1525 Riverdale Dr, Hope Island

A trophy home described as “like a theme park” could be yours for $11,000 a week, and $50,000 in bond.

Sold sight unseen for $5.75 million to an interstate buyer in 2020, the vast mansion at Hope Island was recently listed for rent.

At the time of the sale, Professionals Vertullo Real Estate agent Mark Carew said the interstate buyer was one of several who made offers to buy the estate sight unseen.

“The borders being closed made it harder for interstate buyers,” he said.

“There were multiple offers from parties outside of the Queensland who see the value.”

1525 Riverdale Dr, Hope Island

The 1815sq m trophy mansion sits on a 4982 sqm point position making it the biggest residential holding within the prestigious Rosebank Gardens Estate.

The Mediterranean-style home was built by national car-warranty business owner Gary Chuck and wife Suzanne, who fetched $9.39 million when they sold the prize home in 2004.

It is listed for rent by Rent Better and is available from July 1.

1525 Riverdale Dr, Hope Island

To put that weekly rent into perspective, that totals $572,000 a year – more than the median house price in 213 Queensland suburbs.

“Long list of lifestyle features including resort style pool, spa and full-size tennis court,” the rental listing says,

“Buggy ride to Hope Island Marina, moments to championship golf course.

“This waterfront residence occupies the largest block within the exclusive Rosebank Gardens Estate of Hope Island Resort.”

1525 Riverdale Dr, Hope Island

Almost every room in the mansion has marina views, with a commercial kitchen available for every size soiree.

“The presidential master suite is also positioned on this level and boasts a huge walk-in wardrobe and dressing room,” the listing says.

“Ascending the staircase to the mezzanine level, the remaining three bedrooms are revealed, all of which include walk-in robes and an ensuite.

“Each bedroom opens onto the balconies offering panoramic water views.”

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1525 Riverdale Dr, Hope Island

Outside is described as “akin to a 5-star resort”, and includes the pool and spa, pool house complete with an outdoor kitchen, shower, toilets and a change room.

There is also a Hollywood-style home cinema with projector and bar, a home office and adjoining library/sitting room, ducted air-conditioning throughout and a 3-car garage.

1525 Riverdale Dr, Hope Island

“Properties of this calibre seldom come to market,” the listing says.

The only other listing that is more expensive is a unit listed for $850,000 a week, but we hope that is a typo.

1525 Riverdale Dr, Hope Island

1525 Riverdale Dr, Hope Island

1525 Riverdale Dr, Hope Island

1525 Riverdale Dr, Hope Island

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As winter and its bitter cold starts to settle into our bones and our homes, Australia’s coldest locations have been revealed.

As winter and its bitter cold starts to settle into our bones and our homes, a new study has revealed Australia’s coldest locations.

And it’s not in the often maligned and misunderstood nation’s capital Canberra.

Data crunched by Alliance Climate Control analysed a series of factors including elevation, temperature and daily sonar exposure to discover which Australian cities suffer the coldest winters.

RELATED: Why most Aussies are using their heaters wrong

Hobart is very, very cold, this time of year. Picture: iStock

“Our study reveals that while location plays a major role in how cold and ‘chilly’ a city is, the Australian winter isn’t quite so straightforward,” Goran Surbevski – Comfort Advisor at Alliance Climate Control comments.

“Factors such as wind, elevation, latitude and lack of sunlight can all contribute to how cold a city feels.

“Wind, for instance, can significantly enhance the perception of cold through wind chill, making temperatures feel much lower than they actually are.”

According the study the top 10 chilliest locations in Australia are:

1. Hobart

2. ACT

3. Kingston

4. Maroondah

5. Knox

6. Manningham

7. Moonee Valley

8. Whitehorse

9. Brimbank

10. Monash

Hobart ranks as Australia’s chilliest city with a dry bulb temperature of 8.94°C,” the report reads.

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Rug up peeps. Picture: Linda Higginson

“Despite not being the coldest by temperature alone, its high tree canopy coverage (44.1 per cent) and relatively low heating costs ($207) contribute to its top score. Located at -42.88 latitude and just 19 m elevation.

“Hobart experiences low moisture levels (5.03 g/kg) and limited solar exposure (6.73 MJ/m²). Its combination of southern latitude, maritime climate, and strong urban greenery creates a cool, damp winter environment that feels particularly chilly.”

However it is in Canberra and the ACT where winter heating costs are the most expensive, a whopping $236 for the winter months as opposed to $189 in the other top 10 locations listed.

This report comes on the back of revelations that most Aussies are using their heaters the wrong way.

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You have to go far up north to avoid the chill. Picture: Sky News Weather.

Icy mornings across much of the country in recent days have delivered a reminder to many Aussies that no matter how much they blast their heaters, warmth never seems to stay for long.

Housing experts have revealed that this chill isn’t just down to the weather — it’s a design flaw baked into the way Australian homes have been built for decades.

And it means that most households are using heaters in an inefficient way that’s sending their power bills through the roof – without doing an adequate job of keeping the interior warm.

A common problem is that heaters are being used in rooms that lack insulation and are too open and too large for the heater to deliver any meaningful feeling of extra warmth.

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Cold Canberra. Picture: iStock

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Property investors are capitalising on lower interest rates and using little-known financial tactics to dramatically increase their borrowing power – leaving competing buyers seeking a roof over their heads at a disadvantage.

These sophisticated strategies were reported to be helping investors secure loans significantly larger than what standard banking criteria would typically permit. The result is an uneven playing field in an already competitive property market.

It’s a trend particularly noteable in Sydney, where Homeloanexperts.com.au senior mortgage broker Jonathan Preston said homes are “no longer about shelter at all – that is long dead and buried”.

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Homebuyers could be in strife with increased investors in the market. Picture: Julian Andrews

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Instead, he labelled Sydney property “an investment-grade global asset,” while revealing the savvy ways many investors maximise their borrowing capacities to make the most of recent rate cuts.

“Many wealthy borrowers who are looking to build large portfolios these days choose to acquire properties within family trusts, with the view that when they eventually become negatively geared, they can provide a letter from the accountant confirming the positive trading of the entity, and some lenders then allow the trust’s loan to be excluded from servicing.

“This opens up a whole new playing field, where someone can potentially open up multiple trusts and go again and again – subject to not running out of lenders or deposits –

this is the way people are generally getting to 5-plus properties in 2025,” Mr Preston said.

Jonathan Preston senior mortgage broker at homeloanexperts.com.au

The last time investors dominated NSW’s property scene in 2015 – accounting for around 40 per cent of all property purchases at the time – Sydney’s prices ballooned to eye-watering levels, eventually forcing APRA to crack down and introduce regulations to cool investment purchases.

Most investors using some of the above tactics were using interest-only loans, Mr Preston noted, to limit repayments and often seek higher-yielding properties to achieve positive cash flow faster.

He said there has also been a rise in borrowers who are still living with their parents who will then ‘rentvest’ and get into the property market before moving out, with almost a third of purchases he dealt with using this tactic.

“It makes borrowing power way higher,” he said. “Single-income borrowing is horrible right now. Even if you make big money, good luck making enough to buy something nice in Sydney.

A Northern Beaches property in Clontarf with price hopes over $3.55m.

“Borrowing is typically capped at about five times your annual income, so if you want a $3 million property, you are going to need to earn about $600,000 or more.”

He said property buyers prepared to branch out their searches had an additional advantage, adding that most property buyers in Sydney wanted a house and were only interested in the North Shore, Inner West, Northern Beaches, or in the east or south.

“I am a big believer in Western Sydney but many aren’t,” he added.

“So the starting point for those houses is probably north of $2.5 million now; hence, people even buy Gosford, or similar, instead. And northwest is often considered like the North Shore these days,” he said.

Homebuyers could see prices pushed up with investors having greater borrowing capacity. Photo: Tom Parrish

Mr Preston emphasised that once location preferences were established, buyers are essentially restricted to buying a unit, settling for a house in Western Sydney or beyond the city boundaries, or somehow managing to earn an annual seven-figure income — a far-fetched scenario for most Australians.

“Even those three options are challenging. For example, a nice apartment in those desired areas is generally more than $1 million.”

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A luxury Coffin Bay holiday home, that rents for $1200 a night, looks set to smash property records amid expectations it will sell for more than $3m.

The Lobster Pot, at 10 Pelican Court, has a private jetty and an enviable beachfront location with uninterrupted views across the bay.

The property is one of the highest-priced holiday rentals in the Coffin Bay area and has attracted significant buyer interest for its earning potential, said selling agent Georgie Kemp, of Kemp Real Estate.

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The Coffin Bay property at 10 Pelican Court is an impressive holiday home.

It has its own jetty.

The property is one of the highest-priced holiday rentals in the Coffin Bay area, renting for $1200 per night.

It has an epic view of the ocean.

“It’s one of those iconic Coffin Bay homes that everyone knows,’’ Ms Kemp said.

“It’s got its own jetty, which not many properties have, so there’s a lot of inquiries from people with boats that want to come over for fishing trips.

“And the home has been renovated from top to bottom, with no expense spared.

“It was originally a shack but it’s been fully guttered and renovated to the extent that you don’t see any of the old shack now.

“It’s a property that’s got everything – the location, the jetty and the rental returns.’’

Holiday rental booking platform Rent by Owner currently lists The Lobster Pot for rent from $1201 a night.

Ms Kemp said the vendor had made a tidy income from the property over the years, while still retaining it for their own use when desired.

She said the property would make an enviable primary residence with a stunning three-bedroom home that has an open-plan lounge and dining area, floor-to-ceiling glazed windows and doors that framed the ocean views.

A spacious undercover entertainment area offered a built-in BBQ and a wood-burning heater and there was also a separate sauna room.

A detached self-contained flat, with a stylish bedroom, kitchenette and bathroom, still allowed the ability for rental income, Ms Kemp said.

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It’s contemporary throughout and open to make the most of the coastal air.

It’s lavish at every turn.

It has four bedrooms and three bathrooms.

The property is for sale without a price guide.

She said Coffin Bay was growing in popularity among holidaymakers, who now preferred it to busier tourist towns.

“Obviously during school holidays, Easter time, Christmas time and over the summer, Coffin Bay is always a popular destination but even now, when it’s colder, the caravan park is still flat out,’’ Ms Kemp said.

“We’ve seen a bit of a shift (increase in visitor activity) – places (closer to Adelaide) like Victor Harbor are quite busy now so people are heading to Coffin Bay instead.

“It’s still a small town but it’s a buzzing little place with lots of great little cafes and shops.’’

Ms Kemp said the property’s vendor was seeking offers upwards of $3m, which would set a new house record for Coffin Bay.

The current record is $1.715m, set in 2022 with the sale of another waterfront home, which also had a private jetty.

– by Lauren Ahwan

The post Coffin Bay holiday home tipped to smash suburb’s price record appeared first on realestate.com.au.

Growing fears of a retirement crisis in the U.S. are no secret as Americans face a future that potentially includes fewer Social Security benefits. But the uncertainty of Social Security is not the only thing that seniors should consider as they seek to safeguard their financial well-being.

Over the weekend, The New York Times detailed the problem of required minimum distributions, or RMDs, from retirement accounts at a time of uncertainty and volatility in the financial markets. The outlet interviewed a self-proclaimed “lifelong saver” who saw her investment balances drop by $60,000 this spring in the wake of global tariff increases under the Trump administration.

The Times explained that the IRS requires some Americans with tax-deferred retirement plans, including 401(k)s and individual retirement accounts (IRAs), to draw down their savings or face penalties. These distributions are taxed as income and “can be painful when retirees have to sell assets in a falling market,” the story noted.

Kentucky resident Shelby French, a 75-year-old retiree, said she uses her required minimum distributions to pay “big things” like long-term care premiums, property taxes and homeowners insurance.

Typically, she spreads out the withdrawals in smaller amounts over the course of the year. But as 2025 began and French saw more downside risks in the stock market, she went against the guidance of her financial adviser by taking a single lump sum in January and placing the proceeds into a high-yield savings account.

“I put all my R.M.D. in savings because who even knows if Social Security is going to exist, with DOGE and all,” French said, referring to government cost-cutting efforts under the U.S. DOGE Service. “All this stuff that’s going on, it sort of undermines your confidence.”

The report noted that in 2022, Congress changed some key rules for retirement account withdrawals. Under the SECURE 2.0 Act, people born between 1951 and 1960 must begin taking mandatory withdrawals at age 73, up from 72 under the prior law. People born in 1960 or later can wait until they turn 75 before taking RMDs.

But because these mandated distributions are based on account balances at the end of the prior calendar year, a market downturn in the ensuing months essentially means “they have to withdraw a proportionately larger amount to meet their required minimum,” the Times explained.

“It feels like this has happened a lot — you get a market turn in January and all of a sudden, you’re taking an R.M.D. off a December balance that doesn’t exist anymore,” Tim Steffen, director of advanced planning at private wealth manager Baird, told the outlet. “Now your percentage you have to take out becomes much higher.”

Some financial advisers recommend that clients estimate their required distribution and set aside an equivalent amount that isn’t invested in stocks to avoid having to sell in a down market.

“If you’re concerned about inflation being more aggressive due to tariff policy, then the lesson would be to raise the cash now,” Jonathan Lee, an investment portfolio manager at U.S. Bank Private Wealth Management, told the Times. “You can essentially maintain a cash bucket if you know what your R.M.D. is for 2025.”

Alvino Lo, chief wealth strategist for Wilmington Trust, noted that regular monthly withdrawals can be a smart strategy as distributions taken when the market is up balance out those taken at a loss. And for retirees who wish to leave their retirement savings to heirs, a declining market could be an opportune time to convert assets to a Roth IRA and reduce the taxes owed, she said.

“It’s a little bit of making lemonade out of lemons,” Lo said.