No long weekend auction jitters

The long weekend in most states may have impacted auction volume, but with 5.7 registered bidders per Ray White auction today, buyers weren’t missing any opportunities.

Today, the Ray White Group had 185 scheduled auctions across the country and recorded a 68 per cent clearance rate. The number of average active bidders came in at 3.4, so on average nearly half of bidders were throwing their hat in the ring.

Those sellers who did decide to make use of the lack of competition from other listings today were rewarded, receiving nearly 12 per cent more on their auction sale price than if they had sold prior.

Jessica Cao of Ray White Upper North Shore claimed the top auction result nationally today, selling 58 Wellington Rd, East Lindfield for $5.4 million to a local family looking to upgrade.

Ray White NSW | ACT chief auctioneer Alex Pattaro said despite another shock rate rise, buyers continued to remain out in force, all looking to secure a home.

“This was reflected in bidding numbers along with high clearance rates and price,” he said.

“We are sensing a sentiment of “fear of missing out” among buyers, which makes it a great time to sell.

“The current market conditions favour sellers, these conditions make the sales method of choice the most important.

“If sellers are looking to understand the truest market value and maximise their result, auction must be the method of choice.”

58 Wellington Rd, East Lindfield

• Sold for $5.4 million - $80,000 above reserve

• Seven registered and five active bidders

• Agent: Jessica Cao (pictured above with the sellers)

• Ray White Upper North Shore

“We issued 20 contracts and had almost 100 groups through the house during the campaign. Interested buyers were all families because it’s a good family home,” Ms Cao said.

“It needs updating but the location is great, it’s very close to the East Lindfield Village and school. It’s a great size, over 400sqm, double brick and really solid.

“All the bidders were families, there was one family I’d never seen during the campaign. They turned out to be the neighbours and were the underbidders.

“The buyers were a local family from the neighbouring suburb, they are upgrading.”

188 Oberon St, Coogee

• Sold for $2.88 million - $80,000 above reserve

• Five registered and three active bidders

• Agents: Angus Gorrie and Luke Fuller

• Ray White Eastern Beaches

“The sellers bought the home this time last year for $2.37 million, they gave it a facelift then put it back on the market,” Mr Gorrie said.

“It was an owner builder selling to another owner builder, I believe they are planning to turn it into a two storey house.

“The house needs work but it’s got really good potential and on a great block. We had a range of buyers looking at it including families and young couples.”

2/41 Dean Street, West Pennant Hills

• Sold for $1.455 million - $205,000 above reserve

• 15 registered and eight active bidders

• Agent: Nathan Leuzzi and Giuseppe Murace

• Ray White Pennant Hills

“We had a range of buyers looking at this property - first home buyers, downsizers, upgraders, you name it and they were there. The price was a suburb record for this type of house,” Mr Leuzzi said.

“The draw was the affordability. It’s at a good price point to get into the suburb and you don’t get a lot of properties like this in the area.

17 Fallon Close, Quakers Hill (pictured above)

• Sold for $1.67 million - $40,000 above reserve

• 15 registered and eight active bidders

• Agent: Taylor Bredin

• Ray White Quakers Hill

• Auctioneer: James Kerley, Ray White

“The auction started off low, at around $1.35 million, but strong bidding got it up to $1.55 million really quickly, then to the sale price,” Mr Bredin said.

“Interested buyers were all owner occupiers, there were a lot of people who had been priced out of the surrounding suburbs like Kellyville and Kellyville Ridge.

“The buyers were a local family moving from a nearby suburb, they’re upsizing and wanted to get something that’s a good size on a quiet street.”

Ray White Victoria and Tasmania chief auctioneer Jeremy Tyrrell said fortune favoured the brave today.

“Or at least those that took advantage of a quieter than usual marketplace due to the King's Birthday long weekend,” Mr Tyrrell said.

“Across the state, the REIV was expecting 360 auctions across 189 suburbs, whereas Ray White Victoria had 78 auctions scheduled, almost 22 per cent of the state's total.

“The preliminary clearance rate for all properties sold this week was just under 74 per cent, a clear indicator that the real estate market is in good health.

“Even off the back of the recent cash rate announcement, buyers remained active as 92 per cent of all auctions conducted had bidding activity.”

526 Neerim Rd, Murrumbeena (pictured above)

• Sold for $3.32 million - $320,000 above reserve

• Five registered and four active bidders

• Agents: Josh Hommelhoff and Olivia Petrou

• Ray White Carnegie

• Auctioneer: Matt Hurlston, Ray White

“The buyers were a young, local family who had lived in the area for about 20 years,” Mr Hommelhoff said.

“The auction started at the bottom of the range with an opening bid of $2.7 million, but the four bidders were really competitive.

“The bidders were predominantly families which is consistent with the buyer groups we received interest from during the campaign.

“They loved the overall character and history of the home. It dates back to 1915 and was designed by renowned architect Arthur Purnell. The house and the gardens are beautiful and these types of homes don’t come up often.”

2/35 Olympic Ave, Cheltenham

• Sold for $1.18 million

• Four registered and active bidders

• Agents: Kevin Chokshi (auctioneer) and Elise Russell

• Ray White Cheltenham

“The buyers (pictured above) were a young couple, they’re first home buyers and they saw it for the first time today,” Mr Chokshi said.

“We had a real combination of young couples, some first home buyers and also downsizers here. The auction was pretty competitive, we had two bidders jump in towards the end.

“It appealed to downsizers because it’s single level and was very popular with a lot of buyers because it’s in a great part of Cheltenham, on a really nice street and has no body corporate which people love.”

48 Buckingham Dr, Rowville (pictured above)

• Sold for $1.275 million - $375,000 above reserve

• 20 registered bidders and 12 active bidders

• Agents: Nick Strilakos, Daniel Seyran and Tess Maxwell

• Ray White Oakleigh

• Auctioneer: Matthew Condon, Ray White

“We counted nearly 290 attendees, it was mayhem. It was a hybrid auction so we also had another 20 to 30 online attendees as well,” Mr Strilakos said.

“The opening bid was $780,000. The auction had great energy, it was very fiery and bidding was fast. There was a lot of emotion and I could sense a fearlessness in the market which I’ve begun to notice for about the last three months.

“It was the auction of the year for me thus far and I believe a street record price.

“After so many interest rate rises, you would think people would be afraid to bid but if anything, people are more hungry to secure something.

“The buyers were a young couple, they want to start a family and get into a family location. They had to fight off 11 other bidders to win but they were over the moon, they said their cheeks were hurting from smiling.”

4/48 The Grove, Coburg

• Sold for $763,000 - $143,000 above reserve

• Eight registered and six active bidders

• Agents: Yash Akpinar (auctioneer) and Nazih Abbouchi

• Ray White Coburg

“There were downsizers, investors and first home buyers in the crowd. They loved the potential, the location which is on the best street in Coburg, and it’s close to everything.

“We had quite a few bids, it went on for a while. It started strong with so many different bidders actively participating. I was going to bring the hammer down at $730,000 but then a new bidder came in and took it higher.”

97A McBryde St, Fawkner

• Sold for $650,000

• Five registered and two active bidders

• Agents: Raphael Calik-Houston (auctioneer) and Hamza Ali (pictured above)

• Ray White Coburg

“The auction started at $620,000, so straight away it started at the top end of the range,” Mr Calik-Houston said.

“The buyers are a couple, they are both tattoo artists. They loved the location, the distance to the city and are planning to start a family there.”

Ray White Queensland chief auctioneer Gavin Croft said post any interest rate rise, there’s always some thinking around “will it alter mindset and the way buyers are looking at the marketplace?”

“Buyers are out in force and I think there’s a real theme that's emerging on the southside of Brisbane, the volume of buyers going through campaigns is extraordinary. On average anywhere between 40 to 50 plus," he said.

“It is a good marketplace as we speak and supply and demand is playing a huge role in that

“Astute sellers are being rewarded when they come to the market while there’s these low stock levels.

“Low stock volumes and high numbers of registered bidders are very good ingredients for home sellers right now.”

49 Kennedy Tce, Paddington

• Sold for $1.65 million

• Three registered and two active bidders

• Agents: Judi O’Dea and Michael Kleimeyer

• Ray White Paddington

“The two bidders went straight for it and started bidding immediately. We had quite a crowd there, maybe around 40 to 50 people,” Ms O’Dea said.

“The buyer (pictured above) is a woman with two teenage daughters, she wanted the two levels to give them a nice separation of living.

“She had been looking for some time and wanted something under $2 million in the area that also gave them comfortable living. She loved the character of the home and the way the light flowed through the verandah.

“The sellers were actually on a boat in the middle of the Mediterranean, we couldn’t get telephone coverage but they were able to text. They were so thrilled with the sale, they said they can now upgrade the cabin.”

1 Woody Ave, Kingston

• Sold for $470,500 - $40,000 above reserve

• 13 registered and seven active bidders

• Agents: Rebecca Cuderman and Riah Manser (pictured above)

• Ray White Marsden

• Auctioneer: Gavin Croft, Ray White

“We had fierce competition for a desired corner block,” Ms Cuderman said.

“The property has lots of potential with granny flat or duplex options for buyers. Anytime we list properties that can be renovated or have potential for value add, buyers are very interested.

Ray White South Australia chief auctioneer John Morris said it seems that the long weekend has brought about no shortage of buyers in the market.

“There are unbelievable numbers still coming out of South Australia and it seems that after the long weekend, there will be no shortage of auctions coming to the market,” he said.

“The low numbers that we've seen this weekend are simply because of the King's birthday happening on Monday. Adelaide is still a very hot market.”

14 Berryman St, Greenacres

• Sold for $750,000 - $120,000 above reserve

• 10 registered bidders and six active bidders

• Agents: Stefan Siciliano and Joseph Zollo

• Ray White Prospect

• Auctioneer: John Morris, Ray White

“It was a cracking auction, the sellers (pictured above) were a young couple looking to upsize. It ended up selling to a doctor who had been looking in the area for a long time, he was very determined to get the property and was the strongest bidder throughout,” Mr Siciliano said.

“Greenacres is a highly sought after suburb. People want to buy land and build in Greenacres but they simply can’t so they are buying these new builds because that’s the easiest way to get in.

“The house is low maintenance, it’s beautifully appointed and only built in 2009.”

19 Sandow Ave, Pooraka (pictured above)

• Sold for $755,500 - $85,500 above reserve

• 25 registered and nine active bidders

• Lead agent: Lukasz Jaworek - 0455 229 646

• Ray White Norwood

“We had a huge crowd and so many registered bidders that we actually ran out of bidding paddles,” Mr Jaworek said.

“Over the 18 day campaign we had more than 90 registered buyers go through the property. This is the highest sale price in Pooraka in the last six months

“Bidding started at $500,000 and went crazy from there. The buyer was a young man whose parents live on the street behind this, he had been to a number of our auctions and kept missing out.

“He loved the position and the presentation. The house has been well looked after with a few updates from when it was built in the early 90’s. It ticked a lot of boxes for a lot of people.

“Especially Pooraka being so accessible from the city and all those amenities, that created an urgency among people.”