Billionaire's heiress buys $3.1m pad with family help, lists it for $19m

Sydney Morning Herald

5 days ago

Meanwhile, in the east, the home of legal couple Matthew Darke, SC, and his wife, Felicity McMahon, an Allens partner, has hit the market with a $19 million guide in Bellevue Hill.
Title Deeds has reported on power duos selling every other week in recent months and this is the latest couple in the legal fraternity to make a move from a beloved family home.
The six-bedroom, five-bathroom house has been redesigned with a classic 'Nantucket' feel by Amy Spargo of Maine House Interiors since the couple bought the property for $8.6 million in 2018.
Set on 800 square metres, it is minutes away from Plumer Road Village, Rose Bay Wharf and nearby local schools.
Darke, a barrister at Tenth Floor Chambers, has represented clients including Westpac, NAB, AMP and Qantas. McMahon is a partner at Allens in the competition, consumer and regulatory team. She has represented clients such as Westpac, NAB, Pfizer and Salesforce.
Their home is scheduled to go under the hammer on September 9 and is selling through Ashley Bierman of Ray White Double Bay, who could not be reached when contacted.
Aussie metal core band member sells
Up in Byron Bay, Parkway Drive drummer Ben Gordon has sold his house for about $10 million, local sources say.
The born-and-bred local purchased the Mediterranean-inspired property for $2.45 million in 2019 at the band's peak, when they headlined at Bloodstock Festival in Britain.
The four-bedroom, three-bathroom house is set on a ridgeline that captures stunning 180-degree views over Arakwal National Park to the Pacific Ocean and Broken Head.
Set on 660 square metres, the home features a seamless indoor-outdoor floor plan with double height ceilings.
It also has a Sonos sound system throughout, a basement level gym and a separate home office.
The property sold through Will Phillips of Sotheby's International Realty Byron Bay, who declined to comment when contacted.
A sabbatical and a sale
Back on Sydney's beaches, the Bronte home of Macquarie Group's former treasurer Mark Johnston and his actuary wife, Noeline Woof, has sold for circa $11 million, local sources report.
Known as Mt Eden, the five-bedroom, four-bathroom home is perched atop the suburb, providing a jaw-dropping vantage point to see the beach.
The circa 1910-built home was redesigned by Weir Phillips Architects and features a cocktail bar, a wine cellar and an outdoor kitchen.
Loading
Johnston, who is on sabbatical according to his LinkedIn profile, worked at Macquarie Group (also known as the Millionaires Factory) for almost two decades. Before that, he worked at PriceWaterhouseCoopers, where Noeline was a partner for more than a decade, according to her LinkedIn page. She is now a director at Hollard Insurance.
Johnston and Woof purchased the home in 2016 from Monument Building Group's Miles Brujic and his wife, Georgina, for $9.55 million.
It most recently sold through James Ball of Sydney Sotheby's International Realty, who could not be reached for comment.
Long-time locals sell
Nearby, in Bronte, the home of former senior NSW public servant Richard Persson AM and his wife, the former head of NSW TAFE Marie Persson, has sold for $10 million.
The pair purchased the 483-square-metre block for $2.8 million in 2008 and went on to build the four-bedroom, two-bathroom house that sits on it today.
Spanning three levels, the property has an ocean view garden and solar-heated pool.
Richard served in various government roles under different leaders including Bob Carr and John Howard. Marie spent more than three decades providing advice to governments on vocational education and training, receiving a lifetime achievement award for her work.