News Corp Australia
First published 16 Feb 2026, 6:00am
34 Margaroola Ave, Biggera Waters
Two retro Gold Coast properties held off market for a combined 121 years have sold under the hammer after heated auctions, drawing almost 30 registered bidders across both campaigns.
A deceased Biggera Waters waterfront held by the same family for 55 years sold for $2.41m contested by 20 registered bidders, while a 1960s townhouse complex on Chevron Island fetched $2.13m, its auction brought forward due to huge interest.
The Biggera Waters property at 34 Margaroola Ave was offered for the first time since 1970, with buyers lured by its north-east point position and rare 39m of wide water frontage.
A crowd of 120 turned out to see the point-position home go under the hammer
It was marketed by Ray White Bell Group agents Andrew Bell and Ryan Milligan.
Set on an 825 sqm block in a cul-de-sac, the original two-level home had three bedrooms, one bathroom and double garaging. But it was the land that drove competition, with the property positioned about 300m from the open Broadwater.
Mr Milligan said about 120 people attended the auction, which had an opening bid of $1m and buyer interest split evenly between developers and renovators.
“Either a trophy home or duplexes on there would be a hot commodity in the future, but it was a developer who won out,” Mr Milligan said.
Original 1970s-era interiors
The retro-fantastic kitchen
The buyer was understood to be a Chinese-Australian local developer who already owned multiple waterfront sites on the northern Gold Coast, with plans to convert the holding into a villa site within the next year.
The campaign also drew a wave of nostalgic interest, with close to 100 inspections over four weeks, including people who had helped build the home and family members who had visited it decades earlier.
The property was owned by Dorothy Jackson, who never married and had no children, leaving the home to three nieces.
Original interiors included shagpile carpets, wood-panelled walls, chandeliers, floral armchairs and an orange kitchen accented with sunflower-patterned tiles.
14 Stanhill Drive, Chevron Island sold for $2.13m.
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Strong demand was also on display on Chevron Island, where a rundown 1960s townhouse complex sold $80,000 above reserve after only a week on the market. It was sold by Highland managing director Hanan Cawley.
The 507sq m holding comprising four two-bedroom townhouses was on the block for the first time since being built in 1960, with buyers drawn to its scarcity and potential in a rapidly evolving lifestyle precinct.
Like stepping back in time, the dated dwellings featured bright red kitchens, black-and-white tiles, flower wallpaper and blue baths.
The auction was brought forward, with the seller already fielding four offers in a week
Mr Cawley said the campaign generated four formal offers before auction.
“The property had only been on the market a week but the buyers were so keen we thought it best to run an early auction,” Mr Cawley said.
Seven bidders registered for the onsite auction, with the winning buyer understood to have plans to renovate and restore the four townhouses.
At Biggera Waters, Mr Bell said the result was testament to a fundamental tenet of real estate – position over product.
“You can buy something in a poor position, you can build a new home, you can renovate…but you are always going to have a home in a poor position and that’s not where you get the greatest growth. It’s having a great position,” Mr Bell said.
Striking red cabinetry and tiles in the townhouses
PropTrack data shows Biggera Waters house prices were up 34.7 per cent over the past year, to a median of $1.35m.
Surfers Paradise’s median house price was $1.7125m, up 5.1 per cent over 12 months, with two-bedroom unit prices up 8.8 per cent to $850,000.
While the two sales were very different properties, both pointed to the same trend of buyers moving quickly when tightly-held stock finally hits the market, even when it comes with renovation risk and a hefty price tag.
English (US) · 