Hawthorn stunner beats the predictions by $2m
Two bidders fought out a hot contest for a renovated 1890s home in Hawthorn that resulted in Melbourne’s priciest auction result for the weekend, some $2m over guidance.
Melbourne’s priciest auction result – $7.4m for a renovated 1890s home at 3 Chrystobel Cres, Hawthorn – was some $2m over guidance.
The weekend auction had just two bidders, but they took the sale price well beyond its Marshall White Boroondara guide of $5m to $5.5m.
“There had been no change in the home from 2020 when it sold for $4,850,000 with the same agent,” buyers agent Mal James noted.
The Grace Park Estate offering, a solid brick Victorian residence with four bedrooms and two bathrooms, a landscaped garden and pool, attracted 15,800 page views on realestate.com.au.
It was marketed by selling agent Desiree Wakim as having “an instantly appealing classic period façade, complete with iron lacework veranda”.
Its 2011 renovation had cost over $1m, according to Cordell Construction.
“The overall market is definitely rising,” James said. “But we’re witnessing a clear divide when it comes to homes that need renovation.
“A house that requires no work is highly valued, akin to gold.
“On the flip side, a house in need of renovations is seen as far less desirable and the market is flat, in some cases falling.
“Even when sellers offer significant price discounts, this doesn’t always change the perception, and a home that requires renovation work and is priced just slightly above its perceived value won’t get a second glance from potential buyers.”
Melbourne’s weekly preliminary clearance rate rose three percentage points to 72.7 per cent with 699 results collected so far, which Tim Lawless at CoreLogic calculates as the city’s highest result in five weeks.
Melbourne was the only capital city to see a decline in week-on-week auction stock last week, with 838 homes put under the hammer, down from 877 the previous week when there was a 69.5 per cent preliminary success rate.
This time last year, 60 per cent of the 779 auctions held across Melbourne were successful.
Woollahra woes
There was no under-the-hammer success with Sydney’s dearest weekend listing at 75 Ocean St, Woollahra.
Seeking $25m-plus, Icilus, the 1880s Victorian Italianate estate, was passed in on a $26.8 vendor bid from auctioneer Damien Cooley on Saturday when offered by The Agency, despite three interested parties.
Set on 853sq m, the six-bedroom, four-bathroom house featured interiors curated by Claire Delmar of CD Studio for a theatrical family home.
It has been showcased in Vogue Living and even on the cover of Architectural Digest Mexico.
The residence, which last sold for $13.5m in 2017, secured 16,000 page views on realestate.com.au before the auction.
Woollahra’s latest listing is the failed early 2023 offering, Denholm on Fullerton St, now with revised $27.5m to $30m guidance from Elliott Placks at Ray White.
The vendor, lawyer and corporate adviser Charles Mendel, initially listed the Georgian-style six-bedroom, six-bathroom home, designed by architect Robin Dods, with Forbes Global Property. They expected $29m to $32m buyer interest.
Mendel, the co-chair of the Woollahra Residents’ Association, purchased it in 2007 for $5.85m.
$13.5m in Tamarama
A Tamarama house sold under the hammer for $13.55m, having come with a price guide of $12.5m to $13m.
There were three local registered buyers all looking to upsize to the four-bedroom home at 12 Thompson St.
The bidding opened at $12.5m for the home, which last traded at $3,605,000 in 2015 when bought by Gavin Holman from Haben Property Fund.
It was offered with development approval for triple garaging and a lift entry.
The house features a 14kW Tesla powerwall.
Sydney narrowly beat out Melbourne as the country’s busiest auction market, with 839 auctions held last week, the busiest since early April.
With 631 results collected so far by CoreLogic, Sydney recorded its highest preliminary clearance rate since late June with its 77.5 per cent success rate, edging out Adelaide on 76.2 per cent as the market leader.
Best of Brisbane
Some 69 per cent of auctions held across Brisbane were successful.
The priciest listing, a Hamptons-inspired residence at 63 Amy St, Hawthorne, fetched $4.9m through Tony O’Doherty of Belle Property. The five-bedroom, four-bathroom house with pool and four-car garage is set on 931sq m. The 2015-built abode last sold for $3.665m in 2017, slightly less than the $3.71m it initially traded for in 2015.
It secured over 10,000 page views on realestate.com.au during its five weeks on the market.
Brisbane also saw the sale of the restored and extended 1920s cottage at 16 Ellis St, Teneriffe for $3.105m.
Its Ray White selling agent Matt Lancashire conducted 98 buyer inspections, with enquiries from expats in Asia and Britain and buyers in Melbourne, Sydney, Perth and across southeast Queensland.
Another property at 20 Shakespeare St, Bulimba sold under the hammer for $2.985m with four registered bidders.
But there was no sale for 23 Fraser Tce, Highgate Hill, which now comes with a $3.7m-plus guidance. The riverfront four-bedroom, three-bathroom abode was built a year ago, across three levels.
The 425sq m property last sold for $1.1m in 2020.
Markets recovering
With 2056 homes auctioned – up 6.6 per cent – last week marked the combined capitals’ busiest auction week since before Easter and the fifth-busiest week of the year. Six of the seven capitals secured a week-on-week increase in the preliminary clearance, excepting Canberra, resulting in a national 74 per cent success rate.
“Auction markets are looking reinvigorated,” Lawless said.
PropTrack economist Anne Flaherty notes that the number of homes heading to auction picks up over the final weeks of winter, with over 2000 homes scheduled over each of the next three weeks.
“Seller confidence is rebounding and, if the recent pick-up in auction levels is any gauge, we could be in for a busy spring,” she said.
“For homeowners who changed their mind about selling this year, market uncertainty was the number one driver.
“This uncertainty is now starting to ease.
“Interest rates have held steady for two consecutive months and property prices are continuing to rise off the back of strengthening buyer demand,” Flaherty added.
Whale watch
Garrawilla, the Tobias Partners-designed Whale Beach home commissioned in 2013 by veteran merchant banker Mike Crivelli, has been listed for sale. The Whale Beach Rd trophy home on 1654sq m was shortlisted for two architectural design awards.
David and BJ Edwards of LJ Hooker hold the listing for the five-bedroom, six-bathroom oceanfront home, which features a steam room.
Crivelli purchased the holding for $7.2m in 2006.
It has had 3400 page views on realestate.com.au in its initial two weeks.
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