Ray White Double Bay secures Australia’s highest waterfront sale of all time

The sale of ‘Phoenix Acres’ by Craig Pontey of Ray White Double Bay has rounded off a bumper year for the agency and for Sydney’s luxury property market – setting a new Australia record.

Sold this week for $67 million, the house at 38B The Crescent has set a new Australian record in Sydney’s Vaucluse to a local Australian family, and its jaw-dropping price tag means it is now officially the country’s highest-ever waterfront sale.

It is also the third most expensive property ever sold in Australia, following the April sale of Point Piper residence “Elaine” for more than $71 million, and the 2015 sale of James and Erica Packer’s Vaucluse property La Mer, which fetched $70 million.

The property is grand in sheer scale, architectural design & bespoke finishes, and commands iconic Harbour Bridge and City skyline views from a prized 3,731sqm waterfront parcel. Featuring a rare 81m wide water frontage with private boathouse and jetty facilities, it boasts six huge bedrooms and bathrooms, a tennis court, conservatory, a 28m pool with “his and hers” change rooms, a library and gym and even an English-style pub.

Craig said that while it attracted interest from potential international buyers from as far afield as Beijing, Shanghai and New York, in the end it was a local family who purchased the prized property, after only eight weeks on the market.

Phoenix Acres was purchased by Singaporean hotel and property mogul Chio Kiat Ow in 1995 for just $7,001,000.

Ray White Double Bay celebrated its 30th anniversary this year, with Craig and his business partner Michael Finger still at the helm three decades later.  The team is now 70 strong and a powerhouse of not just the Sydney market, but the Australian real estate landscape.  This year alone, the agency sold more than $950 million in property.