Winter is coming … so a Randwick house renovated in the style of Game of Thrones has been sold by its expat owner ahead of a June 30 deadline which means she’ll avoid a big new tax.
International designer Livia Ostojich didn’t include any dragons in her refit of 68 Howard St but agent Angus Gorrie of McGrath thinks the brass bathtub and overall design has a medieval feel to it.
“That bronze bath has Game of Thrones written all over it,” he said.
And Gorrie reckons the couple, originally from the UK, who paid $2.43 million for the four-bedroom house, thinks it was the property’s reno that won their hearts.
Though it’s not the only Australian property reminiscent of Game of Thrones – Raine and Horne Gosford called for “the next Jon Snow and Daenerys” to apply for a castle up for rent last year which eventually dropped to $350 a week.
Game of Thrones written all over it.
Of his Randwick sale, Gorrie says: “Expats have been trying to get their properties sold and we’ve been getting some good results because of the lack of stock on the market,” he said.
Up until now, Aussies living abroad have able to claim the capital gains tax exemption on the family home.
But that changed in December, with the Federal Government giving homeowners just over six months to get their houses in order – and sold off.
This castle isn’t quite as dark as those in the show.
Australians who live overseas now have only a month to sell their properties or they’ll face a hefty capital gains tax bill.
Ostojich had spent about $1.3 million on her renovation ahead of heading to Bali five years ago and putting it up for rent.
CoreLogic shows she’d been collecting 1400 a week, for the home bought for $1,030,000 in 2007.
The property, which has no off-street parking, was first listed at the end of February and scheduled for auction with a $2.35 million price guide, but there was little interest after the agents had to switch to an online auction.
Live lavishly.
Gorrie sold it in the week after the lockdowns eased.
“This led to growing confidence in the market and the deal was done – $50,000 above the original guide,” he said. Ostojich is understood to be overjoyed.
Another happy vendor is Singapore-based business coach John Raymond, who sold his two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment with parking at 2/46 Melody St through Gorrie on Monday night.
The guide had been $1.1 million. It sold for $1,125,000 to a young first-home buyer couple who’d been renting in Mosman.
Other agents, too, report that expats have been rushing to sell ahead of the deadline. “There has been a spike in these listings,” Ray White Double Bay’s Warren Ginsberg said.
“We’ve been selling apartments in Bondi Beach, Bondi Junction, Bellevue Hill and Darlinghurst for people living in New York and London.
202/33 Bronte Rd, Bondi Junction was owned by a UK-based Australian expat.
The sales included a two-bedroom apartment with off-street parking at 202/33 Bronte Rd, Bondi Junction, owned by UK-based Augusta Gray, creative content lead at health technology company Second Nature.
Ginsberg had been quoting a $1.2 million guide. He sold it for $1.25 million.
“She was starting to get anxious as the deadline was getting close,” Ginsberg said.
“We got a buyer interested and we wrapped it up pretty quickly.”
The property was bought by a local investor, who had a tenant signed up until next year paying $1,150 a week.
“It stacked up as being a good return, so we had a lot of investors looking at it,” Ginsberg said.
CoreLogic records show Gray had bought the apartment for $855,000 in 2008.
Originally published as Game of Thrones house sells for $2.43m
Lock out the white walkers.
Kit Harington as Jon Snow in Game of Thrones.
Children of the forest can sleep well in here.
The street facade of 68 Howard St, Randwick.
It had a big kitchen and garage parking.
