Melbourne auctions: Port Melbourne terrace fetches $2.22m on bumper auction weekend
The vendors of a Port Melbourne terrace were left shocked at auction on Saturday as seven parties pushed the price to $2.22 million on the first bumper auction weekend in months.
The dramatic sale of the three-bedroom Victorian residence, which soared $670,000 above its $1.55 million reserve, underlined the strong post-lockdown demand from buyers across Melbourne.
It was one of 1116 auctions scheduled in Melbourne on Saturday.
By evening, Domain Group recorded a preliminary clearance rate of 74.8 per cent from 924 reported results, while 98 auctions were withdrawn. Withdrawn auctions are counted as unsold properties when calculating the clearance rate.
In front of a crowd in excess of 110 people, bidding on 378 Bay Street kicked off in earnest, with an initial offer of $1.5 million closely followed by a barrage of bids from no fewer than seven different parties.
As the property eclipsed the $2 million mark, the swarm of punters narrowed to just three keen families and bidding slowed to a steadier, less frenetic cadence.
The winning bidders – a local family – plan to fully renovate the 1880s-built two-storey, three-bedroom home at the “Paris end” of Port Melbourne’s main thoroughfare.
Jon Kett of Chisholm & Gamon Property Port Melbourne said the result was very surprising, and nobody was more shocked than the vendors, who have owned the property for the past 37 years.
“They actually wanted to make the reserve $1.45 million – I had to convince them to bring it up another $100,000,” Mr Kett said.
Elsewhere, an untouched 1920s family home on a massive 2230-square-metre block in Glen Iris also eclipsed expectations, selling for $4,112,500 against a reserve of $3.65 million.
Bidding on the three-bedder at 395 Burke Road started at a crawl, with the auctioneer waiting minutes before registering the first bid.
However, like all good thrillers, the slow burn eventually transitioned to a dramatic climax, with two bidders offering rapid-fire retorts of $5000 and $2500 rises. All told, there were 111 bids.
The glorious piece of 1920s architecture will also be preserved for many years to come, as Mark Pezzin of Jellis Craig explained.
“There’s a significant heritage overlay on the house – it can’t be touched – it has to be restored,” Pezzin said.
In Frankston South, a three-bedroom weatherboard house proved that demand for properties in and around the Mornington Peninsula is still surging.
No. 41 Gowrie Avenue sold for $1.1 million after an intense seven-way bidding war. The impressive result was $165,000 above the $935,000 reserve.
Brooke Wegener of Ray White Frankston said with lockdown restrictions easing, the Mornington Peninsula’s real estate rush to Christmas was looking to be a strong one.
“There’s a lot of stock coming onto the market, but there’s definitely a lot of demand – it’s going to be a busy fourth quarter,” Ms Wegener said.
A single-storey Edwardian house in Prahran sold under the hammer for $1.88 million, above the property’s guided price of $1.6 million to $1.75 million.
The three-bedroom home at 36 Closeburn Avenue, which last sold in 2009 for $840,000, attracted three bidders, and according to Oliver Booth of Kay & Burton South Yarra, the vendors were pleased with the result. Mr Booth declined to reveal the reserve price.
A freestanding Victorian-era three-bedroom home in South Melbourne sold at auction for $2.56 million – roughly $60,000 above the reserve.
The on-street auction at 66 Smith Street was fought for by three enthusiastic bidders, with the winning party new to the area, having moved from Stonnington in Melbourne’s inner southeast. Agents on the deal were Marshall White Port Phillip’s Damian O’Sullivan and Kaine Lanyon.
Across town and less than a kilometre away from the sandy shores of Chelsea beach, a three-bedroom teardown on a generous 975-square-metre block sold for $1.47 million after initially being passed in at auction.
The block at 12 Glenola Road, Chelsea, attracted two serious bidders, with the winning party looking to demolish the weatherboard dwelling and rebuild a new family home.
Not all properties exceeded expectations this weekend, and some passed in and are now available for private sale.
A converted seven-bedroom warehouse with dual commercial and residential zoning in Seddon was passed in after the property could not reach its reserve or price guide of $1.62 million to $1.68 million.
Lily Durnan of Jas Stephens Real Estate Yarraville said 25 Bute Street will now be privately listed on the market for $1.57 million.
An oceanfront two-storey house in St Kilda also passed in on Saturday, despite a good turnout for the in-person auction.
The three-bedder at 2 Marine Parade passed in at $3 million, falling short of its $3.25 million reserve.
The property was last sold in October 2019 for $2,580,000.
Michael Paproth of The Agency Port Phillip believes the house will now be sold via negotiation.
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