F45 founder Adam Gilchrist and major shareholder Mark Wahlberg on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange for the company’s IPO in July 2021.

F45 founder Adam Gilchrist and major shareholder Mark Wahlberg on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange for the company’s IPO in July 2021.Credit:Getty

In late 2017 Gilchrist’s wife Eli Gilchrist (nee Havas) bought a Californian bungalow at Freshwater overlooking the beach for $5.4 million,sight unseen,paying $1.3 million over the reserve.

But it was the contemporary three-level house next door that reset local house price records when Gilchrist purchased it in 2019 for $14 million amidplans to knock it down to make way for a swimming pool to go with his bungalow next door.

No DA to demolish the house was ever lodged with Northern Beaches Council,and the DA to demolish the Californian bungalow next door to make way for a Walter Barda Design house at a cost of $2.57 million was later withdrawn.

Adam Gilchrist purchased the Californian bungalow (left) in 2017 and the three-level residence (right) for $14 million in 2019.

Adam Gilchrist purchased the Californian bungalow (left) in 2017 and the three-level residence (right) for $14 million in 2019.Credit:James Brickwood

The Californian bungalow is not expected to be listed,but the $14 million record-setting residence has been quietly offered to buyers for more than a year. It carries a Macquarie Bank mortgage.

On Monday,just days after the F45 share price hit a low of $US1.93,Clarke&Humel’s Michael Clarke launched a sales campaign for the Freshwater residence ahead of an August 27 auction.

Clarke offered “no comment” to enquiries,but the marketing now refers to Gilchrist’s “demolition job” as a “cutting-edge architectural design” on “an unsurpassed beachfront setting”.

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Domain Data shows Freshwater’s median house price soared in the market boom to be up 27.6 per cent in the year to June at a median of $3.7 million.

The Freshwater house was purchased for $14 million in 2019 and returns to the market ahead of an August 27 auction.

The Freshwater house was purchased for $14 million in 2019 and returns to the market ahead of an August 27 auction.Credit:Domain

As Gilchrist’s property portfolio grew over recent years,so too did the F45 business. At the time the company floated on the US stock exchange in July last year it claimed 1555 outlets worldwide and star backing from celebrity co-investor and board member Mark Wahlberg. Within a month of floating,its share price peaked at $US17.28.

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But its share price has slowly fallen since then,tumbling to a low of $US1.93last Wednesday after the company revealed it had slashed its expansion plans to prioritise profitability and cashflow generation in light of current market conditions.

The share price is down 92 per cent from its peak a year ago.

While Gilchrist has stepped down as chief executive,he remains on the board and will receive more than $US7 million in cash,while another 110 employees are expected to lose their jobs.

Gilchrist’s high-end property interestsfirst made headlines in 2019 when he set a then-record house price in Byron Bay,paying $18.85 million for the Wategos Beach holiday home of contemporary art collector Danny Goldberg.

The five-bedroom house is set on 386 square metres overlooking Freshwater Beach.

The five-bedroom house is set on 386 square metres overlooking Freshwater Beach.Credit:

Known as Wategos House,the colonial-style property was exchanged on a quick three-day settlement with no mortgage on title.

Gilchrist’s North Coast interests include a slew of Lennox Heads beachfront properties totalling more than $16 million that are held in the name of Gilchrist family members and company names,including a block of four beachfront apartments for a total of $8.17 million.

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