Singer-songwriter lists Byron Bay waterfront home with $35m hopes

Singer-songwriter and Revolution Tech boss Kurt Rettenmaier and his philanthropist wife, Leah, have listed their Byron Bay waterfront for $35 million.

The Rettenmaiers have done well given they purchased the Belongil Beach block for $3.6 million in 2016 and have since transformed the property into what it is today.

The tranquil three-bedroom, two-bathroom house is set on 1776 square metres on the exclusive peninsula and is the final property on the strip – enveloped by beach, creek and bushland with no road that runs through it.

Whoever buys into the neighbourhood will be rubbing shoulders with the likes of Chemist Warehouse billionaire Damien Gance and his wife, Sasha Robertson.

The buyer may even test the suburb record, which is held by the Gance-Robertson family at $33.5 million after they emerged as the cash buyers in the same neighbourhood this year.

Before arriving in Byron Bay, Kurt grew up on Sydney’s north shore. But after his parents went bankrupt, they arrived in the Northern Rivers beach town.

“Dad was a builder and mum a music teacher,” he said some 20 years ago. “We didn’t know what to do when they went broke so we ended up running a cafe.”

The muso spends his days as a director of a long list of companies, including Revolution Tech, a digital asset investment firm.

His wife, Leah, founded Future Dreamers, which was a safe house for young women in Byron that closed due to COVID.

The couple are directors of Aeyia Society, a charitable organisation that provides compassionate support to young adults facing hardship, helping alleviate distress caused by disadvantage, mental health challenges, resettlement, cross-cultural integration or a lack of family support.

They have already moved to Brooklet in Byron’s hinterland after purchasing a classic country manor from property developer Bartholomew Elias for $14 million in 2021.

They’re proud new owners of The Harvest in nearby Newrybar. The couple plan to restore the soul of the village and bring back the magic it had under the Grier family, the couple told The Sydney Morning Herald.

Their Belongil Beach home is selling through Kim Jones of her eponymous real estate agency, Jones & Co. Jones, who is the daughter of real estate doyenne Di Jones, holds the title of the North Coast high of $33.65 million for the Lanes family’s, of the Oroton fashion empire, The Range in Coopers Shoot.

Woollahra art duo sell

Artists Gillie and Marc Schnatter are downsizing from their Woollahra house with price expectations of $15 million.

The Schnatters have beautifully renovated the four-bedroom, five-bathroom house since they purchased it in 2021 for $10.5 million.

Set on 456 square metres with a more than 15 metre frontage, their blue-ribbon address is not short of amenities. With a home office, a master retreat that has a kitchenette and a swimming pool, the property is a short stroll to Queen Street, Edgecliff station and Double Bay Village.

The award-winning British and Australian collaborative artist couple are best known for their beloved characters Rabbitwoman and Dogman who become best friends and soul mates despite being different. The unlikely animal kingdom companionship is said to represent diversity and acceptance.

Described by The New York Times as the “most successful and prolific creators of public art in New York’s history” they have created work which can be viewed in art galleries and public sites in more than 250 cities, including a bronze sculpture of rhinos called The Last Three that first was on exhibition outdoors in New York to raise awareness about conservation of the species.

It is selling through Ben Collier of The Agency who declined to comment when contacted. The home is scheduled to go under the hammer on August 16.

Family home of almost 40 years

Nearby, the tightly held Bellevue Hill home of anaesthetist Henry Liberman and his wife, retired school teacher Gilla, is on the market with $13 million expectations.

After almost four decades of ownership, the Libermans are downsizing from their well-kept five-bedroom, three-bathroom family home.

The two-storey house is set on 704 square metres and is minutes away from Rose Bay harbour foreshore.

With more than 40 years of experience, Dr Liberman has been a long-serving anaesthetist for a number of hospitals including Royal Hospital for Women, Sydney Children’s Hospital and Prince of Wales Hospital.

Their home is selling through Michael Pallier of Sotheby’s Sydney International Realty.