Malcolm turnbull: how property made the new prime minister

Malcolm Turnbull has been sworn in as Prime Minister of Australia in a dramatic coup that ousted former PM Tony Abbott.

As well as Prime Minister, though, Turnbull is also known for his prime real estate. In fact, you could argue that property made him the man he is today.

Property has never been far from the political agenda Down Under, particularly in recent years, as concerns rise surrounding the impact of foreign investment upon property prices for local buyers. Indeed, Tony Abbott pledged that should he be re-elected this autumn, he would increase the scrunity placed upon foreign investment in the country.

Now, though, Turnbull has ousted Abbott and been sworn in as the new top dog. The leader boasts many  unusual claims to fame, from a link to Angela Lansbury (a distant relative) and Bagpuss (Oliver Postgate is his cousin) to a visit to Hugh Hefner's Playboy mansion in the 1970s.

Turnbull is also much richer than Abbott, with a reputation for being a self-made millionaire - something that actually stems from his property portfolio, which puts the "prime" in his new job title.

Indeed, Sydney's housing boom saw Turnbull's first home - a $17,000 cottage in Newtown - quadruple in value in just three years, reports Domain.com.au, selling for $68,000 in 1991. He then bought a terrace on Great Buckingham Street for $40,000, which also doubled in value when sold three years later in 1982 for $85,000. As his career blossomed and he married Lucy Turnbull, he invested in a manion on Beresford Road, Bellevue Hill, for $280,000. That sold for an even higher figure of $1.4 million in 1989.

Inheriting several family properties too, his real estate portfolio swiftly cancelled out any mistakes made -  a failed retail investment in 1988 saw a complex bought and later sold at a $2 million loss.

Alongside his current residence - a waterfront Wunulla Road mansion for $5,425,000 (purchased in 1994) - Turnbull's accession to the PM role now gives him the right to live in Kirribilli House (pictured above). Will it be ostentatious enough for this most prime of Prime Ministers?

Photo: Wikimedia Commons