Herald Sun Real Estate auction blog: Livestreams and rolling updates from the auction market
A big change is ahead for first-home buyers with agents reporting strong auction attendance and bidding from market entrants across Melbourne at auctions this weekend.
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A slew of strong auction results led by first-home buyers across Melbourne have given the city’s real estate agents a confidence boost in the, until recently, weaker purchaser group.
First timers proved a dominant force at auctions in Fitzroy, Hawthorn East and Bundoora.
But there were limited options for buyers, with just 682 homes scheduled to go under the hammer this week — one of the quietest weeks outside of a long weekend for the year so far.
But one of the most unexpected first-home buyer purchases for the day was in Brunswick West, where a four-bedroom, two-bathroom California bungalow was snapped up by a pair of market entrants.
The retro residence, complete with a red and mahogany bathroom at 15 Peacock St sold under the hammer for $1.315m and sold 10 per cent above the reserve.
The home was snapped up by a first home buyer couple who plan on living in the property and spending further captital down the track renovating the home.
Whitefox Real Estate Stonnington’s Jesse Jones said the campaign had gone positively with over 120 groups interested in the home.
AUCTION REPLAYS AND RESULTS
“We had a cross reference of buyers ranging from first home buyers, developers and downsizes who wanted to add their own touch to the home,” Mr Jones said.
“Buyers are looking for value and that ($1m-$1.3m) price bracket is most active in the north and the west where the markets haven’t matured as much south of the river.
“The new owners love the splash of mahogany and plan on keeping it.”
BUNDOORA UNIT SKYROCKETS OVER $141,000 ABOVE RESERVE
A two-bedroom, one-bathroom unit at 5/6 Boadle Rd, Bundoora, has sold under the hammer for $541,250, a hefty $141,250 over the reserve.
Ray White’s Mario Lambiase said there was a crowd of more than 30 people watch the auction. “We had 5 buyers but only three got to bid in this fast and furious auction that ended up with $1000 bids and a $250 bid,” Mr Lambiase said. “My sellers are ecstatic with the result as it was their long held investment property, they had owned it for 20 years since it was new and they are now moving to Queensland to be closer to family.”
The home went to a young buyer who was ecstatic to score her very own home; her parents attended the auction alongside her as support.
YOUNG COUPLE SNAGS CHELSEA UNIT FOR $810,000
A three-bedroom, two-bathroom unit at 5/30-32 Sherwood Ave, Chelsea, has sold under the hammer for $810,000.
The auction opened with a bid of $760,000.
The home sold just within the $740,000-$810,000 price guide, with Barry Plant Chelsea auctioneer Sam Gotzilianis satisfied with the result.
“The campaign itself went ok, this is challenging market and you have a lot of highs and lows with every real estate,” Mr Gotzilianis said.
“There is alot for buyers to pick from, we started with a handful of buyers that were really interested in the home that just opted out last minute.”
“At the end of the day my advice to buyers, one you get the approval just buy it, regardless of what they banks are doing.
The keys to the Chelsea unit went to a young couple from St Kilda purchasing their second home with a baby on the way.
FIRST HOME BUYERS TRIUMPH AT HAWTHORN EAST AUCTION
First home buyers came in strong at the 6/4-6 Auburn Grove, Hawthorn East, auction which sold under the hammer for $647,000 with an opening bid of $550,000.
The two-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment attracted 104 inspections throughout the campaign.
Five registered bidders set their eyes on the property with hope of scoring the keys to the tastefully renovated apartment.
The Agency’s Luke Saville said 90 per cent of first home buyers made up the buyers inspecting the property.
“The apartment market has seen a significant uplift in the last two to three months,” Mr Saville said.
“Confidence is definitely returning to the market.”
VENDORS THRILLED WITH GLEN WAVERLEY $1.557M SALE
A classic Glen Waverley home at 40 Brentwood Dve kept in almost perfect condition by its owners for more than 40 years, has sold $200,000 beyond its reserve price.
Biggin Scott Glen Waverley auctioneer Ming Xu said vendors had been thrilled with a $1.557m sale after setting their reserve at the top of the home’s $1.25m-$1.35m price guide.
But it was a nervous start to the auction, with the first bid coming in at $1.2m. Two parties duked it out for the next few minutes until Mr Xu called the home on the market, at which point another two bidders joined in to make it a four-way battle.
A middle-aged couple that had inspected the home six times prior to the auction wound up with the keys, and told Mr Xu they had been consistently impressed with how much care the owners had taken of the property over the years.
“It shows that presentation plays a big part in selling a home,” Mr Xu said.
FIRST HOME BUYERS FUEL FITZROY HOME’S POST AUCTION SUCCESS
A new breed of cautious first-home buyers wary of making an offer under the hammer are sparking post-auction bidding battles for Melbourne homes.
This morning a two-bedroom Fitzroy townhouse that went under the hammer with a $900,000-$990,000 asking price needed a vendor bid to get started.
But with no follow up offers, the property was passed in.
But Jellis Craig listing agent David Sanguinedo said the 3/111-113 George St home was now in the midst of negotiations.
“After it was passed in we were approached by two first-home buyer couples,” Mr Sanguinedo said.
“And we are seeing this more commonly.”
First-home buyers are often advised to avoid purchasing under the hammer as auction sales are unconditional, and cannot have ‘subject to finance’ clauses added to them.
But while auction conditions apply for three days either side of an auction in Victoria, Mr Sanguinedo said many first timers, as well as the loan brokers and financial planners advising them, were still comfortable making an offer in the immediate aftermath of an auction.
The three-storey Fitzroy home now has a $975,000 reserve and a deal is expected to be finalised before the end of the day.
Mr Sanguinedo said for both the buyers the home’s location had been a key drawcard, as they were renting nearby and determined to buy in the area they loved.
FERNTREE GULLY HOME SELLS FOR $1.150M
In an intense and fast-paced auction, a charming three-bedroom, two-bathroom home located at 41 Helen Rd, Ferntree Gully, sold under the hammer for an impressive $1.150 million.
The ten-minute auction, saw fierce competition among a number of bidders who were eager to secure the keys to the property.
The bidding war began with an opening bid of $780,000. However, in just two minutes, the bids quickly escalated into the million-dollar territory, capturing the attention of all those present.
The home’s $900,000-$990,000 price guide was surpassed by up to $600,000, indicating a strong auction result for the property.
As the auction progressed, one determined bidder decided to significantly up their game, raising their offer from $1.116m to $1.121m in an attempt to outshine the competition.
The home listed by Barry Plant Wantirna’s Daniel Cripps.
SEVERAL BIDDERS BATTLE IT OUT FOR RENOVATED CHELTENHAM APARTMENT
A two-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment at 41/310 Warrigal Rd, Cheltenham has sold under the hammer for $686,000 with an opening bid of $550,000
The property sold for $100,000 more than expectations.
Two of the bidders were going back and forth mid-auction.
The competitive auction saw several bidders going back and forth to try and secure the keys to the newly renovated property.
BIG BANK’S HOME LOAN PLAN HAS MIXED RESPONSE
A contentious plan by one of Australia’s biggest banks to help homebuyers in some of Melbourne’s wealthiest postcodes isn’t believed to be boosting sales and has agents worried.
Earlier this year, ANZ established an option for low-risk mortgage borrowers in affluent suburbs, eliminating the need for them to pay lenders mortgage insurance (LMI).
Lenders mortgage insurance is required of most homebuyers when they do not have an at least 20 per cent deposit for a home purchase, which can happen when buyers get carried away at auction and bid past their budget.
But the ANZ is waiving it for buyers with deposits as small as 5 per cent in 25 areas from Essendon to Toorak and even as far out as Portsea.
However, it is only available to those taking out a home loan of at least $2 million who meet specific criteria, including income.
Nelson Alexander Essendon’s Aaron Simon said there were a lot more buyers out there hesitant to bid at an auction as they were subject to finance issues, and he hadn’t seen an uptick since the ANZ program was implemented.
“Over the $2m price point generally they’re not having finance problems, it’s easier dealing with those clients,” Mr Simon said.
“With the inflation and everything that is happening removing the LMI would give more confidence and strength back to the market.”
But McDonald Upton auctioneer Simon Cookson voiced strong opposition to removing lenders mortgage insurance, cautioning such a move, could lead to financial disasters for many homebuyers.
“I took a couple of doctors through $5m and $6m homes overnight so the market is good, but it’s not as good as it was two to three years ago,” Mr Cookson said.
“There has to be tougher consideration in these economic times where people have been given too much money from the banks.”
Mr Cookson said the current market and economic pressures could quickly drown buyers in debt if a bank lent rashly to them.
Borrowing more than 20 per cent of a home’s value can expose buyers to higher interest repayments that make rate rises more dangerous for their financial security, and other lenders will rarely take on the loan to help them refinance if they run into trouble later on.
“I see people who secretly have to sell; we recently sold a place for about $2.8m that sold for $3m three years ago,” Mr Cookson said.
“They would rather have a $400k loss and move on than try and weather the financial storm they’ve found themselves in.”
PropTrack economist Paul Ryan said aligning lenders mortgage insurance with banks lending risks was a sensible solution more broadly considering the current market conditions and was not unfair to those with lower incomes.
“If you’re a doctor or a lawyer, as a profession they have high income performance, low income risk,” Mr Ryan said.
“Banks doing this sort of thing isn’t about fairness; it allows them to tailor their offerings to specific people based on their income.
“Talk to a broker or multiple lenders to find out if you’re going to get the best deal — broadly speaking this is a good outcome for where the market it at right now.”
While no agents spoken to by the Herald Sun were aware of a buyer having used the ANZ offer to help them best another purchaser, homebuyers across Melbourne today will be looking for an edge as the number of properties going under the hammer sits at one of its lowest levels since the King’s Birthday long weekend early in June.
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Originally published as Herald Sun Real Estate auction blog: Livestreams and rolling updates from the auction market
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