Canberra auctions: Rivett townhouse sells for $427,000

Real estate agents have countless listings over the year, but no doubt there are some standouts.

On Saturday morning, LJ Hooker Gungahlin agent Mathew Kocic auctioned a property where he had “lots of fond memories”. He was selling the Rivett townhouse on behalf of a very important person in his life.

Mr Kocic’s grandmother, Milica Kocic, 96, has been living at the two-storey Rivett townhouse for more than 30 years and is moving into a nursing home.

“She has been living here since 1987, all by herself. She is excited to be moving into a nursing home; she’s a very positive person,” he said.

Milica’s children (Mr Kocic’s father and aunt) John Kocic and Nada Zolotic acted as the vendors for the sale.

“When my father and aunty asked me to market my grandmother’s property I was a little bit nervous and felt the pressure in a sense with the emotional attachment,” said Mr Kocic.

The three-bedroom townhouse at 1 Blancoa Place has a separate title, is north facing and has an easy maintenance courtyard.

Mr Kocic and co-agent Hugo Mendez were able to secure an under-the-hammer sale for the home.

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Two bidders fought it out for the property, with bidding kicking off at $380,000. The initial bid was countered by a bid for $390,000 and from there it moved in increments of $5000.

When the price reached $410,000, the stride shortened for $2500, before bidding halted at $415,000. Auctioneer Dan Cooper then sought instructions and a brief period of negotiations begun.

While this was taking place, one of the bidders decided to place a bid for $416,000 and from there it moved in increments of $1000 until the price reached $421,000. Bidding halted again, and more negotiations took place.

After about five minutes, a bid for $422,000 was placed which was immediately countered by a bid for $427,000 and the property was declared for outright sale, with the hammer falling quickly after.

The home was sold to a first-home buyer who was participating in an auction for the first time.

“The pleasure and joy to see we have sold it under the hammer today is a sign I have done well on [my grandmother’s] behalf because the amount of care she has given me over the years is something I want to give back to her as well,” said Mr Kocic.

Mr Kocic said the auction was good, particularly in the wake of Canberra’s recent auction performance.

“We have had trouble with auctions recently. There are still buyers out there [who] want to buy a property but what’s stopping them right now is finance,” he said.

Rivett’s median house price is $603,000. While there haven’t been enough auctions recently to determine an accurate clearance rate, the wider Weston Creek region has been performing at a higher level than the rest of the  Canberra region.

In February, the overall clearance rate in Canberra was 51 per cent, but in Weston Creek it was 60 per cent.