Newport icon with oceanfront poise shatters sale records

Sydney’s renowned ‘Copper House’ in Newport has shattered beachfront sale records, selling for $17.5 million – the highest price ever achieved for a beachfront property between Freshwater and Whale Beach.

Although it sits just off the sand at Newport in Sydney’s Northern Beaches, this Myola Rd residence takes its cues from global design practices.

The four-bedroom home was the original vision of investment banker-turned-yoga devotee Eriko Kinoshita and her husband, Clive Mayhew, a former executive at Netscape.

The couple bought the land in 1992 for $750,000 and engaged Peter Stutchbury and his team to create a fusion of Japanese and Western influences that demonstrate Asian minimalism and relaxed Aussie living.

Award-winning Bellevarde Constructions completed the home in 2006. However, despite its almost two decades, the modern beach house with its striking copper roof still stands the test of time along one of Sydney’s most coveted waterfront parcels.

Kinoshita and Mayhew sold the Myola beach pad back in 2016 for $7.9 million, then it exchanged hands again in 2019 for $8.5 million. Today, the home on 1146sq m of level oceanfront land is listed via a private treaty campaign with a guide of $15.5 million to $17 million through Ray White Northern Beaches agents Emma Blake and Sasha de Bilde.

One of only four properties on the short street, the house is a local landmark thanks to its iconic asymmetrical roofline.

Upon entry, a tranquil reflection pond pulls focus along a gallery foyer and the open plan ground floor space combines living and dining as well as the state-of-the-art entertainer’s kitchen. In addition to high-end appliances, the kitchen has a butler’s pantry and Italian Copper bench tops, which pay homage to the unique exterior of the house.

The living zone peels back via sliding doors to connect the house with not only a lush landscaped lawn, but also the prized beachfront deck and ocean.

For those days when the Pacific is too wild to play safely, the 23m hydronic heated and tiled lap pool, plus the separate hot tub, make perfect relaxing alternatives.

On the same level, there is also a private study, a family room for movies, a barbecue side terrace and access to a 1000-bottle wine cellar.

Up on the accommodation level, the main bedroom is home to a sleek bath ensuite, ample walk-in wardrobe space and more sliding doors to showcase the enviable water view.

The remaining bedrooms upstairs feature custom-made built-ins and copper louvres controlling the natural sunlight throughout the day.

Added extras of the Newport beach house include an outdoor shower, iPad-controlled designer lighting, security gates with keyless entry and a double lock up garage with additional storage.

Australia’s housing crisis will not be solved by first-home buyer incentives or tax changes alone, with leading property figures warning governments must tackle supply constraints if affordability is to improve.

Speaking at the Kanebridge Quarterly Property Leadership Summit in Sydney last week, expert project marketing specialist Sam Elbanna, property investor and fund manager Paul Miron and property consultant Karla McNeice said that a lack of housing supply remained the central issue facing the market.

Elbanna, Director of CPM Realty with more than 30 years’ experience in project sales, argued that successive governments had focused too heavily on stimulating demand rather than addressing the barriers preventing new housing from being delivered.

“The misconception is that politicians think the way to solve the housing crisis is to drive demand,” he said.

“The reality is that’s not the way. This is a supply-side problem, and it needs to be solved on the supply side.”

Drawing on his experience in project sales, Elbanna said policies designed to help first-home buyers often had unintended consequences, pointing to previous grants that ultimately flowed through to higher property prices.

Instead, he said developers were facing increasing red tape, approval delays and rising costs, which were discouraging new housing supply.

“In the absence of stock, demand exceeds supply,” he said.

Miron, a Co-Founder and Fund Manager of Msquared Capital, said the housing debate had become overly focused on tax policy while overlooking broader structural issues.

He argued that affordability challenges stemmed from a combination of factors, including planning constraints, supply shortages, migration levels and interest rates.

“No-one can be 100 per cent certain on the real reason for property prices is going up,” he said.

“The reason why property prices are higher is a combination of interest rates, lack of supply, migration, vacancy rates and maybe taxes play a role.”

Miron was critical of recent federal housing policy changes, warning they could reduce the number of new homes being built and further constrain supply that was even highlighted in the budget.

He also highlighted the importance of the property sector to the broader economy, noting that residential real estate and related industries employed more than one million Australians.

McNeice, who advises developers on sales strategy and market intelligence, said understanding buyers had become increasingly important as affordability pressures intensified.

While affordability remained a major consideration, she said today’s buyers were focused on value rather than simply price.

“People are looking for value for money,” she said.

She said buyers were increasingly evaluating factors such as transport connections, walkability, nearby amenities and flexible living spaces that could accommodate changing family needs.

“What infrastructure is going on? Can I walk to the shops? Can I meet people at the local cafe?” she said.

The panel also discussed the mounting pressures facing developers, with Elbanna arguing that many projects become financially unviable from the moment a site is purchased.

“The viability of a development happens at the moment the site is bought,” he said.

He said rising construction costs, higher interest rates and overly optimistic feasibility assumptions had left some developers exposed as market conditions changed.

While acknowledging the growing number of smaller and first-time developers entering the market, Elbanna said property development required expertise across finance, construction, marketing and legal disciplines.

“It is actually a business that requires a level of expertise,” he said.

Looking ahead, the panel agreed opportunities remained in the market despite current challenges.

Miron said property should continue to be viewed as a long-term investment and cautioned against trying to time short-term market movements.

McNeice said success would increasingly depend on identifying projects that genuinely met changing buyer expectations.

Elbanna said affordable housing remained achievable, but developers needed to deliver more than just homes.

“We can provide affordable housing in this country,” he said.

“But we’ve got to wrap that affordable housing with the things that people want.”

As Australia’s housing affordability debate intensifies, the panellists agreed on one point: without a meaningful increase in housing supply, demand-side measures alone are unlikely to solve the nation’s property challenges.

Newport icon with oceanfront poise shatters sale records

A fusion of Japanese minimalism and coastal luxury, this Newport beachfront home by Peter Stutchbury is a modern classic.

Australia’s housing affordability crisis is being fuelled by chronic undersupply, planning delays and rising development costs, as politicians continue to focus on the wrong solutions.