Neighbours fan spends record $1.41m on Ramsay St home
A nondescript brick home in a Melbourne court beamed around the world in TV show Neighbours as Ramsay Street, Erinsborough, sold for $1.405 million before a large crowd at auction yesterday.
The $1.2855m opening bid for 5 Pin Oak Court, Vermont South, exceeded the reserve.
Two buyer groups competed for the four bedroom property.
The result is the first worth seven figures in the court.
The vendors paid $68,000 in 1978.
The purchasers, realestate.com.au is reporting in this item, are UK-born Hayley Jones and partner, Mike Shackley, represented by National Property Buyers’ advocate Anthony Bucello.
Ms Jones said Neighbours is her favourite TV show and that she remembers watching the first episode.
The program began in 1985 and is today a lot more popular in the UK than in Australia.
First seven figure deal in Pin Oak Court
When Neighbours began, 5 Pin Oak Ct – known as 28 Ramsay St – was occupied by Des and Daphne Clark.
Ten years later the Kennedy family moved in.
The irregular shaped 690 square metre holding is 20 kilometres east of Melbourne.
Pin Oak Ct is near the Global Television (Australia) Nunawading studio – the backdrop for many Neighbours scenes, including those requiring the Lassiter’s cafe, which is fit out there.
That production site, opened in 1963, has in recent years been the subject of a master-planned residential redevelopment proposal, Forest Ridge (story continues below).
Home owners can’t modify houses without consulting the producers
Neighbours producers pay a fee to the home owners – who in turn agree not to change facades without consultation.
The deal also allows gardens to be used for filming and for letter boxes to be changed.
Private operators run bus tours which regularly visit.
A security-guard patrols the area full-time.
Pin Oak Court sales activity
The last home to sell in the court was #3 in 2013 – to UK-based, Blackburn North expat Andrew Whitney, for $867,000.
Known in recent years as Toady’s house but before that accommodating the Robinson family, this property has views over the adjoining Billabong Park.
The vendors paid $124,000 in 1984 – a year before the street became famous.
In 1998 Mr Whitney – who owns a private jet and helicopter charter flight company – acquired #6 for $238,000.
Another home, #2, traded for $630,000 in 2007; it previously sold in 1999 for $312,850 and 1984, for $126,000.
Four Pin Oak Ct – or 24 Ramsay St last exchanged for $66,950 in 1981.
Harcourts Judd White’s Dexter Prack, Jourdain Creigh and Bruce Liu marketed 5 Pin Oak Ct.
