Fitzroy terrace soars $340,000 above reserve in Melbourne's 'Super Saturday' of auctions

A terrace house in Fitzroy soared $340,000 above reserve on Saturday as property sales in the inner suburbs got a shot in the arm from a surge in auction listings.

The renovated Italianate balcony terrace, at 32 Gore Street, was quoted at $3.2 million to $3.5 million and had a reserve of $3.4 million.

But spirited bidding from two parties saw Nelson Alexander auctioneer Arch Staver sell the historic, 1865-built home under the hammer for $3.74 million.

This weekend’s “Super Saturday” auction market, with more than 1000 homes up for grabs, produced hits and misses.

Real estate agents reported a hefty rate of pass-ins and post-auction negotiated sales. Even so, there were no bargains in the top areas.

A-grade properties (renovated, in good streets, near transport) got at least some of their mojo back as buyers grasped opportunities to purchase at fair value.

Affordably-priced homes in the outer suburbs did well, too. But numerous properties in the middle ring, between 10 kilometres and 20 kilometres from the city, struggled to catch auction bids.

Some 1053 properties were booked to go under the hammer on Saturday. Of the 772 results that were reported by agents, 430 homes sold to produce a 53.1 per cent clearance rate.

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At the weekend, there were solid sales in Clifton Hill, Brunswick, Abbotsford, Carlton North and different pockets of Fitzroy. According to Domain Group data, the clearance rate for houses in the inner city was 52 per cent from 57 auctions, an indicator that buyers were marking down properties they perceived to have faults.

A year ago, the weekend clearance rate was scooting along at 70 per cent, and more than 1100 homes were being put up for sale weekly.

But even though today’s market is more buyer-friendly than it has been in six years, A-grade homes and land sites in inner areas aren’t going cheap.

On Saturday, 50 onlookers turned out to the auction of an arts-and-crafts-style home on an 1157-square-metre block at 31 Carson Street, Kew. The main attraction to the two parties that bid for this unprotected home was its development potential.

Marshall White auctioneer John Bongiorno kicked off the auction with a $3.5 million vendor bid and passed in the property at $3.7 million to man in his 40s. After negotiations, the asset sold for an undisclosed sum that was slightly below $3.85 million, the top end of the quote range.

Bongiorno said most of his agency’s auction sales were “falling within the range” of their quote.

He said two months ago most properties sold at the top end of their range but they were now selling in the middle of the range.

“It is a more balanced market that’s certainly in favour of the buyer,” he said. “There aren’t too many silly results out there.”

He noted that prospective buyers were “marking properties a lot harder than they were 12 months ago.”

Advantage Property Consulting’s Frank Valentic said the auction of a 1980s house in Beaumaris got considerable traction because the property backed onto the Royal Melbourne Golf Course.

Five bidders vied for the home with a pool at 22 Vardon Avenue. The Hocking Stuart listing sold under the hammer for $1.86 million, comfortably ahead of its $1.75 million reserve.

There’s also good money for homes within 10 kilometres of the CBD that are priced below $1 million.

In Abbotsford, Biggin & Scott auctioneer Andrew Crotty fielded bids from three parties who had their sights set on a three-bedroom home with redevelopment potential at 33 Hunter Street. Quoted at $870,000 to $950,000, the property was announced on the market at $930,000 and sold for $970,000.

Mr Crotty said an investor won out, beating two young families trying to buy their first home.

One buyer group that’s more prominent in the inner suburbs is single women buying a first home.

Buyers’ advocate Kristy Caskey, of the Property Bureau, said two buyers from this demographic contested a large one-bedroom unit at 12/26 Selbourne Street, Hawthorn. Several other young women, who’d inspected the unit and were in the auction crowd, didn’t bid when the price shot up.

Caskey said the unit’s $477,000 sale price was a strong result, given that Marshall White One declared the property selling at $430,000.

“The single female buyers are definitely out in the market,” she said. “They realise that it’s a good time to be buying. These are perfect conditions for first-home buyers, with no stamp duty on purchases below $600,000 and little competition from investors because they can’t get their hands on money.”