Archive for October 2016
October 22, 2016
Good crowds out and about on the weekend, despite the wet, windy and cold Melbourne weather.
Results overall were very solid for sellers on the weekend. Although the weather was incredibly wet and cold, this didn’t deter buyers and there were good numbers at most properties.
The Saturday the week before Melbourne Cup weekend is usually big; however, REIV statistics showed there were only 1114 auctions this year compared with 1551 for the same weekend last year.
Auction Highlights:
- 17 Bella Vista Road, Glen Iris (Steven Abbott/Andrew Wilkie, Jellis Craig) – this property sold in March 2012 for $2.7m – with minimal change, 4 bidders pushed the price to $4.702m
- 5 Gaynor Court, Malvern (James Redfern/Anna Perry, Marshall White) – updated period home, quirky floorplan but convenient location – $4.11m
- 36 Durrant Street, Brighton (John Clarkson/Bert Stewart, Buxton) – updated single level period home with good garaging, although only one bathroom – $2.019m
Land Sales:
- 2 Lancaster Street, Bentleigh East (Sardeep Singh/Trent Barlow, Stockdale & Leggo) – approximately 636sqm with east rear in ‘the zone’ – $1.56m or $2,452sqm
- 1 Gordon Crescent, Black Rock (Stephen Wigley/Angus Graham, Hodges) – approximately 942sqm with north rear and wide frontage – sold in excess of $2.5m or above $2,700sqm
- 1 Hunter Street, Malvern (James Redfern/Anna Perry, Marshall White) – 460sqm corner block with north rear – over $2m or nearly $4,500sqm
- 39 Tuxen Street, Balwyn North (Hayden Senior/Simon Lord, Jellis Craig) – 1011sqm with east rear – $2.605m or $2,576sqm
Off Markets:
- Modern house with basement garage – Malvern – $7m
- Period home, Gascoigne Estate needing renovation – Malvern East – $2.5m
- Well renovated period home – Armadale – $6.25m
- Iconic local period home, renovated – Hawthorn – $5-5.5m
- Three bedroom townhouse – Brighton East – $1.7m
- Two bedroom townhouse – Hawthorn East – $1.1m
Properties we like, schedule for auction November 5:
551 Camberwell Road Camberwell – Peter Vigano/Mark Pezzin, Jellis Craig
24 Lambeth Avenue Armadale – Justin Long/Mark Harris, Marshall White
12 Grout St Hampton – Nick Johnstone/Dane Costello, Nick Johnstone RE
1 Moubray Street Albert Park – Warwick Gardiner/John Holdsworth, Greg Hocking Holdsworth RE
Auction Spotlight:
54 Hawthorn Grove Hawthorn
Steven Abbott (Jellis Craig) in front of a shivering but strong crowd at Hawthorn Grove, Hawthorn.
A large crowd braved the extreme weather conditions in the picturesque front garden to see Steven Abbott conduct the auction. Following a sale at #36 that morning for $5m, Jellis Craig was keen to deliver a similar outcome. The crowd remained quiet after a call for offers, with Steven eventually placing a vendor bid to commence proceedings at $4.5m, followed by a further bid of $4.6m. One bidder followed to secure first negotiation rights with $4.7m before the property was passed in at that level. The property sold after auction for an undisclosed amount over $5m.
36 Durrant Street Brighton
Heavy rain compelled an inside auction at 36 Durrant St Brighton (John Clarkson/Bert Stewart, Buxton Brighton).
A smaller home but well located near the Bay St shops in Brighton. A large crowd huddled under umbrellas and raincoats, as heavy rain fell at the start of the auction, which was ultimately relocated inside. Auctioneer John Clarkson was ready for this strong crowd of about 100 people. Opening with a genuine bid of $1.5m, multiple bidders fought hard for this single-level period home. It sold strongly under the hammer for $2.019m. An entertaining auction by John, who was at his humorous best and well assisted by Bert Stewart – a very likeable duo.
Agent Opinion: “The market appears to be very buoyant at the moment. With the expected stock increase for November, do you expect this heat to continue?”
Justin Long, Marshall White: The residential real estate market is as buoyant as I’ve seen for some time and lower than usual stock levels have a good deal to do with it. Whilst there seems to be a little bit of a last minute push to get homes sold prior to Christmas, the likelihood of a dramatic increase in stock levels in November is unlikely and hence I expect things to remain very steady or strong for the balance of the year and into the first half of 2017.
October 15, 2016
Plenty of people out enjoying auctions on a beautiful spring day.
With an REIV reported clearance rate of nearly 80% on the weekend, the market for quality offerings continues to gain strength.
With limited stock, buyers may wish to consider how well the property suits them before sticking to a firm budget. If it is a good fit, buyers shouldn’t necessarily assume there will be another one soon, so they need to be prepared to really stretch on auction day – and then probably stretch some more.
We have seen an increase in ‘bought before auction’ properties recently with some strong results. For buyers, this may help with certainty; however, there is also a chance that the price paid may be well above what others may have been prepared to pay on auction day.
Auction Highlights:
- 17 Albany Road Toorak (Darren Lewenberg/Emma Bloom, Kay & Burton) – 3 bed, 3 bath, replica period home with 2 car detached garage – sold well over reserve for $6.25m
- 33 Hawksburn Road South Yarra (Michael Armstrong/Nicole Gleeson, Kay & Burton) – modern two-storey home with good lifestyle options in signature local street – sold (around 20% above reserve) for $5.4m
- 25 Dorrington Avenue Glen Iris (Nathan Waterson/Andrew Luke, Jellis Craig) – practical 1930s home, north-facing rear – sold for $3.85m
Land Sales:
- 67 Sackville Street Kew (Clayton Smith/Svetlana Hudson, Jellis Craig) – 1160sqm north-facing rear in the Sackville Ward – bought after auction for an undisclosed amount above $5.2m or over $4,500sqm
- 37 Dempster Avenue Balwyn North (Jack Peng/Pan Zhang, Fletchers) – 999sqm in prime Balwyn High School zone, sold last Christmas Eve for $1.77m – sold on Saturday for $2.17m or $2,172sqm
- 4 Farmer Street Brighton East (John Clarkson/Bert Stewart, Buxton) – 604sqm west-facing rear, well positioned for St Leonards and Haileybury Colleges – $1.845m or just over $3,000sqm
Off Markets:
- Period home with city views – Hawthorn – circa $6m
- Two-storey, pretty period home – Malvern East – $2.5-2.7m
- Large, newer home – Glen Iris – $3-3.3m
- Modern townhouse – Prahran – $1.4m
- Large French provincial home – Brighton – over $6m
Properties we like, schedule for auction October 29:
33 College Street Hawthorn – George Bushby/Richard Winneke, Jellis Craig
25 Grant Street Malvern East – Gowan Stubbings/Julia de Campo, Kay & Burton
29a Sussex Street Brighton – Campbell Cooney/Tatiana Marcelin, Hodges
5 Westley Street Hawthorn East – Anton Zhouk/Robert Ding, Marshall White
Auction Spotlight:
1/8 Faversham Road Canterbury
1/8 Faversham Road Canterbury (Geordie Dixon/Tom Ryan, Jellis Craig). Sold strongly for $1.68m.
If you ever wanted to know what a great down-sizer property in Boroondara was, 1/8 Faversham Road Canterbury would be a good one to look at.
Low maintenance. Lock up garage. One of two on the block. Single level. No steps. Light and bright inside. It really had it all…….
There was genuine buzz at this auction – no real surprises there. Opening on a genuine crowd bid of $1.1m, auctioneer Peter Batrouney conducted traffic seamlessly between two bidders and there were possibly 5-8 others who just couldn’t get their hands up. The property was announced on the market in the $1.4m’s and sold strongly under the hammer at $1.68m. This all happened in about five minutes. Great campaign for listing and campaign agents Tom Ryan and Geordie Dixon – their vendor would be very pleased with the result.
20 Argo Street Prahran
20 Argo Street Prahran (Peter Perrignon, Hocking Stuart). Four bidders and sold for $1.7m.
In front of a large crowd, auctioneer Peter Perrignon provided a succinct description of the property and the area before launching into auction mode advising. A strong opening bid was made at $1.5m, where he announced that ‘with a bid like that we are clearly on the market and selling. With some time to regroup, a second bidder entered the competition, followed by a third and fourth, before settling at the round figure of $1.7m.
Agent Opinion: “How do you see stock levels for the rest of the year, compared to 2015 and 2014?”
Geordie Dixon, Jellis Craig: We have definitely seen a reduction in property levels and feel they reflect 25-30% from previous years. This is a great market for prospective vendors. Because of this reduced market, buyers are fighting for the one or two properties on offer, delivering some amazing results.
October 8, 2016
299 South Road, Brighton East (Jason Collie and Barb Gregory Marshall White), sold $1.59m, 3 bidders
It is now the final sprint until Christmas. There are only two auction weekends before Melbourne Cup weekend and 6-8 weeks until Christmas. With some vendors wary of auctioning so close to the Cup (5th November) and the weekend immediately before Christmas (17th December) – that leaves six. This is only the second run of multiple auction weekends for the year and may prove to be the best opportunity for buyers still searching, to buy before 2017.
Auction Highlights:
- 69a Munro Avenue, Ashburton (Daniel Wheeler, Marshall White) – sold comfortably above $1.9million after the pair at 69 sold for $1.8million only 10 months ago.
- 1 Stevens Parade, Black Rock (Campbell Cooney, Hodges) – which could have been considered ‘land only’ by some given the solid, yet basic, home on site. This pocket of Black Rock is starting to get some traction as the land west of Bluff Road falls out of reach for many buyers now – 637sqm and $1.53million or $2,401sqm (if you place no value on the home).
- 28 Johnson Street, Hawthorn (Andrew Gibson/Hamish Tostevin, Marshall White) – pretty period home, single storey, south rear, good OSP – undisclosed over $2.4million
Land Sales:
Bayside seemed to be leading the way with land last week:
- 68 Bluff Road, Black Rock (Christian Hegarty, Buxton) – large land (approx. 968sqm) on a busy road, although well positioned to Black Rock Village and beach, with only a Neighbourhood Residential Zoning (NRZ3) $1,766sqm
- 9 Grenville Street, Hampton (Nick Johnstone, Nick Johnstone RE) – on approximately 627sqm with north rear, after passing in earlier in the year has sold for $2.17million or $3,460sqm
- 26 Dawson Avenue, Brighton (Stefan Whiting/Andrew Campbell, Buxton) –
724sqm approx. with north rear – sold for an undisclosed amount over $4million
Off Markets:
- Pretty period home, predominantly single storey, convenient lifestyle location – Brighton – $2.25m+
- Large land – Malvern – $8m
- Large family home, Hawthorn $8.5m
- Basic brick home, north rear – Glen Iris – circa $1.5m
- Renovated period home on good land – South Yarra – high $5millions
- Large land – Kew – $5m
- Heritage listed period home – Malvern East – circa $5m
Properties we like for auction October 22:
Auction Spotlight:
8 Stanhope Grove Camberwell (Peter and William Chen, Jellis Craig) sold after auction just under $3million.
8 Stanhope Grove, Camberwell (Peter & William Chen, Jellis Craig) sold after auction just under $3m
Busy location yet the house over a single level with good garaging and a pretty period façade was certainly going to attract interest, particularly at this level in this market.
This last sold back in 2011 for $2.4m. How has the market responded since then? Auctioneer Richard Earle looked for an opening bid and got one after a bit of time at $2.7m. With no further interest from bidders, two vendor bids at $2.75 then $2.8m were placed. Bidder two entered the fray and ultimately had the property passed in to them at $2.95m and bought it shortly after for an undisclosed price not far off this. With a rise of about $600K (or 25%) in five years, this indicates that the market is solid right now, but buyers are not prepared to go crazy for B-graders. Such properties are at least selling……..if the vendors are realistic.
37 Wrights Terrace Prahran (Mark Robertson/Carla Fetter, Jellis Craig) sold strongly under the hammer, $1.731m.
37 Wrights Terrace, Prahran (Mark Roberston/Carla Fetter, Jellis Craig), sold for $1.731m
A solid crowd of 40 people gathered for this auction and there was definitely a good vibe – this auction was going to go well. Why? It was a good offering. Double-fronted brick homes with north facing rear orientations and off-street parking are exceptions rather than than norms in this street, and the position is a convenient one. A lowball opening bid of $1.25million saw Mark Robertson swing into action quite quickly, conducting traffic from a further 6 bidders in all. The property was announced on the market at $1.45m and sold strongly for $1.731m – both vendor and and buyer would be very happy here.