Winter auction action heats up

After a two weeks of holidays when the auction gavel across the country was laid to rest, the real estate market has been reborn.

A modern Queenslander at 49 Main Ave, Wilston fetched $1.32 million under the hammer.

AUSTRALIA’S auction scene has bounced back after two weekend of little movement due to Easter and Anzac Day as well as a string of national school holidays.

Sydney home values grew 0.4 per cent for the week, according to RP Data, just ahead of the national capital average of 0.2 per cent. Perth had the strongest week with 0.8 per cent, while Melbourne suffered a 0.3 per cent fall. Adelaide (0.6 per cent) and Brisbane (0.3 per cent) continued their recent steady performance.

Sydney leads the growth for the year to date with 5.6 per cent, while Melbourne is next at 4.8 per cent. Sydney values are now up 17.5 per cent since the corresponding week in 2013.

Sydney maintained its number one place for auction clearances, recording 75.7 per cent from 817 auctions for the week. Melbourne was next best, clearing 63.7 per cent of the 878 homes that went under the hammer.

Adelaide (65.6 per cent) and Canberra (60 per cent) were also strong, while the nation’s capitals recorded a weighted average of 66.3 per cent from 2,033 auctions in total.

The private treaty market was all about Sydney as per usual, with 1,871 house sales at a median price of $740,000 for the harbour city. A unit median of $577,000 was also recorded from 863 sales.

Perth has stayed steady at $540,000 from 615 house sales, while Melbourne has managed to keep its nose just ahead of the half-million mark; selling 1,422 houses for a median of $502,500.

Bidders at Sydney auctions have become more reserved, with Auction Services reporting that only 50 per cent of registered bidders are putting their hands up on the day.

“This figure has come down dramatically from what we were seeing around Easter, which was close to 80 per cent,” said Rocky Bartolotto, director and chief auctioneer. “Buyers are also keeping within their budgets, while last month there was no hesitation to bid that extra $5,000 to $20,000.”

A three-bedroom house at 10 Noller Pde, Parramatta sold under the hammer for $1.319 million.

The reserve was $990,000 and bidding opened at $1.05 million before the property sold to an investor. A post-war home, offered for the first time since 1947, the house backs onto the Parramatta River.

A three-bedroom house at 10 Noller Pde, Parramatta which backs onto the river sold for $1.319 million.

South of the boarder in Melbourne, the highest sale under the hammer at the weekend was for a historic five-bedroom Italianate mansion, which fetched a whopping $4.66 million — far above the $1.6 million median sale price for houses in the affluent suburb.

The Victorian beauty, which dates back to the 1880s and sits on a vast 1741sq m block, was sold through JP Dixon Real Estate Brighton.

A Victorian Italianate mansion at 66 Hanby St, Brighton sold at auction for $4.66 million.

Across in Western Australia a four-bedroom “renovator’s delight” scored $2.85 million at auction on Saturday.

On a 731sq m block, the 1920s residence reached the highest auction price for the state.

The beach house at 7 Deane St, Cotteslow was sold through Space Real Estate.

This Cottesloe home at 7 Deane St sold at auction for $2.85 million.

Up in the Sunshine State, a five-bedroom house at 49 Main Ave, Wilston sold for $1.32 million at auction.

With a grand inground swimming pool and a host of modern inclusions, the contemporary Queenslander was sold through Ray White Paddington for far more than the suburb’s $789,000 median house sale price suggests.

A modern Queenslander at 49 Main Ave, Wilston fetched $1.32 million under the hammer.

South Australia’s top auction spot for the weekend was taken out by a classic cottage at 56 Hewitt Ave, Rose Park that had been in the same family for more than 40 years.

The three-bedroom house on 696sq m was sold for $1.005 million through Harcourts Brock Williams.

This classic cottage at 56 Hewitt Ave, Rose Park sold at auction for $1.005 million.