The property dubbed ‘‘the abandoned Minnamurra mansion’’ has sold at auction for $1.32 million.
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The 5000 square metre unfinished residence at 71 Fig Lane, Dunmore was sold under the hammer on Monday night to horse breeder Tony Peterson through Michele Lay of Ray White Kiama.
The palatial Dunmore Equestrian Centre homestead was two-thirds complete when work stopped six years ago after the Belmorgan companies of the property’s then owner John Kosseris were placed in receivership.
The property has sat empty ever since, complicated by court orders to restore environmentally sensitive wetlands damaged during construction work – repairs that Mr Kosseris claimed would cost $4 million.
As a result, St George Bank, which held the mortgage, refused to take possession of the property and during that time the property became a magnet for vandals - and a popular illegal skate park regularly featuring on YouTube.
In 2014 the property was bought by a consortium of Illawarra businessmen from St George Bank for an undisclosed sum. They spent $285,000 cleaning up the site and preparing it for sale.
Ms Lay said Ray White Kiama’s marketing campaign for the property attracted more than 250 inquiries and there were 35 separate group inspections and 18 contracts issued.
Monday night’s auction at the Sebel Harbourside, Kiama, attracted three registered bidders and sold under the hammer to Mr Peterson.
Ms Lay said Mr Peterson, who last year sold the heritage-listed mansion Jenner House at Potts Point in Sydney for $15million, intends to fully restore 71 Fig Lane and use it as his private South Coast getaway.
Ms Lay said interest in the property came from large construction companies and developers.
The sale price represented the uncertainty surrounding the cost of remediation works and restoration of the building itself.
‘‘Most of the parties that inspected the property said there was about $5 million in concrete already there, and estimates were it would take between $3 million and $7 million to finish it off,’’ Ms Lay said.
‘‘We are happy with the result, every inspection took about two hours so it was a huge job.’’
Ms Lay said the new owner estimated the mansion would take 2 years to restore and finish.
‘‘When complete it will be something special,’’ she said.
“This is a landmark property in the Illawarra region as it boasts 360 degree views of the Pacific Ocean, the Minnamurra River and the hinterland.
“The land area is approximately 39.44 hectares and there’s approximately 3.06 kilometres of river frontage.”