First home buyer splashes $3.22m on cottage that last fetched $555,000

A reimagined 1880s cottage in Erskineville sold at auction on Saturday to a first home buyer from Alexandria for $3.22 million, the price increasing five-fold since it last sold.

The four-bedroom house at 19 Devine Street had a guide of $2.75 million and its reserve set at $3.2 million.

Two out of three registered bidders raised the price in varying increments after an opening bid of $2.9 million. The parties included the first home buyer and upsizers from Surry Hills and Redfern.

The home last sold for $555,000 in 2007, records show. It was one of 923 scheduled auctions in Sydney on Saturday.

By evening, Domain Group recorded a preliminary auction clearance rate of 62.6 per cent from 850 reported results across the week, while 218 auctions were withdrawn. Withdrawn auctions are counted as unsold properties when calculating the clearance rate.

The buyer said the home’s appeal rested in its design, with a weatherboard front and a treehouse at the rear. She said it was rare to find the design in a suburb known for its terraces.

CobdenHayson Annandale lead agent Alex Mastoris, who sold the property alongside Ben Southwell and Kate Fitzsimmons, said the inner west market has been resilient in comparison to other pockets of Sydney.

“The right property – presented well and marketed correctly – will always achieve a good result,” Mastoris said. “It does appeal to a wider audience.”

He said anticipation of interest rate cuts had led to buyer hesitation. “Buyers are taking more time to make decisions. If a home doesn’t tick all the boxes, they’ll sit back and wait for the right opportunity.”

Erskineville’s median house price rose 5.9 per cent to $1.8 million in the year to September on Domain data.

In Woollahra, an apartment sold under the hammer for $2.17 million, some $470,000 above its reserve.

The buyer of the two-bedroom, two-bathroom deceased estate at 1/414 Edgecliff Road was returning to Sydney after living abroad. She outbid a local downsizer and first home buyers with their mum and dad in attendance.

Five of six registered bidders were active. After an opening bid of $1.5 million, bidding rose in $10,000 increments. The guide and reserve were both set at $1.7 million.

McGrath Paddington agent Georgia Cleary said that while she understood other Sydney markets were struggling, she considered the Woollahra region to be normal.

“Buyers are understanding the difference between a good and an average property,” she said.

“During COVID, people had that desperation to buy and were paying big money for properties without certain features. Whereas now, people are identifying the properties with more features and are paying more for that.”

In Killara, a Pymble family paid $3.15 million at auction for a home they intended to knock down and rebuild in a few years’ time.

At A7 Manning Road, the four-bedroom, two-bathroom property attracted nine registered bidders, but only four raised their paddles. The Pymble family outbid another family, a local developer and a couple from Hurstville who also planned to knock down and rebuild.

Ray White Upper North Shore agent Jessica Cao said the sellers were a young family who had moved up north for a sea change. They had bought the home for about $2 million in 2018 and were thrilled at the result, which was $350,000 above the reserve of $2.8 million.

The developer made the opening bid of $2.4 million, below the $2.5 million guide. Bids then rose in $50,000 and $10,000 increments.

Cao said the property’s appeal laid in its land value, with its flat block a rarity in the suburb. Killara’s median house price rose 11.3 per cent to $3,894,440 in the year to September on Domain data.

A Pymble family outbid a developer for a $3.15 million home in Killara at auction on Saturday.Credit: Domain

Cao said that while some buyers were hesitant, the upper north shore market was balanced when it came to supply and demand.

“There’s no new stock, so whatever is available is the last run for buyers to choose from,” she said. “We have sold most of our stock, so there are strong buying signs.”

In Port Hacking, a semi-detached house sold under the hammer for $1.87 million to an upsizing couple from Caringbah.

The four-bedroom, two-bathroom property at 3A Moombara Crescent appealed to three registered bidders, who were all active. In the mix were the upsizing couple, a young family from Caringbah and a downsizer from Cronulla.

An opening offer of $1.7 million was smack bang on the guide, with bids then rising in increments from $5000 down to $1000. The reserve had been set at $1,835,000.

MattBlak Property selling agent Blake Spooner said the auction had to be paused a few times to encourage bidding. It last sold for $1,187,500 in 2018, records show.

Spooner said properties sold at auction if they were both priced and presented well. “Those that are not in a great location will struggle as well,” he said.

Buyers who had their finances approved and were ready to purchase were not waiting for interest rate cuts, he said.