Australian real estate tycoons buy luxury Tel Aviv duplex for $19 million
Robert and Ruth Magid, prominent supporters of Israel, purchased the 450-square-meter penthouse on Sderot Chen from commentator Yaakov Bardugo.
Australian real estate tycoons Robert and Ruth Magid are the buyers of commentator Yaakov Bardugo's luxury duplex on Sderot Chen in Tel Aviv.
Robert Magid ranked 186th on The Australian Financial Review's 2026 Rich List. The newspaper estimated his fortune at A$907 million, equivalent to about NIS 1.9 billion ($623 million).
The couple built their wealth through real estate investments in Australia, but are also well known for their support of Israel. In 2007, Robert Magid acquired The Australian Jewish News, explaining in interviews that he wanted to change what he viewed as the newspaper's overly critical coverage of Israel. In 2016, he produced a documentary about Gaza that he said was intended to challenge what he considered media bias in reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The Magids are also behind the Magid Institute, established in partnership with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Through their philanthropic foundation, they have donated to institutions including the Technion and the National Library of Israel.
Calcalist reported in May that Bardugo's duplex had been sold for NIS 58 million ($19 million). Land Registry (Tabu) records show that the transaction was signed in April 2026, based on the date a cautionary note was registered in favor of the Magid family. However, the transaction price has not yet been published by the Israel Tax Authority.
Before the sale, Bardugo leased the duplex to the Canadian Embassy for NIS 25,000 ($8,200) per month.
The property occupies the fifth and sixth floors of the Elkon Building at 38 Sderot Chen. Bardugo acquired the building in 2009 together with attorney Ron Baur for NIS 45 million ($14.8 million).
Following the acquisition, the building underwent a major redevelopment that included renovation, seismic reinforcement, the addition of underground parking levels and three new floors. Apartments on the first four floors were purchased by advertising executive Avner Barel, members of the Oz (Carasso) family, advertising executive Rami Shalmor and his wife Irena, and the Hefetz family.
Bardugo retained the top two floors, combining them into a luxury duplex spanning approximately 450 square meters (4,840 square feet), with around 200 square meters (2,150 square feet) of terraces, as well as roughly 10 parking spaces and multiple storage rooms in the underground garage.
