Former race car driver turned tyre king Bob Jane will soon be homeless, with creditors selling the 72.1-hectare Plumpton farm the businessman bought nearly 50 years ago, next to the Calder Park Raceway he also developed.
Also known as Mr Jane's Diggers Rest home, the property is where the recently bankrupted entrepreneur retreated after vacating the South Yarra penthouse he shared with his now ex-wife, Laree.
Split in two parts, the property includes a 13.8-hectare portion close to Holden Road, which includes Mr Jane's five-bedroom, ranch-style home and surrounding guest quarters, five-bay lock-up garage, pool, garden and tennis court.
A second portion of the property, irregular shaped and spreading over 58.3 hectares, was also offered in the sale.
Despite not being zoned for residential redevelopment yet, the property was expected to arouse developer interest being close to areas such as Hillside and Sydenham, popular new housing estate precincts.
The transaction comes almost a year after the Sheriff won a court battle permitting Mr Jane's estate to be listed for sale. A public campaign to sell the farm late last year resulted in an under-market offer, and the property being passed in. It was recently relaunched as a private sale listing via RT Edgar's Rhys Nuttall. The eventual sale price was $3.6 million.
Mr Jane applied for bankruptcy four months ago citing his other assets as an $80,000 Holden Commodore Nascar display vehicle and $15 cash. The octogenarian owes millions to creditors including the City of Melton council, lawyers and banks, but collects $50,000 a month from the Bob Jane Corporation, under an agreement struck in 2009.
The site is near the Calder Park Raceway, developed by Mr Jane in 1983, which is also speculated will be sold to developers and replaced with housing in the medium term.
St Kilda gardens parcel selling
An investor is paying a speculated $11 million for a low-rise block of flats on a large block of land adjacent to the St Kilda Botanical Gardens.
The double-storey block of 28 flats at 24 Tennyson Street, Elwood, occupies an 1878-square-metre parcel of land also walking distance to the beach and Acland Street shops.
Assuming the tired flats were renovated, they could return annual rent of almost $550,000, according to Knight Frank selling agents Stephen Kelly, Andrew Greenway and Danny Clark. The agents targeted investors, developers and owner-occupiers, such as hotel operators.
The site was offloaded by a consortium of local private investors with a permit for a four-level, 44-unit luxury apartment complex with a basement car park.
Multi-millions for western suburb farmland
Another western suburbs farm, zoned within the Urban Growth Boundary, has made its owner a multi-millionaire.
At 535-585 Greigs Road in Mount Cottrell, the 24.4-hectare plot is part of a Precinct Structure Plan, which encourages repurposing to low-density housing.
Mount Cottrell is about 30 kilometres from the CBD and 24 kilometres from Melbourne Airport and near suburbs where new housing estates are sprouting including Eynesbury, Rockbank and Tarneit.
The Greigs Road parcel, which was marketed with price hopes of about $10 million, is also close to Caroline Springs and associated infrastructure (shops, schools, parks). Raine & Horne Commercial's Manpreet Dandiwal marketed the site.
Earlier this week, a 64-hectare site in Sayers Road, Tarneit, site sold to a Chinese developer for a speculated $60 million, a sharp rise on the $36 million the vendors paid in 2011. The parcel can be subdivided into about 800 housing lots.
Award-winning accommodation venue sold
Hoteliers Wayne Cross and Chris Molden have sold a historic accommodation venue on a 1.1 hectare block with development potential in the Daylesford precinct, about 75 kilometres north-west of Melbourne.
The Peppers Mineral Springs Hotel in Hepburn Springs includes a 1930s, four-star, 40-room hotel which was recently refurbished by the late designer Stuart Rattle.
As well, the property includes the 1864 heritage-listed four bedroom dwelling Villa Parma, a purpose-built function centre, 11 treatment rooms, a mineral bathing area and guest lounge, cafe, restaurant, bar and library.
The Macedon Ranges property at 124 Main Road was offered with planning permission for a new function centre, wellness retreat and 26-suite hotel with an indoor pool. The vendors, who established the Spa Country business nearly 20 years ago, were represented by CBRE's Scott Callow who was expecting "well in excess" of $7 million when the asset was listed in May.
Heidelberg block sells
Developers appear to be paying as bullish a price for development sites in Heidelberg as they are for the neighbouring, ritzy suburb of Ivanhoe.
Agency Savills is closing a speculated $7 million deal to sell a 1742-square-metre site at 13-17 Cartmell Street with a permit and plans for a five-level, 62-dwelling apartment complex. At present the parcel, near the Heidelberg train station, includes three older-style, low-rise homes.
The deal values each dwelling within the proposed apartment complex at just over $112,903.
This compares to a deal in Ivanhoe six months ago, when a Malaysian developer paid $5.7 million (or $132,558 per unit) for a site at 47-49 Norman Street. That 1653-square-metre parcel included a permit for a 43-unit complex.
Savills sold both development sites. The Cartmell Street property was marketed by Julian Heatherich and Nick Peden.
According to Domain Group data, the median price of a two-bedroom unit in Ivanhoe is $599,000 compared to $540,000 for Heidelberg.
Central Footscray plot for sale
The state government's development arm, Places Victoria, has decided against completing a major mixed-use project in central Footscray – instead offering the opportunity to the private sector.
The outgoing 6916-square-metre site known as 3 McNab Avenue is expected to sell for about $10 million to a developer who will complete a village with apartments, shops and offices.
A $350 million masterplan approved for the larger 1.3 hectare block known as 1-3 St Kilda Botanical Gardens permitted 250 student-accommodation units, 240 private apartments, 110 affordable dwellings, a gym, childcare centre and community hub with a garden.
Stage one of the site, addressed 1 McNab Avenue, has recently been developed as a major office building leased to State Trustees and City West Water.
Places Victoria obtained control of the land adjacent to the Footscray train station from another government-affiliated agency, VicTrack.
Cushman and Wakefield's Patrick O'Callaghan and Richard O'Callaghan with Colliers International's Bryson Cameron and Trent Hobart are marketing 3 McNab Avenue.
Email: marcpallisco@gmail.com
Twitter: @marcpallisco
