Opportunity knocks

Here for your property journey

News and market insights

Property experts since 1902

Browse

Terms

We bring market insights, news and lifestyle updates direct to your inbox.

Sign up to our newsletters >

See the properties 
defining luxury in the 
Luxury Homes magazine

SIGN UP

It is rare for one agent to find himself at the heart of two genuinely significant property stories in the same week.

But that is precisely where Ray White Ascot Principal Damon Warat has landed, having negotiated the sale of 66 Toorak Road, Hamilton for $8.2 million for its owners of 27 years and simultaneously guiding 95 Anthony Street, Ascot across the line in just eight days.

The Ascot sale, for an undisclosed sum, came hot on the heels of a Planning and Environment Court victory that resolved a long-running dispute over the Clark family estate.

"These are the kinds of sales that remind you why this market is so extraordinary. Both properties carry real weight, one emotionally, one legally, and the fact that both found buyers so quickly says everything about the depth of demand we're seeing in Hamilton and Ascot right now,” Mr Damon Warat said.

For the sellers of 66 Toorak Road, handing over the keys was the end of a 27-year chapter, nearly three decades of family life in one of Hamilton's most sought-after streets, high on the hilltop.

It fell to Mr Warat to take that story to market with the care and precision it deserved. Toorak Road is a street that rarely gives up its homes willingly. The four bedroom home floats above Brisbane's skyline atop a landmark holding on Hamilton Hill, 'Thornborough' stands as a commanding residence.

Built in 2006 as a faithful replica, the post-war home claims an extraordinary combined 64m frontage across a 972sqm parcel spanning two lots.

Mr Warat's ability to earn the trust of long-term owners and to convert that trust into a clean, confident transaction was on full display here.

Meanwhile the Anthony Street campaign, marketed by Damon Warat with young gun agent Nick Roche, was a different beast entirely.

The property, known as 'Lorne' and home to the Clark family for more than 30 years, had become the subject of a high-profile legal action late last year.

Owner Cleighton Clark, founder and managing director of Habitat Development Group, a Sunshine Coast-based apartment builder regularly ranked in the nation's top 10 by the Housing Industry Association, had taken Brisbane City Council to the Planning and Environment Court in December after the council refused his application to demolish the 86-year-old mansion.

Judge Nicole Kefford ruled in Mr Clark's favour in December 2025, setting aside the council's refusal and approving the demolition application subject to conditions.

The court accepted expert evidence from a heritage architect that major renovations in 1993 had substantially altered the street-facing elevation of the home, originally designed by Roy Ashley Shaw in 1936 in the "interwar stripped classical" style, in a way that was detrimental to its traditional building character.

"The home is not a traditional building character and never was, and this was our expert's opinion and her honour confirmed that in her decision,” said Cleighton Clark at the time.

With the legal clouds cleared, Mr Warat took the property to market.

It sold in eight days.

"When a property has a complicated history, buyers need confidence, in the asset, in the process and in the agent. We were able to give them that clarity, and the market responded immediately," Mr Warat said.

Owner Cleighton Clark said Damon Warat and Nick Roche “exceeded all expectations”.

“Damon and his team were exceptional throughout the entire campaign. They were highly professional, incredibly accessible and operated with genuine integrity which I found refreshing. They also brought high energy and momentum to the process that made a real difference, ensuring the property was always presented at its best and that no opportunity was missed.

“It's very rare to come across someone of Damon’s calibre in the real estate industry. I would have no hesitation in recommending Damon, Nick and their team,” Mr Clark said.

Two streets, two very different stories.

For Damon Warat and Ray White Ascot, it was simply another week doing what they do best, navigating the nuances of Brisbane's prestige market with the experience and relationships that only come from years at the top of it.

Back to top