Holocaust survivor’s Rose Bay home sells $1m over reserve

98 Dover Rd, Dover Heights sold for $9,725,000 prior to auction — $1m above the intended reserve price.

A Rose Bay home owned by Holocaust survivors has sold $1m above its intended reserve price prior to auction.

The humble three-bedroom residence with iconic harbour views on close to 500sqm of land at 98 Dover Rd fetched $9,725,000 via Ray White Double Bay’s Dion Markovics and Warren Ginsberg.

It’s understood the reserve was going to be $8,725,000. But two buyers had been fighting over it ahead of the planned auction, pushing the price way beyond expectations.

It had been held by the Grunstein family for more than 60 years.

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Barbara Grunstein, John Grunstein, Jim Grunstein and Eva Grunstein. Source: Australian Jewish Historical Society.

The Grunstein family had owned 98 Dover Rd, Rose Bay, for more than 60 years.

John and Barbara Grunstein had both been Hungarian Holocaust survivors.

While John died many years ago, Barbara passed away last December. Last year, at the age of 98, she appeared in a NSW Jewish Board of Deputies video where she detailed her Holocaust experience.

“In 1944, Germany invaded Hungary,” she said.

“The Germans came to our home, and my father gave them a glass of wine and the next day we were taken to the ghetto.

“There was very little food.”

They were then shipped to Aushwitz, where she and her sisters were selected for working, and three weeks later they were taken to Germany where they worked in a factory making bullets.

They ended up in Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.

“We were hungy and thirsty, there was no food at all,” she said.

City skyline, Bridge and harbour views.

The buyers plan to knock down the old home and rebuild.

“We were liberated by the British and taken back to Hungary.”

She married John in 1949 and they moved to Australia. “I have two children, six grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren,” she says proudly.

In a footnote to the video, the producers say Barbara has a very important message: “She tells everyone that it’s important not to hate.”

Barbara was well regarded for her charitable contributions and her commitment to sharing her story at the Jewish Museum.

Their sons, Professor Ron Grunstein, a consultant physician in sleep disorders for over 30 years and a pioneer in improving patient care in sleep medicine, and retired lawyer Gary Grunstein, managed the sale.

It is understood the buyer intends to build a new residence on the site.

More than 120 buyers inspected the home during the four-week campaign.

The initial guide had been $7m–$7.7m, which as later revised to $8m in line with market feedback.

The result set a record price for a knockdown in the area (486sqm with gun-barrel harbour views).

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