Six downsizers competed for a single-level Edwardian home in Middle Park just steps from the beach at auction on Saturday, pushing the price to $2.85 million.
With a guided price range of $2.2 million to $2.4 million, the single-level home at 89 Wright Street’s offered a rare opportunity, said lead agent Simon Gowling of Jellis Craig Port Phillip.
“There are becoming fewer and fewer opportunities for downsizers to find single-level properties in Middle Park, particularly because they’re so expensive that most people, over time, have tried to maximise the land and put a second level on,” he said.
The three-bedroom property was called on the market at $2.4 million, with two bidders dropping out shortly after at $2.5 million. More followed suit at $2.6 million and $2.65 million, with one bidder pushing it up to $2.75 million.
“And then one guy dropped out, and then this lady came back in… at $2.81 million, and then it went, bang, bang, bang, up to $2.85 million, and then that was it,” Gowling said.
The successful bidder had been looking for a while.
“The first kind of home that she’d really seen, she liked, and she just went for it,” said Gowling.
Gowling said the market in Middle Park has responded to the rate cut.
“Middle Park can turn on a dime,” he said “There’s a sense of urgency that comes into play. And [they] think, ‘I don’t want to get priced out of the market, because it can happen quite quickly.’”
The property was one of 1156 scheduled for auction in Melbourne this week. By evening, Domain Group recorded a preliminary auction clearance rate of 67 per cent from 889 reported results throughout the week, while 89 auctions were withdrawn. Withdrawn auctions are counted as unsold properties when calculating the clearance rate.
In Cheltenham, a two-bedroom home that last sold in 2022 in a hot market for $626,000 managed to fetch $712,000 at auction on Saturday.
The home at 2/310 Warrigal Road was priced between $600,000 and $660,000.
The auction quickly reached its reserve of $660,000 said lead agent Kevin Chokshi of Ray White.
“It opened with a bid of $600,000, then had bids of $10,000, then $5,000, $1,000 and down to $500,” he said.
Four bidders registered, but only two were active: the underbidders who were downsizers, and the new owners, a young couple buying their first home.
“Her partner couldn’t be there, so it was her and some family and friends in attendance. When she won, she was speechless and emotional,” Chokshi said.
Being a turnkey home was a major drawcard for potential buyers, with a separate, extra space from the main house that was once used as a dress-making studio, offering the potential for an additional bedroom.
Chokshi said the market has been strong in the area.
In Newport, a classic Californian four-bedroom home sold under the hammer for $1.755 million.
With a price range of $1.5 million to $1.6 million, the property at 59 Oxford Street is on 756 square metres. The opportunity for a dual-occupancy development was a big draw card, said lead agent, Mark de Brabander from The Agency.
“The main attraction was definitely the size of the land and that there were also no overlays meaning there was flexibility with options from a complete rebuild to moving in as is,” he said.
The winning bidders, a young couple who already live on the street and are looking to upsize, are planning to rent the property out before renovating and moving in, de Brabander said.
It had a reserve of $1.66 million and three active bidders.
“It was between two bidders at the beginning - the successful bidder and the underbidder, a young family looking for their dream home, before a third came in around halfway and then soon dropped back out, leaving the initial two to fight it out,” de Brabander said.
Opening with a bid of $1.5 million, it rose in $25,000 increments until $1.65 million and then lowered to $10,000 and $5,000 bids.
He said the market in the area is inconsistent.
“The market is pretty finicky at the moment, with fussy buyers. Some properties are performing really well, while others are just sitting there.”
Ray White chief economist Nerida Conisbee said the Melbourne market is “pretty balanced,” with the auction clearance rate indicating that vendors are willing to be realistic about the state of the market.
“They are prepared to sell even if they may not be getting a much higher price than what they initially paid for,” she said.
“Average auction bidding in Melbourne has declined slightly from the same time last year, but it’s showing that the interest rate cut didn’t have a huge impact on the market overall.”