Shabby Brisbane investment property sells for $700,000 more than last sale

Time had not been kind to a two-bedroom Tarragindi home that went under the hammer on Saturday. 

After almost 30 years as an investment property, there was little doubt at auction that 10 Effingham Street had seen better days.

Peeling paint on the inside and out, torn linoleum, and dated fittings and fixtures showed the property’s age – and years of use by many different tenants.

When the vendors bought the house in 1987, it cost them just $56,500. And, many years later, it would prove to be a sound investment.  

Ahead of the auction, LJ Hooker Coorparoo agent Bryce O’Sullivan said the owners expectations weren’t sky high.

“As long as it sells over $60,000 they’ll be stoked I think,” he joked. 

But they needn’t have worried – bidding for the post-war home started at $600,000 and quickly climbed to $700,000.

From there, independent estate agent and auctioneer Scott Gemmell had a tough time eliciting more bids, but managed to get the price up to $745,000 before it was declared on the market.

“I think a lot of auctioneers make that mistake,” he said. “If you can take it as far as you can without giving an indication [that you’re on the market] you can get it further every time.”

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Three of five registered bidders had been active up until that point but, as it became clear Mr Gemmell was selling, a new bidder, who would turn out to be the winning bidder, jumped into the competition.

Rachael Twist had been juggling taking care of her three-year-old daughter and one-year-old son, while keeping her erstwhile husband informed on the phone and keeping track of the auction. She joined the auction with strong, aggressive bids.

Ms Twist was the last bidder standing, securing the keys for a final price of $785,000, almost $730,000 more than the vendors paid in the 1980s.

Mr Gemmell said the previous owner’s investment had clearly paid off. “They have done really well. Not that I can disclose what their expectation was, but the auction far exceeded [the reserve].”

Ms Twist said she only had one thing on her mind during the auction.

“I was wondering if we would get it … I don’t know what to say, I was just in shock that we got it.”

The well-loved home on the 655 square metre block won’t be there for much longer though, as Ms Twist and her husband plan to knock down the property to build their own house.

“We’ll live in it for a bit and eventually we’ll build something on it, knock it down and build,” she said. “There’s a lot of beautiful houses in the area, I certainly think we can build something beautiful on this block.”

Mr Gemmell said buying into Tarragindi was a smart move as he believed the suburb was currently undervalued. The construction of new houses like the Twist family is planning would bump prices up, he predicted.