House price record believed to have been set in Sunshine with $935k auction sale
A HOUSE price record is believed to have been set in Sunshine, with a classic California bungalow fetching a huge figure at auction on the weekend.
VIC
Don't miss out on the headlines from VIC. Followed categories will be added to My News.
A HOUSE price record is believed to have been set in Sunshine, with a classic California bungalow fetching $935,000 at auction on the weekend.
The renovated five-bedroom home at 115 Cornwall Rd smashed its reserve of $865,000, as two buyers fought for the keys in a ferocious bidding war on Saturday.
TAP HERE FOR VICTORIAN SALES RESULTS
RELATED: Hawthorn East house fetches $4.105m after near hour-long bidding war
Selling agent Branko Lemaic of Jas Stephens said while the result had surprised him “number-wise”, a sale of this value had been “bound to happen” in Sunshine as it grew in popularity with bargain-hunting buyers.
“This was a landmark result for Sunshine,” Mr Lemaic said.
“To my knowledge, it’s the first $900,000-plus home that’s been sold in the suburb. We looked through the records, and we couldn’t find any others.”
The auction for the large 630sq m home started with a $790,000 vendor bid, before two bidders from nearby Footscray exchanged rapid offers to take the price to $910,000 within 30 seconds.
The bidding war then slowed until a young couple with a baby on the way won the house for $935,000.
“It was pretty ferocious in the early stages,” Mr Lemaic said of the auction.
“A few others were intending to bid, but they were quickly blown out of the water.”
According to CoreLogic RP Data, the house last sold for $384,000 in October 2002. Mr Lemaic said the vendors had lovingly renovated the house since then.
The agent said Sunshine’s affordability was drawing in buyers priced out of neighbouring suburbs in the booming inner west, including Yarraville, Seddon and Spotswood.
“It’s a knock-on affect,” he said.
“Also, if you look at the other sides of the city — the north, east, bayside — you wouldn’t find a home like (Cornwall Rd) for $900,000.”
Mr Lemaic said the suburb’s location just 11-13km from the CBD and its developing infrastructure, including train stations renovated as part of the Regional Rail Link, were also luring buyers.
He said the stigma associated with Sunshine, and Melbourne’s west in general, was fading as gentrification seeped in.
“Sunshine will soon be out of reach for some people as people will say ‘prices are on the move, we better start looking there’,” Mr Lemaic said.
Melbourne recorded a clearance rate of 73 per cent from 1057 auctions last week, according to CoreLogic RP Data.
The city’s outer east was the best performing region with a clearance rate of 79.6 per cent.
A renovated family home at 34 Milroy St, Brighton East also had success at auction on Saturday, selling for $1.6 million after a contest between three bidders, according to buyer’s advocate Frank Valentic.
Mr Valentic said the property had previously sold for $980,000 in April 2010 — the last time the Melbourne housing market peaked. It had since been undergone an extension worth $130,000.
“The market from there went on a downward spiral to its lowest crash point in September 2012. In the last three and a half years, it’s gone back up,” he said.
“This sale shows how far the market’s gone since that last peak in 2010.
“I would call this the highest house market Melbourne’s ever seen.”
Fellow buyer’s advocate Tony Rindfleisch of The Advocates watched a three-bedroom house in need of a touch up at 17 Ferndale Rd, Glen Iris fetch $2.41 million at auction on Saturday.
He said the fact the home backed on to a council park and bike track had helped it earn a big price.
SUBURB PROFILE: Sunshine
LAST WEEK’S TOP 5 HOUSE SALES
1. 3808 Point Nepean Rd, Tootgarook: $10.7m
2. 78 Sackville St, Kew: $5.71m
3. 2A Harcourt St, Hawthorn East: $4.105m
4. 116 Mont Albert Rd, Canterbury: $3.35m
5. 25 Alfred St, Kew: $3.25m
Source: CoreLogic RP Data
Laid-back lifestyle by the beach
How an architect has renovated his 1960s beach house — and included atmospheric tree houses and a fun climbing wall.
Decor and design tweaks to consider in your older years
Here are some ideas on how to tailor your home so you can live independently, not to mention stylishly, as you age.