Lions great’s former home sells for millions in fierce inner-city auction

A Coorparoo home once owned by former Lions captain Michael Voss has sold over reserve after a local family splashed $5.023 million during one of Brisbane’s fiercest auctions since the federal budget poured fresh uncertainty on an already cooling market.

Six bidders battled it out for the sprawling five-bedroom estate at 62 Marriott Street, with dozens of “spirited” blows traded over 50 minutes until the hammer fell.

The eventual winners weren’t in the crowd. Too nervous to watch, they sat in a car around the corner while their buyer’s agent fought for the keys.

The result offered an early glimpse into what experts say is an emerging trend across Brisbane, with prestige family homes proving more resilient than the broader market slowdown.

And few family homes are more market-proof than the Coorparoo estate.

Spanning 606 square metres of single-level living on a landscaped 1303-square-metre block, the home traces its history back to the 1940s, when it was built by a local doctor who later ran his surgery from the property.

In 2009, former Lions captain and Brownlow medallist Michael Voss purchased the home for $2.5 million, with the estate becoming his family residence during much of his coaching tenure. He sold it to the current owners in 2017 for $2.575 million.

Joseph Leong, who marketed the home with James Curtain of Place Woolloongabba, said the owners had already extensively renovated the property before calling in an “army of tradespeople” to perfect it for sale.

“They went above and beyond. They even repainted things buyers wouldn’t even see - like the inside of a wardrobe,” he said.

But the timing proved nerve wracking. The couple had already purchased a new home closer to their child’s school and secured bridging finance to prepare the Coorparoo property for sale when the federal budget dropped.

“They were really worried about the effects of the budget and that it wouldn’t sell under the hammer. But it sold above their expectations,” he said.

“To be fair it’s such a unique home and these rarely come up for sale. It’s probably independent to the macro elements of the market right now because these are the kind of homes people get emotional about.”

Also not trusting their nerves, the purchasers enlisted buyer’s agent Jamie Charman to bid on their behalf - a poetic twist given the former Lions player once played under Voss.

Against four other families, Charman opened bidding at around $4 million, sparking a flurry of $100,000 blows until the home was called on the market at $4.8 million.

Charman said the intensity of the contest surpr