A luxury High Country home described as a slice of Mykonos in Victoria is set to smash the local property price record by more than $2m.
Named Rossdale, the almost-33ha party farm at 270 Ross Rd, Howes Creek, is about 32km from the town of Bonnie Doon, and is for sale with a $5m-$5.5m price guide.
The four-bedroom house was built in the 1980s to a design by well-known architect Guilford Bell for the late businessman Sir Andrew Grimwade CBE, a knighted scientist who served 15 years as the National Gallery of Victoria’s honorary president and also as the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research’s honorary president.
RELATED: Merrijig: Man from Snowy River’s Geoff Burrowes sells Delatite River block
Merrijig: Montana-style ranch built by Collingwood CEO has ‘total Yellowstone vibes’
Goughs Bay: Piece of paradise ‘like a 6-star resort’ in Victoria’s High Country
The unique spread at 270 Ross Road, Howes Creek.
The pool and spa deck could almost be a scene from a Greek island – but it’s actually in Victoria’s High Country.
A mid-century flavor in the main house gives way to an epic pool and spa deck looking out towards Lake Eildon.
Sir Grimwade was a chemical engineer, philanthropist, businessman and cattle breeder who was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for services to the arts and the community in 1977.
Rossdale’s current owners Bill and Brenda Russell purchased the property more than two decades ago and have 25 cattle and a pet pony on the land.
The setting is as pretty as a postcard.
The pool deck boasts epic views.
Interiors with a mid-century flavour.
They’ve also wrangled up to 120 guests at the home for events including their daughter’s wedding.
“It’s a very friendly party house, it’s very open and all glassed,” Mr Russell said.
With a tennis court, self-contained two-bedroom apartment, five dams and triple garage, their wider family also enjoy visiting to go canoeing, fishing and even skiing at nearby Mt Buller.
It’s not Palm Springs, but Howes Creek.
Sir Andrew Grimwade was born in 1930 and died in 2023.
The pool and spa at nightfall.
McGrath Mansfield principal Kate McDougall described Rossdale as “very Slim Aarons”, similar to the Palm Springs homes where the US photographer, Aarons, captured candid images of socialites and celebrities from 1948 onwards.
Ms McDougall recalled attending a party at the house when she was aged 23.
“It was jaw-dropping and it just blew my mind,” she said.
“In terms of lake frontage, I’ve never seen anything like that come to market in the last decade – it’s probably the best lake frontage in the High Country.”
A 22-panel solar system, undercover cattle yards and hay shed, five dams, rainwater storage tanks and a garden irrigation system feature at Rossdale.
The kitchen has both lake and garden views.
Moor your boat at an inflatable pontoon on the nearby waterway.
At sunset, the pool deck “looks like you could be in Mykonos or elsewhere in Greece”, she added.
Howes Creek’s existing $3m house price record was set by 165 Ross Rd in January 2023.
Sign up for the Herald Sun Weekly Real Estate Update. Click here to get the latest Victorian property market news delivered direct to your inbox.
MORE: McCrae: Luxury home on target to set new record in Mornington Peninsula suburb
Hawthorn: Victorian terrace home with 4500-bottle wine cellar for sale
Portarlington: AFL icon Kevin Sheedy gets around a lifestyle home reminiscent of TV’s Bonanza