{"id":1730,"date":"2025-07-15T08:30:06","date_gmt":"2025-07-15T08:30:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/1730\/"},"modified":"2025-07-15T08:30:06","modified_gmt":"2025-07-15T08:30:06","slug":"aussie-woman-caves-to-developers-and-sells-her-home-after-holding-out-for-years-between-two-towering-apartment-blocks-she-has-secured-a-jaw-dropping-price","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/1730\/","title":{"rendered":"Aussie woman caves to developers and sells her home: After holding out for years between two towering apartment blocks – she has secured a jaw-dropping price"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Sydney<\/a> homeowner who once demanded $20 million for her rundown two-bedroom house wedged between towering apartment blocks has finally sold \u2013 for $8.15million.<\/p>\n

The house at 16 Walker Street in Rhodes was the last freestanding, single-storey home on a street now dominated by high-rise developments.<\/p>\n

For years, it stood as a symbol of defiance against developers, but the owner has now walked away with a multimillion-dollar windfall \u2013 despite the house still having an old outdoor toilet.<\/p>\n

The 676sqm block is zoned for redevelopment and could be turned into up to 14 apartments, a gym, daycare centre, or even a pub \u2013 making it highly attractive to developers.<\/p>\n

The suburb, once filled with modest cottages, has been transformed into a dense urban landscape of apartment towers, with this house being the final holdout.<\/p>\n

In 2022, it was leased for $900 per week, and at the time, the elderly owner reportedly turned down multiple offers from developers, holding firm on a $20 million asking price. Neighbours even labelled the home an ‘eyesore’ as it sat squashed between sleek apartment towers.<\/p>\n

The owner also fought against major developer Billbergia, which was behind the construction of nearby Rhodes Central, in a bid to stop further unit blocks from being built around her land.<\/p>\n

But after years of resistance, it appears she finally gave in to developers \u2013 and still walked away with a massive profit.<\/p>\n

\"The <\/p>\n

The elderly owner once demanded $20 million and fought off major developers for years before finally selling\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Surrounded <\/p>\n

Surrounded by sleek high-rise towers, the freestanding cottage was the final holdout on a street transformed by development<\/p>\n

\"The <\/p>\n

The rundown two-bedroom home at 16 Walker Street, Rhodes, sold for a staggering $8.15 million – despite still having an outdoor toilet\u00a0<\/p>\n

At Saturday’s auction, more than 150 people gathered as bidding kicked off at $6million. The price climbed steadily in small increments before hitting the final sale price of $8.15million.<\/p>\n

‘We thought it would go for between $7milllion and $7.5million and the important thing was we got a really good price,’ selling agent Vanessa Kim told Daily Mail Australia.<\/p>\n

‘There were so many buyers there, but it was a bit like hide-and-seek among them in the crowd.<\/p>\n

‘It was the only house like that in the street so it was a lonely project but we sold it for an unbelievable price.’<\/p>\n

Despite its basic layout \u2013 just two bedrooms and one bathroom \u2013 the land’s development potential made it a major drawcard for serious buyers.<\/p>\n

The owner has a multi million-dollar housing portfolio throughout Sydney, comprising one unit in Barangaroo and one in Haymarket, three units in Rhodes, and a six-bedroom house in Strathfield.<\/p>\n

In 2016, she sold another house in Strathfield to developers for $2.7 million, along with two more units in Rhodes for $370,000 and $540,000.<\/p>\n

Ms Kim shared the strategic advice she gave the owner that helped drive up competition at auction.<\/p>\n

‘It’s a winter market which means there’s not as many properties on the market but I mentioned to the owner that the best time was to sell was in the winter,’ she said.<\/p>\n

‘There’s not so many properties on the market but in spring it’s flooded. When there’s too many properties on the market, people have a lot of choices.<\/p>\n

\"More <\/p>\n

More than 150 people turned up to Saturday’s auction, with bidding starting at $6 million and climbing in small increments\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Selling <\/p>\n

Selling agent Vanessa Kim told the owner to list in winter, saying: ‘You must sell in winter and we’ll get a top dollar.’\u00a0<\/p>\n

‘I said to the old owner, “you must sell in winter and we’ll get a top dollar”.’<\/p>\n

While the owner had hoped for $9million, the reserve was set at $8million. Ultimately, the property sold for $8.15million.<\/p>\n

‘It’s not a normal house, it has a lot of potential,’ Ms Kim said.<\/p>\n

‘We had several inquiries for a lot of future development.’<\/p>\n

\"The <\/p>\n

The seller owns multiple properties across Sydney, including units in Barangaroo, Haymarket and Rhodes, plus a six-bedroom home in Strathfield<\/p>\n

\"The <\/p>\n

The site is zoned for high-density use and could become apartments, a gym, daycare or even a pub\u00a0<\/p>\n

Do you have a story? Email matt.jones@dailymail.com.au\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Sydney homeowner who once demanded $20 million for her rundown two-bedroom house wedged between towering apartment blocks…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1731,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[84,97,59,50,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-1730","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-dailymail","10":"tag-gb","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom","14":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1730","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1730"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1730\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1731"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1730"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1730"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1730"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}