A penthouse to top the lot
East Perth could become home to the most expensive apartment in Australia, with negotiations under way for a penthouse valued at more than $25 million.
The 1900sqm riverfront home in the luxury Mardalup complex is also believed to be the biggest apartment in the country.
The two-level apartment, its balconies and its 240sqm eight-car garage are the combined size of about seven average WA homes.
Owned by publicity-shy businessman Ian Johnson and his wife, the penthouse is not officially on the market.
But Realestate 88 agent Brent Compton said genuine negotiations were under way with interested buyers for a price between $25 million and $30 million.
Mr Compton said buyers approached him after learning about the penthouse in publicity for three luxury apartments in the same complex which are on the market for $8 million to $9.5 million each.
Mr Johnson, a developer, is responsible for converting the former commercial space on Brown Street into a residential complex.
He designed the eight- bedroom, eight-bathroom pent-house, which has three kitchens, a soundproof cinema, a study, gym and cellar.
Mr Johnson has lived there for only one month and though reluctant to move, said everything was for sale at the "right price".
Defending the hefty valuation, he said it was cheaper per square metre than a 600sqm South Perth apartment that recently set a WA price record at $15.2 million.
And he believed his penthouse was unique because there were no roads between the building and the river.
"You can throw a fishing line off the balcony," he said.
The home would soon look across the river to the new stadium and was connected by footbridges to hospitality hotspots.
Mr Johnson, the developer behind the Subiaco Mews complex, some city office conversions and developments in Broome, said he tried to avoid the spotlight.
"I like flying under the radar, I'm pretty private," he said.
"When I bought this building from the Holmes a Court family, I told them I didn't want any publicity."
The national price record for an apartment is $21 million at Bondi beach, though there were reports yesterday another Bondi apartment had sold for more.
