First-home buyer outguns investor, paying $970,000 for Moonee Ponds house

It is a sign of the times when three first-home buyers are fighting for a house with a price tag close to $1 million.

On Saturday, one first-home buyer couple with determination trumped an investor to buy a two-bedroom Victorian house at 20 Huntly Road, Moonee Ponds, by stretching themselves $130,000 over reserve.

On the other side of the city, several first-home buyers — some backed by their parents — also battled it out for a Caulfield North house that eventually sold for $1,479,000.

The properties were among 1120 auctions scheduled on Saturday. By evening, Domain Group had collected 854 results to put the clearance rate at 79.7 per cent. The group’s chief economist Andrew Wilson said the figure was yet another boom-time result for the hot Melbourne market, despite near-record numbers of May auctions.

In Moonee Ponds, a father bidding on behalf of his son did not hesitate to make the first bid of $820,000, and the property was soon declared on the market two bids later.

The freestanding house — near Maribyrnong River and parklands — eventually sold to a first-home buyer couple renting in Middle Park.

Nelson Alexander auctioneer Ryan Currie said the house “needed work”, and the 271-square metre block was large, for a single-fronted house in the area.

Though it seemed rare for a first-home buyer to trump an investor, Mr Currie said the latter would not pay as much because the rental return was not high enough.

In comparison, he said first-home buyers were prepared to stretch themselves for the extra land and the potential to extend.

As a couple — rather than singles buying on their own — spending close to $1 million was almost the expectation now, Mr Currie said.

“They saw our market as quite good value, as much as they were stretched,” he said. “On the day, they still felt that they weren’t going to get anything like that in Middle Park.”

In Caulfield North, Hocking Stuart’s Marshall Rushford said it was very much a “family affair” at the auction of a two-bedroom Victorian at 21 Malvern Grove.

Mr Rushford said many mums and dads stood by their children, giving them emotional — and in some cases — financial support.

Auctioneer Lauchlan Waterfield announced the property on the market at $1.25 million, and seven bidders, including first-home buyers, pushed the price to $1,479,000.

Mr Rushford said the eventual buyer was a dad bidding on behalf of his daughter and son-in-law, but it was unclear whether they were first-home buyers.

Some parents might help their children financially so they could keep them in the area, he added.

A mum representing her daughter and son-in-law also triumphed in Armadale, winning the keys to a two-bedroom Victorian at 18 Rose Street.

The unrenovated house, on just under 200-square metres, sold for $1,705,000 under competition from four would-be buyers.

Marshall White auctioneer Oliver Bruce declared the house on the market at $1,655,000, and sold it to overseas investors who plan to one day return to Melbourne and live in it.

Though the buyers were not first-timers, Mr Bruce said the agency occasionally sold homes for “north of $2 million” to first-home buyers.