Forest Lodge terrace sells to first-home buyers for $1.15 million

An increase in wages over the years and a cooling real estate market has given a young Forest Lodge couple a foot in the door, after they snapped up a laneway terrace tucked away in the inner west.

A crowd of more than 30 filled the narrow strip outside 3 Bakers Lane in Forest Lodge to watch the 124-square-metre freestanding home go under the hammer.

The two-bedroom property, which last traded for $680,00 in 2011, was one of 460 scheduled auctions in Sydney on Saturday. By evening, Domain Group had recorded a clearance rate of 69.7 per cent from 290 reported results. 

A woman at the back of the crowd kicked off the proceedings with a $950,000 bid. A young family countered with $960,000 and bidding continued in $10,000 jumps, surpassing the million dollar mark within minutes.

The bidding narrowed down to $5000 increments once it hit $1.08 million, as a tense race to the finish line ensued.

The two groups vying for the keys fought it out for another 10 bids until the hammer fell at $1.15 million, $50,000 above the reserve.

The final bid came from a young Forest Lodge couple.

Although still shaking with excitement and nerves, the first-home owners, Harry and Erin, were visibly relieved after the auction.

The couple said they were very happy after eyeing the property for a few weeks.

The architect and urban planner are planning to move in and make the most of the approved development application, which allows them to widen the property. 

The couple had been looking to buy for a year and a half but only felt it was the right time to enter the market in the last few months.

They said it was good timing to purchase their first property because they had a bigger budget to play with and the market was cooling down.

Equally emotional were sellers Kingsley and Ely Annor Lartey who had planned to keep the property for much longer.

“We’re relieved because it’s been a long process. We’ve spent six months getting ready to sell and renovating the house,” Mr Annor Lartey said.

“It’s been a three year process, actually. We wanted to rebuild the house completely. But once the DA was approved we fell pregnant and we’ve since outgrown the place,” Mrs Annor Lartey said.

“I’m excited and sad. We loved this house. It’s been our home for the last few years. We’re pleased with the result,” she said.

The 124-square-metre house sold above the suburb’s median house price of $1,135,000, a contrast to the 2 per cent decline seen in house prices in the last year for the inner west.

BresicWhitney auctioneer Clarence White said six registrations and two active bidders was a good turnout for the current market. 

“It’s been a mixed bag. Some properties see multiple buyers fight it out and others will have one or two. Nothing is unusual anymore in the current climate,” Mr White said.

“The only unusual thing is having 10 people vying for one property on auction day,” he said.

Indeed the auction market across Sydney saw a range of sales on Saturday. In Concord, a neat bungalow sitting on a large 746-square-metre block passed in at $2.2 million. While there  was a large crowd of about 50 people, there were only two registered bidders, Dib Chidiac of Raine&Horne said. 

Meanwhile, a three-bedroom semi-detached cottage in Randwick sold for $1,971,000, which was $50,000 above the reserve price. Mitchell Dansey of Di Jones said a local family bought the property as an investment after 15 minutes of bidding between three bidders.

In Alexandria, a two-bedroom terrace sold for $1,425,000 million, easily surpassing its reserve price of $1.35 million. There were seven registered bidders, five of whom were active. It sold to a young, single man from Melbourne who was relocating to Sydney. It sold through Brad Gillespie of The Agency. Mr Gillespie said at the moment it was a “fair market for purchasers and sellers” and the trend would continue throughout the year.

This article has been updated since publication