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An heiress, who purchased a Chippendale home with the help of her parents, has sold it for a figure around the $13 million guide to an Australian expat, local sources have revealed.
Beau Neilson is the daughter of two billionaires, Judith Neilson, an arts patron and philanthropist, and her former husband, investment manager Kerr Neilson.
The house was purchased as a dilapidated building by Beau Neilson for $3.1 million in 2012, who took out a type of mortgage from her parents. The former couple placed a caveat on the title.
The residence was first listed in August 2025 at $19 million and was reduced to $13 million on re-listing in May 2026.
An extensive transformation of the building was completed by MCK Architects, resulting in a contemporary three-level abode with five bedrooms and four bathrooms.
It includes a copper-clad lift that presents as a work of art, a hidden door in a bookcase wall, gallery spaces, an indoor pool and terraces.
A sold sticker went up on the listing to indicate a sale by private treaty on July 2 with the price withheld. It will be left to settlement to reveal the exact sales price and buyer’s identity.
Beau Neilson has left Chippendale for Double Bay, having paid $20 million last year for a five-bedroom, four-bathroom property. There is no mention of a mortgage on the title, indicating a cash purchase.
The heiress owns music and entertainment venue The Vanguard in Newtown, is a trustee of the Powerhouse Museum and a board member of MusicNSW, which describes itself on its website as a peak body for contemporary music in the state.
Her parents made The Australian Financial Review’s 2026 Rich List, with her mum’s estimated wealth at $1.21 billion and her father’s at $2.04 billion.
As previously reported by this masthead, Judith Neilson’s former private secretary Annalouise “Lou” Spence has been accused of misappropriating $1.7 million from her boss. The Supreme Court in May granted Spence bail and her matter will return to court.
Shannan Whitney of BresicWhitney East sold the Chippendale home but declined to comment on the sale price or vendor’s identity. He did, however, say that the property’s design as a residential warehouse in Sydney was a major drawcard during the campaign.
Home of late bus pioneer for sale
The family of the late Richard Rowe, the founder of bus operator Busways, have put his Avalon Beach home on the market, and at the time of publication the auction guide was $10 million.
Properties guided at $10 million and above don’t often go to auction and generally sell via private treaty.
Jonothan Gosselin of LJ Hooker Avalon Beach, who is selling the six-bedroom, four-bathroom oceanfront residence alongside Dennis Kennelly, told this masthead that a good level of interest was part of the reason to go to auction.
“The property is one of only four oceanfront homes in one of Avalon Beach’s most tightly held streets and has been held by the same family since it was purchased as vacant land in the late 1960s,” he said.
“We anticipated there would be a good level of interest and felt that an auction was the best and most transparent method of sale.”
Other prestige agents in Sydney told this masthead in recent weeks that they also put multimillion-dollar mansions to auction in order to create a sense of urgency.
Rowe bought the Avalon Beach block of land in the late 1960s for £4100, records show, and a new build was completed in 1973. The property has been updated over the years and now has contemporary interiors.
Founded in 1942 as a small family business, Busways now services parts of Sydney, the Central Coast, the mid north coast of NSW and southern Adelaide. Rowe’s son Richard and two of his grandchildren continue his legacy.
Philanthropist settles on new home
Philanthropist Kim Medich has been confirmed as the buyer of a $15 million Bronte home that was previously owned by a former child star.
Transfer documents this month show that Medich paid the sum in cash to Ryan Clark, a former Home and Away and Bondi Rescue star, and his wife, Gina, after this masthead exclusively revealed the sale in June. There is no mention of a mortgage on the title, indicating a cash purchase.
It is understood that Kim, who is on the board of The Medich Foundation and was also VIP director of Woollahra’s Hotel Centennial when it was owned by the Medich family, will live in the six-bedroom, four-bathroom abode with her daughters.
The Clarks bought the existing bungalow on the site for $5 million in 2016, records show, and enlisted architect Andrew Chapman for a Hamptons-style rebuild.
Jason Boon of Richardson & Wrench Elizabeth Bay and Potts Point sold the residence in conjunction with James Ball of Sydney Sotheby’s International Realty.
