Minnie Smorgon: Gold Coast penthouse owned by one of Australia’s richest families hits the market

An iconic Gold Coast penthouse owned by a member of one of Australia’s richest families has gone on the market for the first time in 20 years.

The level 26 sky home at 94/22 Montgomery Avenue, Main Beach, was a holiday escape for Minnie Smorgon, 93, and her husband Sam, before he passed away in 2019.

The Melbourne-based Smorgons belong to the dynasty once headed by Victor Smorgon, who in the 1930s took over the family’s butchery business before diversifying into paper, plastics and steel.

The family repeatedly topped the BRW Rich Families list throughout the 2000s and have an estimated combined wealth of more than $2.7bn.

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Mrs Smorgon has owned the penthouse in the Waratah, one of Main Beach’s most recognised buildings, since November of 2000.

Speaking on her behalf, Mrs Smorgon’s son, Graham, said every winter the family would leave the hustle and bustle of Melbourne behind to recharge in the Sunshine State, with the Main Beach penthouse being their home away from home.

“It was their happy place,” Graham said. “They loved the tranquillity of it, they loved the views and they loved Tedder Avenue [Main Beach’s main street].

“They just found it a very relaxing and quiet place for the two of them to enjoy.”

It’s not difficult to imagine why they loved it so much given the apartment’s backdrop of panoramic views stretching from Stradbroke Island in the north to Coolangatta in the south.

Selling agent Duncan Longmore of Kollosche Prestige Property said it was one of the trophy penthouse’s in the sought-after beachfront suburb, and will go to auction at 10am on February 21.

“It is a residential-only building just off Tedder Avenue, which is very tightly held and has a good calibre of residents,” Mr Longmore said.

Although built in 1995 the building is still considered to be relatively new for Main Beach and the penthouse had only one previous owner before the Smorgons purchased it for $2.375m in 2000.

While unable to comment on what the property may fetch today, Mr Longmore pointed out that he had sold six Main Beach apartments, two in the nearby Pallazzo Versace building, in the past six months for more than $6m each.

“Good holdings in Main Beach are extremely sought after and while we’ve had interest from Melbourne and Sydney, there are a lot of local people looking too,” Mr Longmore said.

“Savvy local buyers know what’s good, they know a premium penthouse and what properties are worth in good buildings, so when they see one come up, they are snapping them up.”

The penthouse has two large luxury living areas, a formal dining zone, well-appointed kitchen and four bedrooms spread across 758sq m, while the rooftop features a full-size pool, spa and sauna.

With interstate travel no longer a priority for Mrs Smorgon, her son said the time was right to offer what remained a rare opportunity in one of the city’s best suburbs.

“It’s going to be one of those places over time where the view won’t be blocked out, so they can’t take that away from you,” he said.

“It’s a first-class location that you can’t replicate.”

Main Beach’s Tedder Avenue dining strip is a short walk south of the Waratah, while a few hundred metres east will place you on a patrolled section of sandy Main Beach, while the upmarket Marina Mirage is also near by.

With instructions to sell under the hammer, Mr Longmore said demand for this type of property was certainly there, in what many still consider an undervalued market.

“People sitting at home are seeing the enormous value and the upside to the Gold Coast. They can’t go overseas and borrowing money is so inexpensive, which is why premium properties such as this are on people’s radars,” he said.

A sale won’t cut the Smorgon family’s ties with the Gold Coast — CoreLogic records show other family members, including Vicki Smorgon and Jack Smorgon, own properties in Surfers Paradise.