Every time I drive to Richmond, this multi-level property catches my eye.

It is something of a mystery. Who lives there? How do they use the space? What does it look like beyond the front door? Is that a turret?

Last week, I was invited to visit.

Sitting high on the hillside, overlooking its vineyard, this expansive Tuscan villa-style home at No.686 Richmond Rd, Cambridge has a unique appearance — its bold size and architecture are far from the norm. But inside, it has the warmth of a family abode.

There are impressive things to discover around every corner of this property, and that starts at the electric front gate featuring Corten steel grapes and vines designed by Tasmanian artist Folko Kooper.

The driveway winds up the hill to the home, past the vines that have seen Clemens Hill win many accolades: gold and silver medals, a double gold and a spot among the 2024 Top Wineries in Australia.

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At the top, the first glimpse of the view from this elevated estate will take your breath away. It is unforgettable. And hard to tear your eyes away from with its wide expanse across the Pittwater Estuary and the Coal Valley.

The view was the first thing that came to mind when the owners were asked what they might miss about living here.

“It is a gorgeous view on a sunny day like today, but equally beautiful when it is grey and raining,” she said.

Clemens Hill’s current owners bought the property in 2013 to expand their winemaking ventures.

Over the years, they have put their stamp on the home in numerous ways, with extensive contemporary updates.

This includes adding a pool area, extensive rock walls and gardens, sleek and sophisticated new bathrooms, double glazing and, in places where, curiously, there used to be small windows, now sit larger glazing that invites the colourful landscape into the home.

A macrocarpa warehouse was built six years ago, just a few steps from the residence. It is not just a place to store wine, but also features an upstairs gym.

Superb stone is used throughout the property, but one area has a special link to one of Australia’s oldest clubs.

“The sandstone in the entrance came from the Real Tennis Club of Hobart,” the owner said.

Decades ago, the Clemens Hill property was part of nearby Craigow.

Purchased by the Wagner family, they engaged architect Mike Viney to create their classical Italian architectural home.

The property’s owners say No.686 may appeal to a variety of potential buyers.

“It could be a couple or a family who buys it,” she said.

“It is a family-friendly home and a great place to live.

“We will see if the next owner is attracted to the house or the vineyard the most. Hopefully both!

“We have run wine tastings here in the past, and it is easy to imagine it being used for functions or weddings.”

This impressive residence offers a harmonious blend of luxury and practicality across four levels, including the cellar.

The ground floor boasts an open-plan living area, featuring a well-appointed kitchen with a butler’s pantry and a wood fire.

French doors open onto a terrace and pool area, creating a seamless indoor-outdoor living experience.

A formal living room provides a tranquil retreat, with garden views.

The first floor captures stunning rural vistas from its large balcony.

Two bedrooms with built-in wardrobes share a central bathroom and separate powder room.

Perfect for film lovers, a library/media room with its own balcony completes this level.

The second floor houses an indulgent master bedroom suite, complete with built-in wardrobes, a luxurious ensuite featuring a freestanding tub, and access to a private rooftop terrace and the home’s distinctive turret.

Modern conveniences include a lift servicing all levels, wood heating, double glazing, and eco-friendly features such as a 13.5kW solar panel system and EV charger.

With its thoughtful design and picturesque setting, this property offers a luxurious country lifestyle just 17km from Hobart, 8km from historic Richmond. and 10km from the airport.

No.686 Richmond Rd, Cambridge is listed for sale with Elders Tasmania. Contact Abi Freeman for details.

The post Wake up to bliss: Dreamy vineyard home with epic views appeared first on realestate.com.au.

The music may have long faded into the distance at the original home of the Falls Festival near Lorne, but the property may not be silent forever.

The famous Great Ocean Road hinterland property has sold after a second attempt as a New South Wales buyer emerged to secure the 68ha farming site from Live Nation Australia.

Ray White Rural Victoria director Jason Hellyer, who handled the sale, said the property presented as a lifestyle, tourism or education opportunity that attracted seven written offers by the end of the campaign.

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The property has ultimately sold for at least $2.5m.

At its peak, the Erskine Falls Rd property was capable of accommodating more than 15,000 music fans at the annual New Year’s Eve multi-day event.

The Otways property near the Great Ocean Road resort town hosted the Falls event between 1993 and 2018.

The owners poured a significant investment into the Falls Festival site to accommodate music fans and Australian and global artists, such as Iggy Pop, Blondie, Silverchair, The Black Eyed Peas, Billy Bragg and Radio Birdman.

The last event at Lorne was cancelled after one night because of extreme fire risk, which ultimately forced organisers to seek an alternative site.

Attempts to relocate to a venue near Birregurra failed to gain planning permission from the Colac Otway Shire.

A farm manager has maintained the property, which hosts an impressive list of buildings and infrastructure, including the main stage.

Mr Hellyer said the site offered significant upside for buyers considering short-stay accommodation or commercial opportunities, such as a school camp.

The Great Ocean Road attracts more than 7 million visitors a year.

Although some of the concert infrastructure has been relocated to other sites around the country, the main stage, medical centre, 3-phase power and water infrastructure remain.

There’s also a network of drivable tracks that traverse through the Otway forest leading to a campsite complete with a kitchen hut.

There was widespread interest in the property from Melbourne and even one from Malaysia, Mr Hellyer said.

“It’s a nice parcel of land that plenty of people wanted to learn more about,” he said.

“We probably ran about 20 inspections.”

Mr Hellyer said the majority of interest was in the hospitality and tourism aspects offered at the property.

“It’s fair to say that it sounds like that’s the intention with the new purchaser.”

The post Buyers sing the right tune on original home of Falls Festival appeared first on realestate.com.au.

A northern Nevada real estate brokerage led by a longtime local broker has joined the Century 21 network — aiming to grow its presence across the region. Michelle Barney, broker and owner of Nevada Prime Real Estate LLC, announced her Fernley, Nev.-based firm has affiliated with Century 21 and will now operate as Century 21 Prime.

The move gives the office access to the brand’s national platform, technology and agent training tools.

“Since we emerged from the pandemic, our goal has been to fully embrace and immerse ourselves in the community,” Barney said. “I believe our community-facing values mesh perfectly with the amazing Century 21 brand identity, and I firmly believe that our newly enhanced name recognition will allow us to better pursue our vision for our company’s future.”

Her firm currently serves clients from Fernley to Reno, Nevada.

Barney entered the real estate industry in 2004 as an administrative clerk for a custom homebuilder and later earned her real estate license — taking over as project manager for a full subdivision. In 2008, she shifted to selling resale properties while working toward her broker’s license and property management certification.

In February 2020, she launched her own brokerage — just weeks before the COVID-19 pandemic upended the housing market. Barney credits that period with teaching her how to manage crisis and lead with confidence, despite the uncertainty.

“We are fully committed to helping nurture all those that live, work, and play in our corner of Nevada,” she said. “When someone comes to us for help, we’ll never cut corners, and we’ll provide them with a one-stop-shop for all their real estate needs. I’m fortunate to be surrounded by a group of equally compassionate and competent professionals who treat every client as an extension of their own family.”

With the Century 21 affiliation, Barney hopes to recruit additional agents, expand her business footprint and explore future acquisitions.

“To succeed in Nevada real estate requires an understanding of vastly different markets, from the bright lights of Las Vegas and Reno, to the quiet frontier towns of the desert,” said Mike Miedler, president and CEO of Century 21 Real Estate. “It takes true local insight to achieve success in that market, and fortunately, Michelle has exactly that.

“Michelle’s homegrown talent and expertise has allowed her to carve out a niche for herself in northern Nevada and we’re excited to help her tap into the latest tools and technology in the real estate industry, while still promoting her small-town, family-first philosophy.”

The rising cost of homeowners’ insurance coupled with the rising regularity of weather-related natural disasters is serving to erode the longstanding barrier between mortgage lenders and loan losses, according to a new report published by First Street. As the frequency of disasters has risen — destabilizing the insurance market, limiting coverage and raising consumers’ costs — that barrier is beginning to show signs of stress.

If that barrier breaks down completely, it could lead to a spike in foreclosures, since “the financial stability of borrowers and the performance of their mortgages are increasingly at risk,” says First Street, an organization that previously declared it is “on a mission to connect climate change to financial risk.”

The report is First Street’s 13th National Risk Assessment and illustrates “that flooding events emerge as the primary driver of post-disaster foreclosures among perils, particularly when they occur outside [the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)]’s Special Flood Hazard Areas (SFHAs), where flood insurance is not mandatory.”

Indirect economic pressures also pose serious risks. Home prices in the areas impacted by 2012’s Hurricane Sandy show that they had fallen 14% annually over the five years preceding the disaster, eroding equity and options once the hurricane made landfall and devastated the Mid-Atlantic region.

“The combination of depressed home prices, lower equity, and flooding impacts led to a spike in foreclosures among damaged and flood-affected properties following Sandy,” the report explained.

“These factors produced ‘hidden’ credit losses to banks, with Sandy resulting in $68 million in unanticipated unpaid principal and interest—equivalent to $34 million in credit losses under a 50% loss-given-default assumption—that conventional credit-risk models failed to capture, highlighting the need to include Climate Risk as the 6th ‘C’ of a standard credit risk modeling framework.”

Indirect economic pressure could lead to as much as $1.2 billion in credit losses this year, with those losses estimated to rise to $5.4 billion by 2035.

“This growing share of foreclosure losses is largely driven by the escalating insurance crisis and the increasing frequency and severity of flooding anticipated in the coming decade,” the report stated. As a result, climate change is becoming a “critical factor to be evaluated alongside traditional metrics such as character, capacity, capital, collateral, and conditions.”

As issues continue to persist across the country for local housing authorities, the situation in Houston has led to an investigation by prominent local media outlets and a commissioned report by outside legal counsel. The probe found that mismanagement of contractors and the submission of fraudulent paperwork likely led to millions of dollars in losses.

Stemming from a much-touted addition of air conditioning units to Houston public housing units in late 2023, the Houston Housing Authority (HHA) “hired 21 contractors to install 1,615 window units” at several communities, according to reporting by the Houston Chronicle.

HHA “agreed to pay $1.2 million for the AC units and $650 for each to be installed, for a total of $2.2 million in federal funding,” the report explained.

But residents reported that their new window AC units were removed only days after being installed.

This led to an investigation by the Chronicle and local NBC affiliate KPRC-TV about why the quick about-face transpired. The situation ultimately led to the resignation of HHA’s president and CEO in November 2024.

A report by HHA’s outside counsel was commissioned by its board of directors. The report itself is largely classified and protected by attorney-client privilege, but the board elected to release an executive summary earlier this week.

It found “significant lapses in process and procedures within HHA concerning the award of contracts, as well as contract administration and procedure, including the review and approval of payments under awarded contracts.”

In a memo to the HHA board to recommend the public release of the executive summary, new president and CEO Jamie Bryant called the matter “important to our constituents.”

Board chair Jody Proler added in a statement to the Chronicle that the “investigation has proven extremely helpful to our new president and his leadership team, who have embraced the opportunity to strengthen internal processes,” although Proler did not specify the process changes that had been considered or implemented.

The summary detailed that at the time the new AC initiative was implemented, “there were no formal HHA procedures for vetting contractors and ensuring contractors were ‘responsive and responsible’ as required [by Department of Housing and Urban Development] regulations and guidelines.”

As a result, “contractors lacked the experience, training, tools and resources to adequately perform the work,” the summary stated. “The contractors had little oversight, and submitted invoices that were paid by HHA before the work could be checked to determine that it was completed pursuant to contract specifications.”

Failure to properly vet contractors for the project also led to “at least one contractor with questionable business dealings and background” receiving financial “kickbacks” from the program, HHA reported. It added that one possibly unscrupulous contractor “was the likely source” of fraudulent paperwork submitted to HHA, according to the Chronicle.

The summary also cited instances of unspecified “inappropriate behavior” from some contractors toward HHA employees. The total sum for the AC program approved by the HHA board came out to roughly $2.2 million, but the total cost of the effort was in excess of $5.4 million.

The additional expenses were attributed to “the need for corrective and emergency work, and hiring additional vendors nearly doubled the project’s cost,” according to the Chronicle.