Kingsgate Station has a current carrying capacity of 1000 cattle.

Farming families join forces to buy New England station

Larry Schlesinger|May 10, 2021

Three New England farming families have banded together to acquire one of the region’s top grazing properties, Kingsgate Station, for almost $12 million.

The 11,800-hectare property about 32 kilometres east of Glenn Innes had been owned since 1983 by Hereford cattle breeders Paddy and Jay Quilty. The Quiltys had been trying to sell it since late 2019.

While there were plenty of people wanting to buy it cheaply, selling agent Jim Ritchie of Nutrien Harcourts said it sold close to the vendors’ asking price.

“It’s a very strong market and there are not a lot of properties available to buy on the market,” Mr Ritchie said.

It is also another example of farmers joining forces to expand their local holdings amid very buoyant market conditions, including record cattle prices.

In October last year, a local farming consortium acquired historic Banongill Station, a cropping and grazing estate in Victoria’s Western District, from Laguna Bay Pastoral for about $80 million.

Mr Ritchie said Kingsgate’s origins dated back to the 1840s when it was part of a larger property of about 8000 hectares.

Situated at 1319 Tablelands Road near the small hamlet of Red Range in northern NSW, Kingsgate had carried about 1000 breeding cows plus progeny, but with the potential to double that number through expanding the fertiliser program.

The offering included 5622 hectares of freehold open grazing land and improved paddocks, a 181-hectare perpetual lease and a 6075-hectare Crown State Forest grazing permit. Water is supplied by the Yarrow River, which runs through the property, and creeks.

The Quiltys had bred Hereford cows up until 2013 before focusing on trade steers.

“It’s been bought by Australian interests from the New England region. Three families have banded together and bought it,” Mr Ritchie explained.

Meanwhile, near Orange in the NSW Central Tablelands, Rosyth, a 190-hectare trophy lifestyle and grazing property sold after being passed in at auction, to an expat buyer.

The Borenore district property includes a notable 1926-built homestead and a contemporary modular owner’s residence offering views of Mount Canobolas.

Price expectations were between $5.5 million and $5.8 million, through David Nolan of Webster Nolan Real Estate and Stephen Townsend of Townsend Real Estate.

The vendors were Sharlene Miller Brown and her husband Chris Brown, the former managing director of financial advisory firm Dixon Advisory Australia (now E&P Financial Group).

Before being bought by the Browns, Rosyth was owned for 35 years by Orange barrister Bill Walsh and his wife Nancy. They sold it to the Browns for $2.55 million in 2015. The Browns built the modern owner’s residence.