Palatial Mornington Peninsula estate on the market

A colourful Mornington Peninsula estate belonging to the billionaire Smorgon family has come to market with price expectations of between $12.8 million and $13.8 million.

Tallagandra is a 35ha working farm in Flinders that has been held by a company linked to Rodney Smorgon and his wife, Anne, for almost two decades.

The Smorgons’ Australian dynasty dates back to the 1920s when siblings Eric, Moses, and Abram Smorgon migrated down under from Ukraine. In Melbourne, the brotherly trio opened a kosher butcher shop on Lygon St, but went on to grow the family empire to include steel manufacturing and mining.

A descendant of Moses, Rodney purchased Tallagandra and its original mid-century house in 2008 for $3.25 million. Since then, the couple have created a glamorous regional retreat in the semi-rural township on the popular peninsula about 90 90-minute drive from Melbourne.

Forbes Global Properties’ Michel Gibson and Robert Fletcher are handling the listing.

Today, the estate at 84 Meakins Rd is home to a palatial main residence, cattle and an alfresco gallery of more than 30 sculptures by local and international artists such as Kiwi artist Phil Price, Chinese creative Goa Xiaowu and Aussie Christabel Wigley.

Blending rolling bucolic scenery with eye-catching contemporary art, Tallagandra is a unique parcel straddling two distinct worlds.

The modernised five-bedroom house, recreated by SJB Architects, is surrounded by landscaping that expertly complements the carefully curated art pieces that are also illuminated by night.

Walls of windows capture the picturesque backdrop and handpicked artworks while a series of living spaces, including a formal lounge room, a games room with a grand billiard table, and a sunken family room, dish up ample options for the avid entertainer. The modern kitchen has a vast central island bench, a butler’s pantry with a cool room, and a full suite of Miele appliances.

There is also a dedicated kids’ playroom and a large home office with a fireplace.

From the primary bedroom suite, the bath and shower overlook a peaceful fishpond and sculpture garden, but there are blackout blinds for privacy. There are also dual walk-in wardrobes, as well as a dressing room with island storage and skylights. An additional accommodation wing houses four more bedrooms and two bathrooms.

For outdoor entertaining, the expansive property has multiple decks that capitalise on the views from every angle, plus a pizza oven and barbecue area, a pool and a flood-lit tennis court.

Beyond the art and architecture, Tallagandra has cattle, a 900-tree olive grove, a chicken coop, 110,000 litres of filtered water storage, three dams, a spring-fed stream, a worm farm system, and more than 600 native trees planted to attract local fauna. Outhouses include a large four-car garage and a hangar-style work shed.

Surrounded by the Peninsula’s renowned vineyards and cellar doors, such as Nazaaray Estate Winery, as well as thermal springs, golf courses and popular restaurants, Tallagandra is approximately 7kms from Flinders and 95kms from Melbourne’s CBD and 120kms from the airport.

The Mornington Peninsula property at 84 Meakins Rd, Flinders is being sold via expressions of interest campaign through Michel Gibson of Forbes Global Properties.

A Sydney couple has paid $15.5 million for the Grand Penthouse at Marquee’s $285 million La Belle Residences beachfront development which is nearing completion at Palm Beach, eclipsing the record for an off-the-plan apartment sale on the southern Gold Coast.

The sprawling single level 640 sqm beachfront residence, with sweeping views of the Gold Coast north and south, beats the previous record of $14.6 million, set at the Sur Kirra Beach penthouse in Coolangatta in December 2025, and comes in 70 per cent above Palm Beach’s apartment suburb record of $9.1 million.

The buyer plans to make it their permanent home as they relocate to the Gold Coast. The result marks a turning point for Palm Beach. The suburb was once a quiet stretch of beach between Burleigh Heads and Currumbin and now ranks among the country’s most sought-after coastal addresses.

The sale also shows how the top of the market is changing, according to Jacques Winterburn of Marquee, one of Southeast Queensland’s most active private developers.

“For a long time the southern Gold Coast was where people came for holidays. Wealthy interstate buyers are no longer just buying holiday homes here, they are relocating,” Mr Winterburn said.

“These are people who live on Sydney Harbour. They had already decided to relocate to the Gold Coast, and what took the time was finding the right property in the right location. They chose the northern end of Palm Beach. The comparison has changed. They’re weighing Point Piper and Bondi against the premium end of Palm Beach. Absolute beachfront, genuinely quiet, Tallebudgera Inlet a short walk away and Burleigh minutes up the road without the noise and busyness that comes with living there. On space, beach access and lifestyle, this wins.”

The Grand Penthouse is built on the scale of a large house. It has 510 sqm of internal living space and a 130 sqm balcony, five bedrooms each with its own ensuite, a private cinema, an executive office, a wine display and multiple living areas. The hallways are two metres wide, which is almost unheard of in an apartment design.

The building sits on over 40 metres of absolute beach frontage. The penthouse itself runs 34 metres along the beachfront, one of the widest new apartments on the Gold Coast, and occupies a single level, so there are no stairs. Its 270-degree views run uninterrupted from Burleigh Headland and the Surfers Paradise skyline south to Currumbin and Snapper Rocks.

The couple moved quickly, committing within about a month after inspecting completed Marquee buildings across the Gold Coast and bringing friends along for a second opinion.

“They did their homework, but once they had seen the finished buildings the decision came easily,” sales and marketing spokesman Azura Griffen said. “At this price level, buyers wanted to walk through projects we had completed years ago, not look at renders. Track record and trust in delivery are the whole conversation.”

What took longer was the residence itself. Over the following months the couple worked with Marquee to customise the penthouse, reworking the layout so that every key living space looks out over the ocean.

“They knew exactly what they wanted. The ocean had to be in every room, the kitchen, the dining room, the master bedroom, the office,” Ms Griffen said. “Because Marquee is both the developer and the builder, we could work through those changes with them.”

Ms Griffen said the building being close to completion has given buyers confidence.

“Buying off the plan at this level is about trust. Buyers can now walk the site, see the finishes and stand on the balconies. Once they’ve done that, the decision usually makes itself.”

La Belle Palm Beach is due for completion by Christmas 2026. Marquee has already secured its next absolute beachfront site, in the same pocket at the northern end of Palm Beach, with a launch planned for early next year.

“We have a number of buyers who love the northern end of Palm Beach for the same reasons, a quiet serene beach, close to thetranquil waters of Tallebudgera, yet minutes from the restaurants of Burleigh Heads,” Ms Griffen said. “That feedback is why we secured our next site in the same pocket.”

“It will be more boutique, with larger apartments of 190 to 300 sqm and the same world-class amenity. It will be our best beachfront building yet.”

“We are already taking enquiry and pre-registrations, much of it from buyers who missed out at La Belle and want to make sure they do not miss the next one.”

Palatial Mornington Peninsula estate on the market

A 35ha Mornington Peninsula estate has hit the market for up to $13.8 million, offering a rare blend of luxury living, contemporary art and working farmland in Flinders.