Aussie Home Loans founder John Symond selling Point Piper mansion for $200m-plus

The businessman is putting his famed Wingadal mansion on Sydney Harbour up for sale, which is expected to break national records.

Billed as one of the world’s most coveted homes, Wingadal in Sydney’s exclusive Point Piper has hit the market with price expectations of more than $200m.

Built for the founder of Aussie Home Loans, John Symond, the home was designed by architect Alec Tzannes to be primarily a warm family home with intimate rooms and entertaining spaces that offer unparalleled luxury.

“It would take at least a decade to acquire the site, design and build – and that is with an unlimited budget,” said Ken Jacobs of Forbes Global Properties, who is marketing the property complete with 98m water frontage. The co-agent is Brad Pillinger.

“We are looking globally, the buyer could come from anywhere, I would not pigeonhole the buyer,” he said, adding that rival waterfront mansion Fairwater had sold very quickly – not even hitting the websites.

“Fairwater never got to the websites, those special properties are often quite quickly snapped up.”

John Symond recently separated from his wife Amber Symond. Picture: Brendon Thorne/Getty Images

Purchased in 1999, Wingadal’s design and construction took eight years to complete, and the mansion sits on 2,676sq m or more than four normal-sized housing blocks of prime harbourfront real estate fronting 2 Wingadal Place. Mr Jacobs said the mansion remained in pristine condition.

Mr Symond, who recently separated from his wife Amber, has previously marketed the property. When it went on the block in 2016 it attracted an offer of more than $100m, which the selling agent, Mr Jacobs, said was 50 per cent of the then house record.

Mr Symond said in a statement he was selling to spend more time overseas. “Wingadal has been a special home for my family over the past two decades, and now I’m looking forward to spending more time travelling overseas. While being an exceptional family home, we have also enjoyed hosting many important events for charities and other worthwhile causes,” he said.

Mr Jacobs expects the buyer to be foreign, saying there was unprecedented interest in Australian property from Europeans and Americans at present. “There’s amazing interest, people want politically safe areas. He said Australia was becoming ‘more and more’ attractive.

Mr Jacobs said “Wingadal represents the unique vision of John Symond and is the most exciting listing I have worked on across four decades in the industry. The property sits on the largest land holding of the waterfront off Australia’s premier road, Wolseley Road.”

“The estate is Australia’s most iconic residence and ranks amongst the best in the world, combining both privacy and space, exuding elegance and comfort, while featuring gun barrel views of the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge,” he added.

Wingadal' in Point Piper for sale. Picture: Supplied

Mr Pillinger said the house showcases the foresight, passion, vision and meticulous attention to detail of both My Symond and Mr Tzannes, and “as there is no comparable property in Australia we expect Wingadal will be the first sale to surpass the $200m barrier in this country”.

The four level house has internal entertaining areas with capacity for 500 people, as well as undercover parking for 20 cars – eight inside the garage. Apart from the four bedrooms, there’s also a two-bedroom apartment and a pool. The wine cellar has capacity for 2,500 bottles and there’s a theatre with seating for 22 people along with two commercial kitchens.