Private Properties: 30 years of luxury holiday homes

David and wife Jody’s down-to-earth attitude, along with their hands-on approach to the day-to-day running of this full-service accommodation hub focused on experiential stays, likely accounts for its enduring success.

Private Properties began as a Cottesloe-based property management company 30 years ago. The Moyes’ association with Private Properties commenced in 2005, providing cleaning and maintenance services, but by 2013 they were the proud new owners of the business, which had around 60 homes on the books.

In the 90s, Private Properties’ accommodation offerings were booked in-person, at the office, from a printed brochure. Fast forward thirty years, and the company has flourished into a go-to for high-end, unique and picturesque homestays in the Margaret River Region and beyond, now headquartered in Dunsborough but booked mainly online.

“It comes down to the experience for our guests,” David says. “Our staff have a wealth of local knowledge that’s extremely valuable.”

Private Properties’ 30-person team operates as a kind of regional expert concierge; able to plan and curate welcome amenities like fresh local fruit, veg and produce, devise clever and engaging itineraries, or bring services to the (often grand) front door. Think beachfront chefs, yoga on your deck, or exclusive in-home wine tastings.

All the fruit aside, the properties are the main event. Spoilt for choice, it can be a daunting exercise narrowing down the right home for your escape, but the website is conveniently split into a variety of categories to help you find your dream home-away-from-home. You can search for homes with a pool, those by the beach, family-friendly abodes, or houses with a charming point of difference.

New to stable is the Secret Garden, a beautifully hidden green thumb’s dream set in the middle of the Wilyabrup peppermint forest. Or there’s the opulent Jahangir in Eagle Bay, which sits commandingly on the Eagle Bay hillside and features a resort-style infinity pool, spa and sauna. If it’s nature’s views you crave, maybe you’d prefer Ithaca, which masterfully frames a vast Yallingup sunset.

Whatever you have on your must-have wish list – whether it’s pet-friendly with an outdoor shower or a stone fireplace walking distance from the beach – you’ll find it on the Private Properties’ register. There are original artworks, electric vehicle charge points, conservatories and libraries and stunning private nature trails. David can’t pick a favourite, although he’s an architecture buff and appreciates thoughtfully crafted design over grandeur.

What makes a home worthy of the Private Properties’ collection? David says it all comes down to the details: “places that are well designed, well-appointed and possess some individual character will make the grade.”

And it goes both ways. Owners are often opening the doors of the homes they stay in for their own family holidays, so it’s paramount to balance guest happiness with owners feeling secure that their places of sanctuary are in good hands.

Guests range from Perth families looking for a break, to first-time South West travellers hailing from Asia and beyond. Punters seeking a spot to base themselves for events such as the Margaret River Pro, Cabin Fever, CinefestOZ, and the increasingly popular Margaret River Region Open Studios often find exactly what they’re looking for with Private Properties.

Logistically, the business is a beast of time management, information and expecting the unexpected. David and Jody have worked hard to build a brand and team that can handle the practical undertaking of managing so many people’s homes and holidays with the utmost of care.

“There’s been a societal shift since Covid, and many people are now looking for places to work from while they soak up the scenery,” David says. “Keeping up with the post-pandemic changes is just one of the many leaps the holiday home industry has taken in the past 30 years. Since the 90s, we’ve seen our company and many like us have to adjust to online bookings, perform a balancing act with the short-stay rental boom that came with the likes of Airbnb, and navigate through things like natural disasters and global pandemics.”

Thirty years and plenty of events later, and Private Properties is still going strong. In fact, it has built a solid reputation as the Margaret River Region’s luxury short-stay accommodation provider. Despite the extravagant nature of many of the homes on offer, though, David says he finds Private Properties’ guests to be the low-profile kind, true to the brand’s moniker, most wanting a secluded way to reconnect with friends and family in a beautiful setting.

Private Properties. It’s in the name, I guess.