‘Ticked the box’: Small $437k Thornbury unit ignites auction bidding war
By Abbir Dib
A small apartment in Thornbury sold for $437,000 at auction on Saturday, well above its reserve after a quick-fire bidding war.
The one-bedroom unit at 8/44 Keon Street had a price of between $365,000 and $385,000. Luke Brizzi, McGrath Northcote partner and auctioneer, opened with a vendor bid of $365,000.
The auction attracted four bidders, and bidding surged past the $395,000 reserve in under a minute.
The winning bidder was a first home buyer in his 30s, who moved from Italy less than a decade ago and works at Yarra Valley Water.
The property was one of 1191 scheduled to go to auction in Melbourne this week. By evening, Domain Group recorded a preliminary auction clearance rate of 67.2 per cent from 863 reported results throughout the week, while 100 auctions were withdrawn. Withdrawn auctions are counted as unsold properties when calculating the clearance rate.
“He was very humble and very proud that he came over and set up his life here, got a good job, and managed to buy a property by himself,” Brizzi said.
The underbidder, an empty-nester hoping to return to the area after living regionally, missed out. The other bidders were first-time buyers.
A small apartment in Thornbury sold for $437,000, exceeding its reserve.Credit: PENNY STEPHENS
Brizzi said the 44-square-metre unit was good value, particularly for entry-level buyers.
“It ticked the box of it being an old ’70s build, a double-brick apartment building and feeling contemporary because the whole block had been refurbished in the early 2000s,” he said.
The vendor is a single woman in her 40s who lived in the property years ago before renting it out.
“People now are seeing that the clearance rates are higher. They’re seeing good results. They’re keeping an eye on the market now, and pulling the trigger on selling,” Brizzi said.
He said buyers have become more decisive.
“Buyers that have told us their broker said ‘you need to go and buy something now. Otherwise, we’re going to get more interest rate cuts and you’re going to get priced out of the market’,” he said.
He said Thornbury’s popularity was growing because of its closeness to amenities and transport.
“It’s very, very close to all the action like Miller Street. It’s not too far from High Street, the tram, and the train. It’s right in the heart of everything,” Brizzi said.
A Victorian home in Malvern sold at auction for $2.204 million after a competitive bidding war.
The two-bedroom house at 65 Jordan Street had a price guide at $1.8 million to $1.95 million and had a reserve of $1.95 million.
More than 80 people attended the 25-minute auction, which opened with a $1.8 million bid from a buyer’s advocate. All three bidders were active near the $2.2 million mark, including a young couple and another party who inspected the home for the first time that day.
Auctioneer David Sciola paused the bidding after multiple $1000 rises, returning to accept only $5000 increments to speed up the auction.
Carla Fetter of Jellis Craig Malvern said the home stood out thanks to its generous 314 square metre block.
“It’s unusually large for a two-bedroom,” Fetter said. “It is a really pretty Victorian house with an attractive facade. It had a small car park at the front, but it was a car spot, nonetheless,” she said.
“We’ve had a solid start to the year, especially in Melbourne. The results have been really strong, so we’re feeling a lot more optimistic about the market,” she said.
A big family home in Oakleigh South sold for $1.75 million to a developer who bid while on holiday.
The four-bedroom home on a 1086-square-metre block at 4-6 Riley Street had been in the family for 52 years. It had a price guide between $1.6 million and $1.75 million. It had a reserve of $1.67 million.
“The opening bid was $1.4 million, and it was like extracting teeth up until the reserve,” Leigh Kelepouris from Ray White Oakleigh said.
Five bidders took part in the slow-paced auction, including three families. The underbidder and the winning buyer were both developers.
“The person who bought it was overseas and was bidding online, through a family member … He’s planning on putting a few townhouses on there,” he said.
He said the home’s rare double-block position made it attractive to both developers and owner-occupiers.
A top-floor apartment in Eaglemont failed to sell at auction, passing in within its price guide range with no bids.
The two-bedroom, one-bathroom home at 8/14 Ashby Grove listed with a price guide of $580,000 to $610,000 and passed in at $590,000. The reserve was set at $615,000.
Brad Pearce of Miles Real Estate Ivanhoe said the property attracted attention during the campaign, but no bidders registered.
“Two parties had interest but just weren’t ready to buy yet because they hadn’t got their finances finalised,” he said.