Luxury developer Tim Gurner and his wife Aimee have sold their penthouse at the developer’s Albert Place Residences after just five days on-market, for just over 15% above the asking price.

The 300sqm penthouse was initially listed for $4.4m - $4.8m and sold after one weekend of advertising for an undisclosed figure of more than $5m. The Agency’s Michael Paproth and GURNERTM general manager of retail sales Deborah Wiltshire handled the deal.

Interest in the ultra-high-end residence was far-reaching, with The Agency fielding international enquiries from the likes of South Africa, the UK and Hong Kong. This level of interest pushed the eventual buyers to secure the residence as quickly as possible, the competition proving to be a strong motivator.

The speed at which the GURNERTM CEO’s Beverly Hills mansion-inspired penthouse sold reflects the current demand in the top-end of the market, which has remained largely unaffected by the ebbs and flows of country-wide COVID restrictions and lockdowns.

The continued strong performance of GURNERTM’s characteristic ultra-high-end product underpins the developer’s unwavering confidence in the apartment market, with a pipeline exceeding $7bn across Melbourne, Brisbane, Gold Coast and Sydney.

The Albert Road transaction follows another strong result at GURNERTM’s 74 Eastern Road, where Paproth sold the penthouse – totalling 350sqm of internal floorspace – for $6.6m after just 10 days on the market.

GURNERTM CEO Tim Gurner said, “ It was hard to let go off such a unique penthouse, especially given we poured our heart and soul into it – but we are very happy with the result, and we know the purchaser has bought extremely well given the quality of the build.

“ It is a very special apartment that we know they will love for many years to come.The sale shows the strength of the high-end market, that we have been working so hard in for nearly a decade, and where we continue to exceed expectations of what is possible for apartment living."

“ This result only reinforces what our business has been focused on for the past 9 years – we are always trying to push the boundaries of what is possible in the ultra-high-end market,” he said.

The Agency’s Michael Paproth added, " We launched the apartment on the Thursday and within hours we had inspections, both in person and virtual and were exchanged in a little under 5 days with competition from 3 parties.

“ It’s a testament to the GURNERTM brand, which has such an incredible following, that when we launch an established GURNERTM residence we are inundated with enquiry. This was no exception.

“ We continue to see the prestige market gravitate to the dual residence lifestyle with rural and coastal living becoming increasingly popular coupled with the luxury city apartment. This sale was exactly that scenario.”

The ultimate-luxury, three bedroom, three and a half bathroom penthouse was custom designed by Gurner and his wife Aimee, who is an interior designer, sparing no expense to bring the most exquisite craftsmanship and luxury detailing to life.

The penthouse initially made a stir last year when it was leased for $260,000 per annum, or $5,000 per week, to a private business professional. Gurner was motivated to put the property on the market after witnessing a surge in demand for luxury penthouses at his off-the-plan projects across Melbourne.