Record $130m buy completes tech bosses’ mega property haul

Atlassian co-founder Scott Farquhar made history in late December when he bought a Harbourside home known as Uig Lodge for $130m, the highest price ever paid for a house in Australia.

It smashed the previous record house price paid by fellow Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes, who snapped up an estate known as Fairwater for $100m in 2018.

The $130m Point Piper mansion, constructed in the style of a Scottish baronial castle in the early 1900s, is the most recent addition to the tech entrepreneurs’ vast property portfolios.

Mr Cannon-Brookes’s portfolio alone is estimated to be worth about $290m.

Here are some of the other properties purchased by the tech entrepreneurs:

LILYFIELD WAREHOUSE (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2004 for $840,000

The former property of Mike Cannon-Brookes. Picture: Richard Dobson

Only a few years out of university, Mr Cannon-Brookes purchased his first property in Sydney’s inner west with the help of a buyer’s agent.

“I really didn’t know anything about buying a property, and I didn’t want to be ripped off,” Mr Cannon-Brookes told media at the time.
It subsequently sold for $1.46m in 2016.

The three-bedroom apartment was part of a converted warehouse in Lilyfield, a suburb which now holds a median price of $2.21m.

PYRMONT (FARQUHAR) – Purchased in 2006 for $1.41m

The former residence of millionaire Scott Farquhar. Picture: Richard Dobson

Farquhar and his wife Kim Jackson started their property journey with a two-bedroom apartment in Pyrmont where they lived prior to purchasing the Point Piper home.

The inner-city apartment had been previously valued to be worth $2.5m in 2017.

AVOCA BEACH (FARQUHAR) – Purchased in 2010 for $3.57m

After outgrowing his Pyrmont home, Mr Farquhar and his family purchased an architect-designed home with five bedrooms over 556 sqm of land.

PITTWATER (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2013 for $8.7m

Mike Cannon-Brookes purchased this property l in 2013.

Mr Cannon-Brookes began buying homes on Sydney’s northern beaches in 2013, snapping up an $8.7m home in Pittwater.

The home is just two doors away from his father Michael Cannon-Brookes property at Palm Beach’s Snapperman Beach.

Both homes have been designed by acclaimed architect Wally Barda.

CENTENNIAL PARK (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2015 for $12m

Mike and Annie Cannon-Brookes pictured at the Centennial Park property. Picture: James Croucher

The purchase of the Centennial Park mansion nicknamed ‘Braelin’ set a then suburb high of $12m when Cannon-Brookes purchased it in 2015.

It then reset the record when it sold off the market for $16.5m in 2018. The mansion is set on a 2,200 sqm block – believed to be the largest block in the suburb.

JOADJA CREEK FARM, SOUTHERN HIGHLANDS (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2016 for $3.3m

The Joadja Creek hobby farm is situated 140km from Sydney and was designed in 1996.

The first of many purchases by the Cannon-Brookes family in the Southern Highlands, the 309 hectare farm was purchased in 2016 for $3.3m.

The farm is surrounded by native bushland, horse riding trails, and includes wraparound verandas amid an orchard.

DOUBLE BAY (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2017 for $7.05m

Mr Cannon-Brookes spent over $7m on the Double Bay investment property. Supplied

Designed in 1936 by renowned architect Professor Leslie Wilkinson, ‘Seadragon’ features sandstone walls, a curved balcony and an arched entry gate to the property.

At the time of the sale, the mansion was set for a makeover as the Cannon-Brookes family desired more bedrooms.

SOUTHERN HIGHLANDS (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2017 for $13m

The Wattle Ridge property is considered one of the best in the Southern Highlands.

Considered one of the most prominent properties in the Southern Highlands, the mansion at Wattle Ridge is a 258 hectare consolidated parcel of land.

Features of the property include a separate guesthouse, manager’s residence, tennis court, pool, and equestrian facilities near the native forest.

Cannon-Brookes reportedly owns at least six properties in the region, valued around $50m.

ELAINE, DOUBLE BAY (FARQUHAR) – Purchased in 2017 for $71m

The Point Piper mansion “Elaine” on New South Head Road, Point Piper, Sydney. 27th September, 2018. Picture by Damian Shaw

Previously owned by the Fairfax family for over a century, the dilapidated mansion was purchased by Farquhar and his wife Kim Jackson.

The billionaire initially had plans to undertake a $37m renovation of the mansion, however plans were shelved in 2020.

Elaine resides on an almost 7,000 sqm land parcel, with the previous owners turning down offers from developers to subdivide the site.

BELLEVUE HILL (FARQUHAR) – Purchased in 2018 for $16.25m

This Bellevue Hill home was purchased prior to Mr Farquhar moving into the property at Double Bay. Supplied.

Farquhar and Jackson spent $16.25m for a home in Bellevue Hill prior to moving into Double Bay.

Purchasing the home from businesswoman Jane Hewitt, the six-bedroom home includes Mediterranean designs, a Peter Glass-designed pool and large doors leading to the living area.

FAIRWATER (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2018 for $100m

The land title of the $100m Double Bay harbourfront mansion sold to Mr Cannon-Brookes in 2019.

At the time that it sold in 2018, Fairwater was the most expensive home in the country.

The 1.12 hectare estate took just over two weeks to change hands, and is considered one of the most significant heritage homes as it was previously owned by the late Lady Mary Fairfax.

The sale also smashed the $71m record set by Farquhar for the Elaine property, which was also owned by the Fairfax family.

VERONA DOUBLE BAY (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2018 for $17m

Mike Cannon-Brookes purchased a $17m property in Double Bay a day after the $100m sale at Fairwater. Picture: Toby Zerna

Mr Cannon-Brookes wasn’t done purchasing large properties just yet, incredibly purchasing ‘Verona’ in Double Bay the day after buying the $100m Fairwater estate.

The family renovated the heritage-listed residence while work was undertaken on Fairwater.

ROSEHILLL FARM (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2018 for $5.35m

Pictured is the entrance to the Rosehill Farm home of Mike Cannon-Brookes Picture: Richard Dobson

Designed by Richard Rose, the Cannon-Brookes family continued their buying spree in 2018 by purchasing Rosehill Farm for $5.35m.

WIDGEE WAA (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2019 for $15.m

The property at Kangaloon. Supplied.

After just one month on the market, Cannon-Brookes purchased the 155 hectare property at Widgee Waa for $15m.

It is one of the largest land holdings in the Southern Highlands.

PALOMA (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2020 for $24.5m

Billionaire Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes and wife Annie purchased the Newport mansion in August 2020 for $24.5m.

The contemporary waterfront mansion was purchased for $24.5m during the height of the pandemic in 2020, and is located behind a vacant block of land in Newport.

The empty lot was valued at $1.4m and sprawls across 24,000 square feet – considered a ‘once in a lifetime opportunity’ via LJ Hooker listing agents David Watson and Jono Gosselin.

BANGALLA (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2021 for $8m

A view of Bangalla on Scotland Island. Supplied

Situated on Scotland Island, the Bangalla estate had been previously owned by investment banker Alistair Jeffrey before the Cannon-Brookes family purchased it for $8m.

The sale topped the previous highest sale on the island, set by the sale of Singaporean billionaire Philip Ng’s home in 2013 for $7m.

BURRADOO (CANNON-BROOKES) – Purchased in 2021 for $15m

The property in Burradoo used to be a stud farm prior to Mr Cannon-Brookes purchasing it. Supplied.

Following the death of Melbourne Cup winning owner Dato Tan Chin Nam, Cannon-Brookes purchased the 120 hectare farm in the Southern Highlands.

The land is being reportedly used as a regenerative agricultural enterprise, geared towards increasing carbon in the soil and planting trees.

MALEMY (CANNON BROOKES) – Purchased in 2022 for $8m

The humble brick home, nicknamed ‘Malemy’. Supplied

The most recent of Cannon-Brookes’s purchases in the Southern Highlands, ‘Malemy’ spreads across 57 hectares and had previously been owned by the Bouchard family who paid $1.205m in 2013.

Malemy has a 30-year old brick veneer home, cattle yards, horse stables, three bay sheds and two dams on the Orfolds Road holding.

DUNK ISLAND (CANNON BROOKES) – Purchased in 2022 for $24.5m

A view of Dunk Island. Picture: Tourism Tropical North Queensland.

The Cannon-Brookes family also made their first foray into Queensland last year, when Annie Cannon Brookes purchased the far north abandoned island resort of Dunk Island.

The former tourism trophy asset had been ravaged by cyclones in recent years, with current plans to develop the island while “preserving the natural beauty for years to come”.

AVOCA BEACH (FARQUHAR) – Purchased in 2022 for $10.85m

A view of the waterfront from Mr Farquhar’s home. Supplied

Setting a beachfront record last year, Scott Farquhar and wife Kim Jackson added this five-bedroom home to their property portfolio.

The home ended up selling just $2m shy of the original price guide of $13m when it entered the market in February.