With all the global uncertainty, the least surprising news is that the property market has taken a hit, with auction attendances down.  But if you were thinking that now might be the time to score a bargain, there are a few odd options you might consider.

Take the town of Cooladdie in Queensland, for instance, where the local roadhouse, petrol station, bar and motel pretty much IS the town.  You can have that for $400k.

Then there’s the home in Tasmania where the former police station that comes with it still has its own clink.

Or, with our fuel crisis still making headlines, you might want to avoid the suburbs where owning an EV is harder than it ought to be.

All that and more in this week’s feed of Quirky property yarns from Leftfield Communications.

Free Reads

Domain

‘What a world’: Outrage erupts over ‘scummy’ Perth rental
A Perth rental listing has sparked outrage online, with a landlord accused of trying to cash in on the persistent housing crunch felt across much of Australia.

Residents list entire Queensland town Cooladdi for sale for $400,000
Carol Yarrow laughed when a friend called her in early 2023 and suggested she buy the town of Cooladdi in central Queensland. “I thought: ‘You’ve got to be kidding me.’ But Jo and I decided to take a look anyway,” she says.Dan F.

‘Rare’ patch of grass in Melbourne suburb sells for eye-watering $1.68 million
A vacant block on a sought-after suburban Melbourne street has sold for a surprising sum.

Kylie and Brad’s Block house hits market for huge discount
Kylie and Brad Baker’s house from The Block’s Phillip Island season has hit the market for significantly less than the price billionaire Adrian Portelli paid for it.

Ben Affleck ‘gifts’ Jennifer Lopez his stake in their 24-bathroom mansion
Hollywood A-lister Ben Affleck has reportedly gifted his ex-wife, Jennifer Lopez, his share of their Beverly Hills marital home at no charge. The former couple struggled to find a buyer for the 12-bedroom, 24-bathroom mansion for more than a year.

The Tasmanian home that comes with its own jail
Ever wanted to own a jail? A former police station with its original lock-up still intact has hit the market in Tasmania, offering exactly that.

Inside Freddie Mercury’s $56 million ‘memory box’ mansion that won’t sell
If walls could talk, this $56 million London home would have some legendary tales. However, more than two years on the market has not been enough to offload this A-lister’s home.

Mystery buyer who splashed $15 million on Pat Cummins’s home revealed
The mystery buyer who paid an eye-watering sum for Pat Cummins’s waterfront Sydney home has been revealed. The Australian cricket captain and his interior designer wife, Becky, secured $15 million for their Victorian manor home in Bronte, in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, in February this year.

Lily Allen and David Harbour offload their $10 million New York townhouse
Lily Allen and David Harbour’s infamous Brooklyn townhouse has finally sold. The New York City brownstone, which was the couple’s former marital home, has changed hands to a buyer whose identity remains unknown.

Commercial Real Estate

Banksy exhibition takes over prime Rocks retail space
The entire ground floor of 155 George Street in The Rocks has been transformed into Banksy Limitless, an immersive exhibition celebrating the work and global cultural influence of elusive British street artist Banksy, which opened on April 3.

Realestate.com.au

Aussie homeowner reveals simple 10-cent can trick to slash her mortgage
In an era of rising interest rates and mounting mortgage stress, Australian homeowners are constantly searching for innovative ways to chip away at their home loans. While many focus on budgeting and big financial shifts, one Queensland first-time buyer has revealed a surprisingly simple, yet incredibly effective, tactic: collecting discarded cans and bottles.

Owner of Australia’s best lawn reveals his secret is a simple $20 hack
He is addicted to grass – and proud of it. A self-described lawn addict who was recently crowned the owner of Australia’s best lawn, has made a surprising confession: his award-winning yard relies on a simple $20 hack.

Big Bash star Chris Lynn lists six-bedroom mansion for sale
Professional batsman Chris Lynn is quietly selling his luxe, six-bedroom house in one of Brisbane’s most sought-after suburbs just months after his Big Bash League (BBL) contract expired.

Glamour couple’s ‘most desirable’ $3.55m Paddington terrace for sale
Mortgage broker Theo Chambers, husband of swimwear entrepreneur Natasha Oakley, is selling their Paddington investment property. Alexander Phillips at PPD has issued a $3.55m guide.

Fuel king Avi Silver offloads luxury Mornington Peninsula home
Fuel billionaire Avi Silver has sold his cantilevered Mornington Peninsula property for a figure close to $7m, less than a fortnight after listing it. With fellow United Petroleum co-founder Eddie Hirsch, Mr Silver operates an Australian service station empire of more than 500 petrol outlets.

Rochester’s ‘naked’ house stripped after floods has wild sales pitch
A regional Victorian home seller who took the unusual step of selling the house “completely naked” has had the property pass in at auction, despite a surprising amount of interest.

Buyer jumps into pool after winning Queensland’s most viewed home up for auction
When Queensland’s most-viewed property going to auction sold over the weekend, its new owner literally jumped into the swimming pool with joy.

AFL star Travis Boak sells Somerton Park home
The ink has dried on the multimillion-dollar sale of AFL legend Travis Boak’s Adelaide home.

Ex-ABC boss Michelle Guthrie buys new $10m Sydney home
Former ABC managing director Michelle Guthrie has upgraded her Palm Peach weekender with a $9.9m hilltop purchase. It was the longtime family retreat of the late NSW governor Dame Marie Bashir.

Influencer Laura Henshaw offloads Brighton house in huge deal
Influencer and wellness brand KIC co-founder Laura Henshaw and her entrepreneur husband Dalton have sold their Brighton house for about $8.5m.

Sam Frost and Jordie Hansen list renovated Noosa dream home after auction gamble
Aussie TV sweetheart Sam Frost and her Survivor star husband Jordie Hansen have listed the renovated dream home they almost didn’t buy.

Sydney’s best and worst suburbs to own an EV
Fuel price spikes amid the ongoing Middle East conflict have reignited a fresh EV ownership debate. New electric vehicle sales reached a record 14.6 per cent share last month with 15,839 sales, according to official data with Tesla’s Model Y placing third overall with 2818 registrations.

Adrian Portelli’s ex-The Block house listed with ‘realistic’ price tag
A Phillip Island house bought by Adrian Portelli on The Block’s 2024 is for sale with a $1.7m-$1.85m price tag, six figures less than what he paid on the show.

Melbourne PR queen Judy Romano lists celebrity haunt Brighton home
It’s hosted celebs from Anthony LaPaglia to Harry Kewell and Lance “Buddy” Franklin, but the Brighton home of social scene power couple Judy and Frank Romano is ready for a new guest list.

Racing legend Pat Hyland’s sprawling Gippsland farm sells
A Gippsland farm owned by the late Melbourne Cup-winning jockey turned trainer Pat Hyland and his wife Maree has sold after being listed with an $11m-$12m range.

Parents sell coast dream home in desperate fight for daughter’s life
Cheryl and David McKenna are hoping for a miracle as they sacrifice their coastal sanctuary to pay for lifesaving treatment for their daughter, who is fighting a fatal disease. The couple has listed their spectacular 10-acre Peregian Beach property to raise $5 million to treat 18-year-old Emily’s RRM2B mitochondrial disorder.

Inside SA footy legends’ sold homes: Voss, Boak, Phillips
In town for Gather Round and wondering where South Australia’s footy legends live? Well, we’re not going to tell you that.

Pay-walled

The Australian Financial Review

‘It’s so noisy’: Members say Club Rose Bay revamp excludes veterans
Residents in Sydney’s affluent eastern suburbs are clashing with hospitality billionaire Justin Hemmes over his glossy renovation of the Rose Bay RSL in a stoush that pits young social media-loving patrons against old mates wanting a cheap schooner and a yarn.

Sydney power couple lists Mosman mansion for $11m
Veteran asset manager Bill Bovingdon and his wife, communications expert Belinda Noble, are selling their Mosman abode overlooking Great Sirius Cove with $11 million price hopes, property records show.

Unions demand local content, apprentice quotas for data centre builds
Unions NSW is demanding that new data centres and their related renewable energy projects be subject to quotas for local content such as steel and a minimum of 20 per cent trade apprentices during their construction.

Melbourne property developer buys $13.75m luxury weekender
Melbourne property developer Will Deague and his wife, Natalie, have taken the keys to a $13.75 million luxury acreage in the Mornington Peninsula hamlet, Merricks.

Mining billionaire Chris Ellison to sell Perth mega-mansion
Controversial mining billionaire Chris Ellison and his wife Tia have listed their riverfront compound in Perth’s Mosman Park, a property expected to reset the West Australian capital’s house price record.

The Australian

We’re bracing for the most profound social shift since the 1960s
A confluence of new technology, powerful social forces and good old-fashioned predisposition is shaping our prospects for the 2030s and beyond. It is, as some might say, the advent of a brave new world.

The Sydney Morning Herald

The council, the developer and the $640m threat to Sydney’s weekend
A bitter planning dispute has erupted between a north shore council and one of the city’s most prolific developers over a push to extend construction hours at a multimillion-dollar project – including the introduction of controversial Sunday working hours.

People power: The backlash that led to a council rejecting a million-dollar windfall
In the cash-strapped world of local government, it takes something pretty bad to force a council to turn its back on some quick and easy money. In the case of the NSW city of Orange, two such reasons mean it is now saying “no” to a lucrative deal it once embraced.

How the metro killed a Sydney shopping centre
Panarello’s store, TJ Shoes, occupies what was once considered a prime position at the Mirvac shopping centre, right near the entrance to North Sydney railway station. The new metro line, shifting commuters north to Victoria Cross station, was a further blow.

Vaucluse mansion owned by Smorgon dynasty members gets a $10m discount
A Vaucluse mansion with a pool and private jetty has had its price guide adjusted by about $10 million in a fresh campaign to meet the market.

The Brisbane Times

Dessert and cocktail bar wins temporary injunction against eviction by developer
A dessert and cocktail bar has won the right to reopen after being locked out by a major Brisbane developer for planned demolition. Graya lodged plans for a five-storey apartment building at 63-71 Racecourse Road in Hamilton last year, to be called “The Gallery”.

The Courier Mail

Mick Fanning and Joel Parkinson battle to build Queensland’s first wave pool
Two surfing greats who once dominated world championships together now find themselves on opposite sides of Queensland’s wave pool revolution.

The West Australian

Plan for unused 500-bed COVID quarantine facility to be turned into low-security prison, rehabilitation centre
The Cook Government wants to turn WA’s unused COVID quarantine camp near Bullsbrook into a new prison. The 500-bed compound 40 minutes north-east of Perth has been empty since it was completed in 2022.