5/3 Wulumay Close, Rozelle sold for $5.95m, nearly $2m over reserve.
The harbourfront apartment of a famous pychiatrist has sold for $5.95m, close to $2m over reserve, at auction.
The three-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment in the Balmain Cove development at 5/3 Wulumay Close, Rozelle had previously traded for $1m when bought by the late Emeritus Professor Russell Meares, who made an immense contribution to psychiatry in Australia, receiving recognition nationally and internationally for his work.
The five bidders who registered at Tuesday night’s on-site auction appreciated the northerly unobstructed views towards Birkenhead Point, Snapper and Spectacle Island and beyond.
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The late professor Russell Meares.
The harbourfront apartment has beautiful views.
With auctioneer Edward Riley presiding, bidding opened at $4m, which was the price guide offered by Balmain Realty’s Scott Robertson and also the reserve.
With four of the five active, there were $100k incremental rises initially, followed by $50k and $10k offers.
It was down to two by the late $4m mark, with Riley slamming the gavel down to the successful purchaser at $5.95m, which was $1.95m over the reserve.
The underbidder, who was represented by buyer’s agent Bianca Field from Bought Agency, told the auctioneer afterwards that her now deceased husband was actually the original owner of the apartment.
He’d bought it for $700,000 in 1999 and sold it two years later for $1m to the late vendor.
Riley said the result was a “prime example of what can be achieved via the auction process when two buyers become emotionally invested in a property”.
Professor Meares had bought it for $1m in 1999.
There were five registered bidders, with four active.
“This wouldn’t have been possible through a private treaty sale, where negotiations often lack the same level of urgency and excitement,” he added.
“The energy and emotion generated in the auction room brought out the best price for the vendor, proving once again that auction is often the best way to unlock a property’s true value.”
According to his obituary, Professor Meares obtained his medical degree in Australia and pursued training in Psychiatry at the Maudsley Hospital in London.
During his period in the UK he worked with patients who would now be regarded as having Borderline Personality Disorder and he and a colleague developed a new approach to psychotherapy that eventually became known as the Conversational Model.
The third bedroom is currently serving as an office.
The master bedroom opens to a terrace with the incredible view.
Professor Meares returned to Australia in the late 1970s and became the Foundation Professor of Psychiatry at Westmead, subsequently also serving as Executive Director of Mental Health within the area.
His training program in psychotherapy was recognised by the University of Sydney.
In 2007 he was the recipient of the Distinguished Psychiatrist of the Year (UCLA) award, the first non-American to be honoured with this achievement.
After having seven books published on psychotherapy, in addition to over 300 scientific papers, he retired at the end of 2011.
He was working on a book on William James, the famous psychologist and philosopher, over the last few years.
English (US) · 