Vendor of Carlton terrace fetches $2.3m after advertising reserve

An updated Carlton balcony terrace sold for $2.3 million, its reserve price, after auction on Saturday.

The three-bedroom home at 64 Neill Street – a short walk from parks and the popular Rathdowne Street village – has period charm with modern features.

SOLD - $2,300,000

64 Neill Street, Carlton VIC 3053

3

1

-

View property

“It’s a wider-than-normal, double-front balcony terrace with a great Carlton location,” Nelson Alexander listing agent Charlie Barham said. “It was ready to move straight in, but it still had the potential to update it.”

Barham listed the property for sale with the reserve advertised. He said it had been confusing for some potential buyers, but all appreciated knowing the vendor’s price expectations.

“There was no ambiguity around the price that was required to buy it,” he said. “A few people weren’t familiar with it … when we explained the mechanics around it, buyers appreciated the extra transparency.”

In Victoria, a property can be marketed with a price guide of a single price or a 10 per cent range, but vendors are free to set their reserve higher on auction day.

The auction began with a vendor bid of $2.25 million, and the home passed in after receiving one bid of $2.26 million. The sole bidder bought it afterwards in negotiations.

Barham said the buyers were downsizers. “It was a downsizer moving into the inner city, which we’re noticing a lot of. They’re a big part of the city market at the moment.”

It was one of 1208 auctions scheduled in Melbourne for Saturday.

In Malvern, a modernist home at 28 Elizabeth Street sold in a competitive auction for well above its quoted price range.

Jellis Craig listing agent Will Benison said three bidders had fought hard to secure the three-bedroom home at auction.

SOLD - Price Withheld

28 Elizabeth Street, Malvern VIC 3144

3

2

4

View property

“It was a good house for the area, and it was built in 1975,” he said. “To get three bidders at the moment is rare. But good houses in good locations are always going to do well, and something unique like this one is even more rare.”

Benison listed the home for sale with a quoted price range of $3.7 million to $4.05 million.

The auction began at the bottom of the range and the home was declared on the market at about $4.2 million. It sold for $4.34 million under the hammer. Benison declined to discuss the price or the vendor’s reserve.

He said the home sold to a family.

Public records show the home last sold in 1993 for $522,500.