We believe Melbourne is continuing to run a two-tiered market at the moment: there are the properties buyers want to buy that are in limited supply and then the rest of the market.

A good quality, new or renovated family home or downsizer property, if priced and marketed correctly and managed by a good selling agent, currently has the capacity to achieve even higher results than it may have earlier in the year when there was more choice for buyers.

Good stock is very low.  With the end of the year almost upon us, a number of buyers who have been patiently waiting for the market to crash (as per media hype) have started to realise that a whole year has gone by and not much has changed, including the fact that they still haven’t bought anything.

That’s not to say that all properties are performing well. Many of the homes that have sold at auction more recently have sold post-auction in private negotiations, often with only one interested purchaser. Buyers are wary of homes that are perceived as going to need money spent on them either straight away or sometime in the future.

Of the properties that haven’t sold at auction, there are no doubt a number of vendors who, in hindsight, wish they had accepted fair offers. We have noticed, particularly in the past week or two, as we get closer to the end of the year, agents coming back to us to see if our buyers are still interested in purchasing properties that they walked away from during negotiations. Many of these buyers have now shifted their focus to other properties or purchased something else.

There are some vendors who have had no, or limited, interest from buyers. This may be a result of the product, the price, the marketing strategy, the media or a combination of all of these factors.

With all the uncertainty going around, buyers are not sure what they should even be doing.  They don’t want to be seen to be paying too much, or offering too soon, or even bidding at auction which can seriously affect their outcome when trying to buy a property they like.

What we do know for certain is that you cannot rely on a blanket description for what is happening the Melbourne market at the moment, as there are many mini markets within the overall property market and strategies to purchase will vary significantly depending on what you are trying to purchase.

Some of the limited good homes (both in Melbourne and holiday regions) that have sold well include:

• 8 Maling Road Canterbury – renovated family home, quoted $4-4.4m, $4,930,000
• 43 Barrington Avenue Kew – renovated family home, quoted $4.4-4.9m, undisclosed over $5.5m
• 1 Nyora Street Malvern East – very liveable, approx. 20yo single storey home, smaller land, could also update (suit downsizers), $3m
• 3 Tollington Avenue Malvern East – updated, single storey home, smaller land (suit downsizers), undisclosed over $3.5m
• 8 Hearn Street Dromana – as new family home with panoramic views, quoted $3.95-4.3m, undisclosed in excess of $4.5m

 

Some of the better properties currently on the market; an architect’s view

9 Coreen Avenue Beaumaris – Scott Hamilton/Stefan Delyster, Buxton

44a Shelley Street Elwood – Damian de Silva/James Meldrum, RT Edgar

93 Claremont Avenue Malvern – Oliver Booth/Nicky Rowe, Kay & Burton

2 Fairview Grove Glen Iris – Mark Wridgway/Yvette Laws, RT Edgar

13 Maitland Street, Glen Iris – Carla Fetter/David Sciola, Jellis Craig

   

‘Off-market’ Properties:       

• Large family home, needing update, north rear ~780sqm, Brighton – circa $4.5m
• Bay views, 2 storey, looking for update, ~330sqm, Hampton – circa $2.3m
• Large family home on approx. 1,400sqm, Brighton – circa high $6m
• Contemporary family home, looking for update, Brighton – circa mid $3m
• Family home, prime position, 4-2-2 with pool, Hampton – circa $3.4m
• Modern family home, master up, pool, Beaumaris – circa $3m
• Stately Victorian, 6 beds, north rear ~780sqm, St Kilda – circa high $4m
• Mid-century home, adjoining golf course, Cheltenham – circa $1.8m
• Townhouse, 4 bed, 3 bath, near Central Park/Hedgeley Dene Gardens, Malvern East – circa $2.5m
• Victorian family home, 5 beds, 4 baths, approx. 1,250 sqm, pool, Armadale – circa $10m
• Edwardian, two level 5 bed family home, approx. 711 sqm, Malvern – circa $5.5m
• Single Level Renovated Victorian, 4 beds, 3 baths, Malvern – circa $5.5m
• Renovated Victorian Italianate, 5 beds, 3 baths, study, pool, ~1185 sqm, Kew – circa $8-8.5m
• Double Storey neo-Georgian 5 bed, 4 bath over two levels, Kew – circa $4.1m

 

Finally, we would like to welcome Chris Guest to the WoledgeHatt team. Chris is a licensed real estate agent who has returned to property after working with Marshall White and RT Edgar for seven years in the early 2000s. Chris brings with him a passion for property and people and is looking forward to helping buyers achieve their property goals.

 

Auction Spotlights:

37 Cowper Street Sandringham

While the upstairs layout had some shortcomings, the downstairs flow to an entertainer’s deck, plus the fantastic beachside location, attracted many for auction day. The price quote of $1.65-1.75m was also appealing. Rod Richardson from Belle property headed up the auction and quickly received the first bid of $1.49m. Clearly below expectations, a vendor bid followed to push things along, before a second and third genuine bidder joined and things moved along at a steady pace. The home was called on the market at $1.755m. Both bidders clearly wanted the home – one a young couple, one a couple of empty nesters. Neither seemed keen to make a big jump though, and the auction crawled along with seemingly endless $1,000 or $2,000 bids. The younger couple eventually ran out of resources, leaving bidder 1 as the successful purchaser for $1.88m.

 

43 Barrington Avenue Kew