Legendary singer-songwriter George Michael famously had his heart stolen by sunny Sydney in the final years of his life, swept away by its sun, sea, and relative anonymity. This week, his Palm Beach getaway has smashed sales records and looking at the oceanside pile, it’s easy to see why…
Despite a wider property crisis and a recent celebrity exodus sending an already rocky market into a downward spiral, celebrity homes are still selling for bumper prices in record time. In fact, it was only a few days ago that David Bowie’s “bizarre” Sydney flat – located in the picturesque Elizabeth Bay – sold for a not-unimpressive $9 million.
However, this figure has now been dwarfed by the oceanfront escape of another UK-born music legend – George Michel, the queer icon that famously fronted Wham! before embarking on an illustrious solo career. The star, who passed away in 2016, had much of his later life widely publicised, including his love of Australia.
After performing at the Sydney Mardi Gras afterparty in 2010, the singer decided to stay and enjoy Sydney’s late summer and vibrant LGBTQ+ community, where he chose to surround himself with anonymous friends that were a far cry and welcome relief from the fame-enveloped circles he found himself enveloped by in London.
In fact, the Careless Whisper singer loved the city so much, he even invested in an incredible Palm Beach property that sold earlier this week. Despite not meeting the $15 million valuation that was bestowed on the property before going to market, it has still smashed the previous $12 million record for oceanfront properties in the illustrious suburb.
On the market for a mere 37 days, the cliff-front pavilion-style five-bedroom home located at 333 Whale Beach Road has more than doubled in price since it was last sold in 2020 for $5.8 million. Though agents are coy about Michael’s ownership of the house – hinting that it’s actually more likely that the star rented the mansion rather than owning it – it is widely known as “George Michael’s house” and we’ve no doubt the star had a very good time there whilst in residence…
The record for a Palm Beach house – excluding the oceanside criteria – is for a $27.5m house on the saddle of the suburb. A residence on Iluka Road sold recently for a comparable $27m, and a newly designed house on Ocean Road was put on the market late last year with a guide price of a cool $4om, but is yet to sell… though it’s expected to fetch $2000 per night as a summer rental, so the designers should stay afloat for now…
Agent David Edwards said that Michael’s luxury oceanside home, complete with plunge pool, has the best view of the Palm Beach coast he’s yet to see which, given the impressive property portfolio in the area, really is saying something. Set on over 600sq/m of land on the point at Little Head, nestled between Whale and Palm Beaches, the house was designed by Utz Sanby in 1990 to capitalise on the aforementioned view.
Anyway, if you happen to be the lucky new owner of this seaside property and you’re looking for someone to take that plunge pool for a spin, rest assured: I’m Your Man.