tally was just 108 sales, almost half the 2015 number.
The couple’s five-bedroom, $3m Travancore home purchase better suits their three growing children and two bulldogs.
Labor’s housing tax reform ranked high among the reasons the Shortens aren’t boarding in the Lodge after last May’s federal election.
Anthony Albanese has indicated the controversial proposals for negative gearing and capital gains tax were no longer ALP policy, but has yet to outline what is.
The property industry, including billionaires Harry Triguboff and Frank Lowy, supported the Coalition and other conservative groups, with $6.5m in donations over the past financial year. Labor and GetUp attracted $800,000.
Wine creditors circle
Some 650 creditors have come forward following the McWilliam’s Wine Group collapse. Peter Fogarty, the West Australian winemaker, already touted as its potential white knight by DataRoom, is among those owed the most. Claiming $6.2m, Fogarty’s Margaret River Wine Production, in partnership with agri-fund manager Laguna Bay, put in cash this time last year.
The recent creditors’ meeting was advised their input had been unable to secure “the group’s turnaround plan”. Gayle Dickerson of KMPG, the administrator, said the losses generated since fiscal 2018 “led to constraints on liquidity”.
Dickerson has advised there has been “significant” interest offshore and domestically, in whole or partially. The marketing begins on Monday.
Other than some smoke taint from the bushfires, it’s been business as usual, although the staff await their entitlements. Senior winemaker Russell Cody appears on the list of creditors, claiming $37,000.
One of the company’s longest employees, former chief winemaker Jim Brayne, is also on the list. Now chairman, Brayne joined in the 1970s when he took a summer job in the Yenda cellars and never went off to study economics. Its chief executive, David Pitt, who joined in 2018 after roles at Red Bull, Lion and Parmalat, seeks $27,000.
Pitt replaced Jeff McWilliam to become only the fourth CEO in the winemaker’s 142-year history to not be a member of the family. There’s many family members who are creditors, including Greg McWilliam, who is owed $4.45m, and Jon McWilliam, owed $1.5m.
The ATO is owed $1.4m.
Penthouse designs
Interior designer David Hicks got regional newspaper baron Antony Catalano to sign off on the design plans for the Saint Moritz, St Kilda penthouse over the summer break. But Margin Call understands it could easily have been a different story.
The former Domain boss and his wife Stefanie initially checked out the penthouse in yet-to-be-built St Kilda Road tower The Muse, before the couple decided to instead spend $30.5m on Saint Moritz.
The Muse penthouse remains priced at a state record $45m.
The Saint Moritz penthouse was the first sale last year by Christie’s International agent Sean Cussell. It is in the redevelopment of the former Novotel site, where Sydney developer Greg Shand has teamed up with Tim Gurner.
Catalano’s purchase included a design customisation package for his 650sq m internal space, plus 175sq m terracing with pool.
St Kilda was all quiet last month, shrugging off fears of another riot.
The only crime Margin Call spotted was the graffiti-tagging of the Gurner hoarding out the front of the now-demolished building site.
Trees save Parr
One of the sad stories arising from the black summer was the loss of irreplaceable wisteria on the NSW south coast.
Legendary gardener Graham Parr is credited as having accumulated more wisteria than any other person in Australia, his collection including vines propagated from the iconic Mount Wilson property, Nooroo.
Currently living in a caravan at Cobargo, near Bega, the stoic Parr is philosophical and grateful after the fire on New Year’s Eve. The home was lost, with some of the 1975-established wholesale nursery still alive but scorched.
“There’s only one reason I can think of that I’m here (still alive) is I’m surrounded by deciduous trees, a lot which are fire-retardant, otherwise me and Lyn would be dead,” Parr told gardening mate Graham Ross, the Seven Network’s Better Homes and Gardens presenter.
“I woke up and it was pitch black.”
Asked for his future plans, he said: “Whatever comes back I’ll be growing. I’m 64, I’m not going to go out looking for stock now.”
Ross says the industry would be nothing without people like Parr.
“The man could grow roots on a pencil,” Ross said.
There is a gofundme page. Since the plants were in ground Parr was unable to insure, meaning he has lost $1m worth of stock.
He’s now got the irrigation pipes working again.
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