Your Domain: Melbourne family home of 43 years sells $200k above reserve

For 43 years, Cinzia has called this four-bedroom home in Bulleen, in Melbourne’s north-eastern suburbs, home.

But after the death of her husband recently, the house had become too large and she decided it might be time to realise her dream of a seachange.

Italian Christmases, “minimum 25 people for lunch”, were a particular highlight. “The house was always full of people,” she said.

“This area was always like a little village; all the children were playing in the streets. There’s always been music in the streets, sports, backyard cricket – and broken windows,” she added, with a laugh.

In the weeks leading up to the auction, there was strong buyer interest, with more than 100 people inspecting the property.

The auction got off to a slow start, with the opening bid for $1.1 million taking some time to arrive.

But once the first bid of $1.1 million arrived, others soon followed and soon enough, Cinzia was toasting success.

The result? The home sold for $1.4 million, $200,000 over its reserve, to a young couple.

“It just goes to show the market is on the improve,” the seller’s vendor advocate said.

Auction results from that weekend also show that August has been a strong month for the market. Melbourne’s auction clearance rate was 70 per cent in August, the highest point since September 2017. That’s largely thanks to lower numbers of properties going up for sale, as buyers compete for the limited opportunities.

Cinzia told the new owners: “I’m sure you’re going to love it here”, as their new chapter, and a new one for her, began.

“I am absolutely over the moon,” she said of her result.

Your Domain airs at 10am on Saturdays on Nine. Catch up on all episodes on 9Now