Auction vs private treaty: Why one method is now the ‘standard’
One method of selling a home has now become ‘standard’ rather than a choice in a city where property is booming. Here’s why.
Homehunters have cut the holidays short this year to prioritise their quest for a property, with southeast Queensland agents reporting big numbers at open homes and auctions just a month into the new year.
According to PropTrack, there are 439 auctions scheduled in Queensland this week — 71 per cent more than the same week a year ago.
At one Brisbane auction at the weekend, a one young couple was able to get their first home thanks to the ‘bank of mum and dad’.
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Eight bidders registered for the auction of 59 Buckley St, Carina Heights, where a mix of first homebuyers and developers competed for the two-bedroom, one-bathroom property, which eventually sold under the hammer for $1.354m.
Torres Property Coorparoo agent and auctioneer Amir Shamsi said the buyer was an older couple, who bought the home for their child and their child’s partner.
“The young buyers couldn’t afford it,” Mr Shamsi said, “but then mum and dad came and bought it. And they spent a little bit more money because of the size of the property, but the kids will be living in the house.”
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More than 80 auctions are booked for Place Estate Agents’ first major auction event of the year on Friday, with Place’s chief auctioneer Peter Burgin saying auction are now the preferred method of selling property in Brisbane.
“Our data clearly shows auctions work,” Mr Burgin said. “The average time on market for a property with Place in an auction campaign is just 29 days, compared to 91 days for a private treaty sale.
“Sellers who choose auction are making an easy decision — they want to sell fast and with more certainty.”
Mr Burgin said sellers wanted to deal with “low-risk buyers” who were “finance-approved and ready to act”.
“The legacy of the post-Covid years has firmly established auctions as the preferred method for selling across most Brisbane suburbs,” he said.
“The fierce competition and record-breaking prices during this period have proven that auctions are the most efficient way to sell in today’s market. What was once a choice is now becoming the standard.
“As we move into the next 12 months, we’re expecting the ratio of auction listings to increase.”
‘The Summer Day’ auction event will showcase an in-room at event at The Calile Hotel on February 7, followed by two days of onsite auctions.
Vendor Jade Dixon and her family are taking their Holland Park West home of about 10 years to auction at the event.
They have bought their new property at auction, so thought it made sense to sell their former one at 61 Bonneville Street the same way.
“It’s really hard to put a price on your memories,” she said. “We just thought it would be a great way to let the market decide what the property was worth.”
Ray White Queensland had 372 auctions scheduled in January, which was up 11 per cent on the same time last year.
The clearance rate was a bit low at 57 per cent, with an average of 5 registered bidders and 3.5 active bidders for each property.
The state’s auction activity kicked off with ‘The Event’ by Ray White Surfers Paradise, which is tracking towards $100 million-plus in total sales on the back of fierce bidding from a crowd of 3,000 people on the Gold Coast.
A sprawling family compound, pair of duplexes, and a lucrative industrial parcel were among the first properties sold under the hammer, with the clearance rate reaching an impressive 83 per cent and $79m worth of residential and commercial real estate sold.
Originally published as Auction vs private treaty: Why one method is now the ‘standard’