Sydney auctions fly in big bidding weekend while Melbourne's 'dry up' as stage 4 continues
It was a tale of two auction cities at the weekend, with hundreds of properties up for auction in Sydney’s socially distanced market, while Melbourne’s continued to navigate tough, stage 4 coronavirus restrictions.
More than 520 properties were scheduled for auction in Sydney on Saturday, as the harbour city recorded a preliminary clearance rate of 65.9 per cent from 330 reported results on Saturday evening – with 83 properties withdrawn from auction.
In Melbourne, where auctions and inspections can be held only online, there were 124 scheduled auctions. The city recorded a clearance rate of 60.2 per cent, from 64 reported results – with many homes selling prior and 39 properties withdrawn.
For the online auctions that went ahead, the preliminary clearance rate was 90 per cent, with 18 properties sold under the virtual hammer and two properties passed in.
“Right now nothing new is coming onto the market since the lockdown,” said Ray White Cheltenham director and auctioneer Kevin Chokshi.
“But people are booking in appointments so we are able to show them through (properties that are listed) as soon as the lockdown is over.”
While Melbourne’s auction numbers dwindled as vendors wait for stage 4 restrictions to ease, Sydney had some big, aggressive bidding, as buyers competed for the fewer number of homes for sale.
In one case, the fierce competition saw a northern beaches property sold on Friday night – before the planned auction on Saturday – with two buyers competing in a mini-auction over the phone.
The buyers, who were both local to the area, each made multiple offers on the five-bedroom home at 3 Wood Street. A winning bid of $7.05 million sealed the deal.
The luxury property, which has a swimming pool and large study, was listed with a price guide between $6 million and $6.6 million.
Clarke and Humel Property principal Michael Clarke, who sold the waterfront property with lead agent Cherie Humel, said the vendors were “absolutely delighted” with the result for the property – which records show they bought for $5.5 million in 2016.
The sellers had planned to move into the property, which they renovated, but a change in circumstances meant they decided to stay in their current North Narrabeen home.
Across the city, in Five Dock, a three-bedroom house at 26 James Street sold at auction on Saturday for $5.1 million – $200,000 above reserve.
Devine Real Estate Drummoyne’s Fayez Yammine said although five people had registered to bid on the waterfront home, only two raised their hand on the auction floor.
“They were quite aggressive and didn’t give the others a chance to bid,” Mr Yammine said. “Bids were going up by $100,000 or $50,000 or $25,000.”
A local family, looking to upgrade to the waterfront, snapped up the property, he said.
In the city’s north-west, a young couple expecting a baby were the winning bidders of a three-bedroom house at 15 Lukes Lane, Baulkham Hills.
Stuart Benson, of Benson Auctions, who sold the property on behalf of Guardian Realty Castle Hill, said there were 12 registered bidders for the property which sold for $1,315,000 — $95,000 above the reserve.
“Our opening bidders — a young couple visibly expecting the arrival of a new addition to their family — outlasted all bidders to secure the home, and you could tell they had the crowd on their side,” Mr Benson said. “It was a real feel-good result.
“Homes like this demonstrate why the north-west continues to buck the trend in the current market,” he said.
While the north-west was strong, so too were prices in Sydney’s inner west, where a four-bedroom terrace home sold for $1. 65 million under the hammer.
The property, at 67 Grove Street, St Peters, sold to a couple for $50,000 above the reserve.
Ray White Surry Hills director Ercan Ersan said the sale price was well above an offer of $1.5 million that had been made before the auction.
“It really felt like the good old days with both buyer and vendor confidence flowing – there’s no doubt that the property market has real momentum in Sydney right now,” Mr Ersan said.
In Melbourne, there were far fewer auctions on Saturday than in previous weeks.
Agents reported it was the last weekend of sales where buyers had been able to view properties one on one with an agent, before the stricter stage 4 rules were applied at the start of August.
One of those properties was a three-bedroom house at 5 Gilford Grove, Cheltenham, which sold under the virtual hammer for $1,105,000.
Mr Chokshi, of Ray White Cheltenham, said the deceased estate in Melbourne’s south-east was snapped up by a young family who had been looking to buy for the past eight months.
They were one of two active bidders competing for the property, which was on the market for the first time in 65 years.
Mr Chokshi said the sale price was amazing, not only because of the challenges of the pandemic, but also because it was almost $200,000 higher than the price paid for a similar nearby property less than two years ago.
While some auctions went ahead at the weekend, others were converted to private sales as vendors waited to see what was happening in the market.
A house at 10 Daniel Court, Mentone, was withdrawn from auction on Saturday and listed for private sale with an asking price between $880,000 and $920,000, Mr Chokshi said.
On the other side of the city, a three-bedroom family house at 58 Greenwood Drive, Bundoora, sold for $765,750.
Barry Plant Bundoora’s David Moxon, who auctioned the home from his own backyard, said five registered bidders fought it out for the keys, with first-home buyers making the winning bid.
“There were first-home buyers and investors there as well, floating around to take advantage of the current market,” Mr Moxon said.
The home was originally scheduled to go to auction in late August, but the campaign was brought forward to capitalise on interest from buyers – some of whom had been able to see the home in person.
“The challenge moving forward is going to be stock levels,” Mr Moxon said. “They will dry up because there’s a reluctance to list. [Sellers] are thinking is there a point to doing it when we can’t show people through’?”
But with strong buyer interest remaining, Mr Moxon said there was hope the market would bounce back once restrictions eased.
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