A 1960s family home sells for $2.125 million, as Brisbane auction market holds steady

The Brisbane auction market remained steady this week, with 94 scheduled auctions and a reported clearance rate of 32 per cent.

A mid-60s home on just over a hectare of land in Kenmore was the site of an intense auction. The property was a deceased estate that served as the vendor’s family home for more than 55 years.

About 90 people piled into its spacious front yard to watch 12 registered bidders battle it out. Bidding opened at $900,000 and quickly make its way to $1.7 million in a series of fierce bids between the eight active parties.

After a few stalls, the competition narrowed down to three main bidders who continued to compete for the property. Finally, the property was sold for $2.2 million.

Agent David Hills, of Harcourts Results Calamvale, said the auction proved the perfect strategy for the property.

“We had people turning up on the day that hadn’t even seen the house. It was certainly an impressive crowd,” he said.

“We knew from the outset that it was either going to be a developer or an owner-occupier. Obviously, auctioning was the main way to go in terms of having multiple parties at play, to ensure we got the true market price.”

Hills said the long family involvement in the property made it a very special auction.

“It was certainly an emotional time for the parties at play from the family. Everyone had their own opinion of what they wanted to do with it,” he said.

“It had been a family home where they all got raised in, so there was quite a bit of emotional attachment to it. For them, the closure was something that had been some time coming. They were super happy with the result.”

The buyers, a couple, intend to live in the property with potential later plans to develop the block.

Meanwhile, a stately six-bedroom, three-bathroom home on 2545 square metres in The Gap sold at auction for $2.125 million in front of about 80 people. Seven registered bidders duelled for the property in an auction that lasted 10 minutes.

The opening bid was $1.8 million, at which point the auction stalled. After seeking instructions from the seller, the auctioneer came back to the floor to ask for more bids. At that point, the bidding became a contest between two main parties. After 10 more bids the property was sold.

Agent Michael Kleimeyer, of Ray White Paddington, said the auction was fierce.

“It was quite quick and aggressive,” he said. “When each of them bid, the other person bid within three seconds, so it went up quite quickly.”

Kleimeyer said the house was a unique find in the area.

“It’s at the top of a hill, and the 2500 square metres are actually flat which is quite rare for The Gap,” he said.

“The home is the original 1960s farmhouse for Watercress Farm, and it was fully renovated to a high standard in 2013. It’s quite a large home, and there’s two kitchens plus an outdoor kitchen.”

The property sold to a young couple, which Kleimeyer said he and his team had been hoping for.

“We secretly were expecting that,” he said. “That was our dream that it would happen, and it did.”

The owner was thrilled with the result. She originally purchased the house in 2011, and was selling to move closer to her children’s high school.

On the other side of the city, a gorgeous home set on two lots in Mount Gravatt East was sold under the hammer. About 60 people watched for 35 minutes as 12 registered bidders attempted to lay claim to the property.

Bidding started at $650,000, which was immediately followed by a vendor’s bid of $700,000. After further bids, the price rose to $890,000. That bid was referred to the vendor, then after a bit more back and forth the property was ultimately sold for $906,000.

Agent Grant Boman, of Ray White Mount Gravatt, said the house presented several options for potential buyers.

“In the short to medium term it’s a really rentable home. It’s pretty rare for these larger blocks, because often they’ll have a little shack on them, that isn’t worth much,” he said.

“The people that were largely bidding on it were wanting it for the land, and the ability to subdivide and use the two lots that were there.

“The people who ultimately ended up buying it will retain a block [and] sell a block. They’ll just build one house to have a family home in the street. They’ve done it because they wanted to be in Mansfield [school] catchment.”

Boman said the result showed that despite a faltering market, good property would always do well.

“Even in the market at the moment, good-quality real estate is still going to be well patronised by buyers,” he said. “Good-quality property will always get results no matter the market conditions.”