Billionaire mogul and fresh boo of the newly-minted Hollywood walk of fame addition Mariah Carey, James Packer, has sold his luxury Vaucluse mansion for at least $60 million, breaking Australian real estate records.
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The buyer, Chinese-Australian billionaire Chau Chak Wing, is well known for funding a Frank Gehry-designed building at Sydney’s University of Technology, referred to affectionately by locals as the “Paper Bag”. “As this is a private family matter, no further comment will be made”.
He then spent millions renovating the sprawling six-level designer home in Sydney’s exclusive Vaucluse suburb that he was going to live in with wife Erica Baxter. Packer’s numerous other properties include a luxurious house he recently bought in Israel, where his neighbour is Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
According to The Daily Telegraph, the property fetched more than $60 million.
The younger Packer moved away from the family’s media interests to focus on the gaming sector and has increasingly expanded his business activities overseas.
“It’s very sad for both of them as selling the house is the final closure (for their marriage)”, a friend was quoted as saying.
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Regardless, the deal shatters the previous national record of A$57.5 million set in 2009 for a waterfront mansion in Perth and is head and shoulders above Sydney’s previous best, set at a mere A$52 million in 2013 by Chinese businessman Wang Zhijun.
