Properties prices in Byron Bay have skyrocketed a whopping 30 per cent since stars like Chris Hemsworth have flocked to the popular NSW tourist town.
And while many of the Hollywood A-listers are responsible for driving up prices, the owners of some of the region’s most expensive homes aren’t not necessarily household names.
Fitness entrepreneur Lorna Jane Clarkson purchased the Byron Bay estate where Margot Robbie secretly married her husband Tom Ackerley in 2016 in March this year.
Don’t blame Thor: Hollywood stars aren’t the only ones driving up property prices in Byron Bay. Pictured: actors Chris Hemsworth and Elsa Pataky at their mega-mansion in Broken Head, near Byron Bay
Lorna Jane spent $14 million on the four-bedroom home, which features a swimming pool, sweeping hinterland views, a barn and its own dam, reported The Courier Mail at the time.
The property last sold for $6.2 million in 2018.
Meanwhile, fellow fashion mogul, Rip Curl surfwear founder Brian Singer, purchased a Wategos Beach home in October 2020 for $22 million.
Athleisure queen: In March, fitness entrepreneur Lorna Jane Clarkson (pictured 2018) purchased the Byron Bay estate where Margot Robbie secretly married her husband Tom Ackerley in 2016
No expense spared: Lorna Jane spent $14 million on the four-bedroom home, which features a swimming pool, sweeping hinterland views, a barn and its own dam, reported The Courier Mail at the time
Raising the roof: The property last sold for $6.2 million in 2018
The transaction set a record for Byron Bay and for the North Coast when Singer bought the place from recruitment industry boss Geoff Morgan and his wife Ros.
Lesser known names like property investors James Dawson and Anthony Pangallo are also helping to fuel the region’s rising house prices.
In 1998 they purchased Koreelah, a 1911-built homestead designed by architect Alexander Jolly for Frederick and Ada Wareham.
Pricey: Her fellow fashion mogul, Rip Curl surfwear founder Brian Singer, purchased a Wategos Beach home in October 2020 for $22 million
A room with a view: The purchase set a record for Byron Bay and for the North Coast when Singer bought the place from recruitment industry boss Geoff Morgan and his wife
Trending up: The last time the 664-square-metre property traded in 1994 it set a Byron Bay record of $1.24 million, according to Domain.com.au. Pictured: Brian Singer
It was bought at the time for $825,000, but as of April this year had a price guide of $9 million- $9.5 million.
Elsewhere, The Block judge Shelley Craft has been living in Byron Bay since 2017, after she bought land in the Byron Shire with her real estate agent husband Christian Sergiacomi for $1.3 million.
The couple built what they call ‘Pacifico House’ on the site of what was the Byron Bay whaling station from 1954 to 1962.
Moguls: Lesser known names like property investors James Dawson and Anthony Pangallo are also helping to fuel the region’s rising house prices
Home: In 1998 they purchased Koreelah, a 1911-built homestead designed by architect Alexander Jolly for Frederick and Ada Wareham. Pictured: James Dawson
Meanwhile, Chris Hemsworth and his wife Elsa Pataky completed their mega-mansion earlier this year, and the monolithic home has skyrocketed in price since the family moved in.
Originally estimated at $20million, property experts said in January the LA-style compound, located in Broken Head near Byron Bay, was now worth $30million.
Lloyd Edge, founder and director of Aus Property Professionals and author of best-selling book Positively Geared, said the market value had gone up significantly since the original dwelling was knocked down and rebuilt.
Luxury: The Channel Nine star and her estate agent husband Christian Sergiacomi bought land in Byron Shire for $1.3 million in 2017
He told Daily Mail Australia in July: ‘I estimate that in the current market the property could sell for up to $30million.’
The sprawling mansion features an infinity pool with a spa, five bedrooms with five ensuites, a large indoor-outdoor kitchen and a four-car garage.
It also boasts a cinema room, massage room, sauna room, steam room, a games room with a bar and a bowling alley.
Chris’ younger brother Liam, 31, has been living in a $4.25 million Broken Head home just a few kilometres away from his Thor star sibling.
The property was purchased in 2019 by the Hemsworth family’s company, CHLH Management.
Luxury: The Channel Nine star and her estate agent husband Christian Sergiacomi bought land in Byron Shire for $1.3 million in 2017
The high life: The couple then built what they call ‘Pacifico House’ on the site of what was the Byron Bay whaling station from 1954 to 1962
However, a Byron Bay real estate agent who has sold homes to the Hemsworths and other celebrities insists Hollywood stars aren’t the ones driving up property prices in the trendy coastal town.
While frustrated locals blame a few high-profile residents for the influx of wannabe models and social media ‘influencers’ to the area in recent years, Peter Yopp of LJ Hooker Byron Bay says it’s not A-listers who are spending the most money.
Mr Yopp told Realestate.com.au earlier this year the soaring house and rent prices in Byron Bay were actually the result of the ‘secretly rich’ splashing the cash.
‘To be honest, the people with the real money look like they don’t have any money. You wouldn’t even know who they are,’ he said.
Mr Yopp also said sale prices were constantly rising, with new records being set whenever a luxury property changes hands.
‘The latest sale is the new bottom,’ he told the website. ‘As soon as something else comes along, it supersedes it [in price].’
Byron Bay has the fastest growing median property prices in the country, with prices skyrocketing from a median of $1.3 million to $2.7 million in the past year, according to realestate.com.au last month.
Going up: Chris Hemsworth and his wife Elsa Pataky completed their mega-mansion earlier this year, and the monolithic home has skyrocketed in price since the family moved in. It is now said to be worth a cool $30m
Rich man’s playground: Peter Yopp of LJ Hooker Byron Bay told Realestate.com.au earlier this year the soaring house prices in Byron Bay were actually the result of the ‘secretly rich’ splashing the cash. Above: Byron Bay Lighthouse
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