'It was last minute': Late bidders swoop on Perth 2018 New Level Telethon home

A High Wycombe couple are the proud owners of the Perth 2018 New Level Telethon home at The Hales Estate in Forrestfield, which they snapped up for $730,000 under the hammer this morning.

It was lucky 13 for Kim and Anna, listed as number 13 of the registered bidders, who made their offer late in the piece after furious bidding between two others.

Anna said she visited the home last weekend and told her husband that she was going to win it.

“It was last minute — and it’s mine — and you are all invited,” she said to the large crowd.

“I will have everybody back for a barbecue.”

Her husband, Kim, said the kitchen attracted him to the residence, and for his wife it was the bathroom.

The two-storey New Level Homes house was designed to make the most of indoor-outdoor living The main living areas connect to a large al fresco area to capitalise on the beautiful natural surroundings of The Hales estate in Perth’s foothills, about 15 kilometres east of the CBD.

Bidding opened at $650,000.

Selling agent REMAX WA managing director and auctioneer Geoff Baldwin told the crowd there was a bargain to be had because the home’s replacement cost was between $800,000-$900,000.

Baldwin said the land was valued at $320,000, the home valued about $330,000 and the finishes cost a couple of hundred thousand dollars.

In the weeks leading to the auction, interest, he said, had been strong. Many indicated they were keen to bid around the reserve price.

The contemporary four-bedroom, two-bathroom home has an eye-catching front elevation incorporating stone and Scyon cladding, to bring coastal and country design elements together.

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The home was built by New Level Homes – part of the InVogue family, owned by JWH Group.

InVogue general manager Jim Ilias said his company was proud to showcase its advanced building techniques and design innovation.

“With the elements of nature playing a large role in the inspiration for the home, our designers have emphasised the large raking ceilings with a masterful oversized fireplace anchoring the living room,” he said.

Other features include a theatre room, a study and a thoughtfully designed kitchen with stone bench tops, a scullery and top appliances, airconditioning and built-in robes.

The upper level’s opulent master suite has a floor-to-ceiling window to ensure a natural light-filled space.

Satterley Property Group and the The Hales partly donated the 450-square-metre block, which is across from landscaped parkland near marri and jarrah trees and Crumpet Creek.

This is the 12th year JWH Group has built the metropolitan Telethon home. Proceeds go to the charity that raises funds for the medical and social wellbeing of children and young people and research into children’s diseases.