This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
AN abandoned Chinese-style mansion set on two expansive parcels of land in Perth’s southern suburb of Banjup is headed for auction.
Located at 6 Coffey Road and 341 Beenyup Road, the properties comprise a combined 4.48-hectares occupied by a more than 80-room mansion with four courtyards, 20 bedrooms, a multi-functional theatre, museum, economic trade cultural exchange centre, and several kitchens with private dining halls.
Leon Siew, head of international markets at Effective Property Solutions (EPS), is managing the sale of the property via auction, on behalf of Chinese billionaire James Tan.
“The two lots, which total 4.48 hectares combined, will attract potential owner occupiers that have a keen interest in larger land holdings in a rural setting. We’re also anticipating strong interest in the culturally unique and architecturally significant buildings on the land,” said Siew.
“While somewhat dilapidated, this Chinese-style mansion is majestic, apparently costing the owner approximately US$50 million to construct in 2014. After its completion, the owner returned to China for family reasons and the property has, sadly, never been used.”
The property was built by Apex Construction on the zoned Rural Resource land, utilising building materials from China to maintain authenticity of the architecture style.
“It has been referred to as an Eastern wonder of the southern hemisphere, so this is a treasure of Chinese culture that would be wonderful to retain,” added Siew.
The site’s development was under the spotlight a brutal incident in 2018. During the construction of one the properties an untrained teenage employee at the site was injured and lost seven fingers in a forklift incident.
This resulted in a $240,000 fine for the steel importer and land developer working on the site, PT Supplies Group.
While the vendor reportedly spent around $75 million developing the site, the injured teenager was paid just 15/hour for the labour, minus $50 board each week.
The auction for 6 Coffey Road and 341 Beenyup Road, Banjup is scheduled to take place onsite on 28 June 2024.
