Real estate agents make their moves in January job shuffle

While the coastal auction sales season got under way, metropolitan estate agents took the opportunity to make a fresh start in new surrounds.

Adelaide’s top sale was the picturesque sandstone villa on Prosser Avenue, Norwood, which fetched $2.3m.

January saw the regular seasonal job shuffling across the real estate industry.

While the coastal auction sales season was under way, metropolitan estate agents took the opportunity for a fresh start in new surrounds.

The biggest upheaval was at The Agency, the only listed estate agency after the privatisation departure of the McGrath Group from the ASX last June.

The Agency lost its general manager of sales in Victoria, Sally O’Connell, who joined the boutique sales firm Abercrombys as its CEO.

“With a distinguished career spanning over two decades in the real estate and finance sectors, Sally is known for her strategic vision and innovative leadership,” outgoing CEO Andrew Harlock said, adding he will remain involved as a shareholder.

The 20 year-old Abercrombys agency secured 125 property sales over the past year, with a team of 21 agents, according to realestate.com.au data.

O’Connell, a former Macquarie Group executive, had arrived just two Januarys ago at The Agency, taking over from Peter Kakos, its inaugural Victorian manager.

Geoff Lucas, The Agency’s recently departed Sydney-based group managing director, was quick to endorse O’Connell’s move last month on LinkedIn.

The Malvern East-domiciled O’Connell will relocate from Toorak Road, Toorak offices to High Street, Armadale. It’s an upmarket move since Abercrombys’ average house sale was $2.48m last year, compared to $790,000 from her team of 32 agents.

The Agency Victoria sold some 143 properties over the past year, taking its total to 835 since its 2017 establishment. While maintaining offices at Altona, Williamstown and Shepparton, its marquee offices at Albert Park and Hawthorn have closed.

Now with its head office in Redfern, the NSW Agency team sold 339 properties over the past year, taking its tally to 3040 since opening in January 2017.

It currently has 73 agents, although it lost rising star Peter Perry to BresicWhitney over the break.

Three’s a crowd

The Sydney trio that was the Morish, Clark and Anderson Buyer’s Agency has split.

But the Double Bay buyers agent Bettina Clark is keeping the acronym: MCA Buyer’s Agency.

Clark, who posted footage of her holiday in Courchevel, had kicked off the arrangement with Victoria Morish and John Anderson this time last year.

Anderson was the first to leave, followed by Morish.

Clark posted on Instagram that 2024 saw 38 purchases by clients with prices between $795,000 and $21m.

Market wakes up

CoreLogic research director Tim Lawless says capital city auction markets are continuing to move out of the festive period slowdown.

There were 1399 homes taken to market by auction last week, up from 429 in the week prior, but down on the same week last year when 1712 homes went under the hammer.

There was a 65 per cent national preliminary clearance rate.

Canberra topped the results with a 68 per cent success rate, including a $2m pre-auction sale at 8 Rawson Street, Deakin among the 131 auctions across Canberra.

There was also the $1.98m onsite sale at 27 Hutchins Street, ­Yarralumla.

Sydney, with the second-highest preliminary success rate of 67 per cent, had 461 auctions.

The top weekend result was $3.95m for the five-bedroom, two-bathroom house at 17 Lihon Street, Lane Cove West. The two-storey post-Federation home had last sold in 2017 for $2.6m.

There was a higher result pre-auction for 3 Wirra Close, St Ives, a five-bedroom, five-bathroom house on 1176sq m, at $4.35m. It had been snapped up in mid-­December.

Brighton’s best

Some 479 auctions were held in Melbourne, returning a preliminary 65 per cent clearance rate.

Melbourne’s top notified sale was $2.9m in Brighton East.

The five-bedroom, three-bathroom modern house at 6 Tuxen Court sold through Buxton agent Leanne Potter, who gave $2.85m to $2.95m guidance.

The marketing attracted more than 7000 page views on realestate.com.au.

It had last sold through Buxton for $1,180,000 in 2014.

The 32ha farm on the Great Ocean Road at Apollo Bay comes with a 20m waterfall.

Outside of Melbourne in Victoria’s southwest, Urquhart’s Falls, an Apollo Bay property, sold after its auction on Saturday.

The 32ha farm at 6090 Great Ocean Road came with a 1930s dairy building that morphed into a rustic French farmhouse.

The property has a 20m waterfall that feeds into Stony Creek.

After 11,400 page views on realestate.com.au, The Herald Sun reported it attracted $3.01m auction bidding interest and sold soon after at an undisclosed price. It had been listed with $3.7m to $4m guidance through Charles Stewart Colac agent Josh Lamanna.

It comes complete with machinery and shearing sheds, a 100-capacity sheep yard and a Metalcorp cattle yard.

Brisbane shines

Across the smaller capitals, Brisbane hosted 161 auctions, with CoreLogic calculating a 58 per cent preliminary clearance rate.

Sales included 88 Bulimba Street, Bulimba, a three-bedroom cottage that sold pre-auction for $1,755,000 through Ray White agent Robyn Hoare. It had last sold in 1991 for $143,000.

There were 156 homes auctioned in Adelaide, with 61 per cent selling.

A three-bedroom cottage on Bulimba Street, Bulimba, sold pre-auction for $1,755,000.

Adelaide’s top sale was the picturesque sandstone villa at 31 Prosser Avenue, Norwood which fetched $2.3m through Tom Hector at Harris Real Estate.

The 1910 villa got an architectural extension after being sold in 2018 for $930,000.

“The volume of auctions is set to ramp up further over the coming weeks, with activity historically peaking the week prior to the Easter long weekend,” Lawless said.

Sydney ramps up

There are eight prestige Sydney auction listings this weekend seeking $5m or more, including the unsold offering at 5 Marine Parade, Manly which has $10m to $11 guidance.

The site of Manly’s first inn, the Tapestry, hit the market last April through Novak Real Estate, described as having the same potential as James Packer’s Campbell Parade, Bondi Beach development that set a $29m record in 2018.

There are then 29 prestige Sydney listings on February 15.

This jumps to 59 prestige auction listings set to go under the hammer on February 22.

The Holdsworth Street, Woollahra, home of car dealer Greg Sanderson goes under the hammer on February 22.

They include the Woollahra home of the car dealer Greg Sanderson and his wife Elizabeth.

Their three-bedroom, two-bathroom Holdsworth Street house, modernised by Alex Popov to deliver a low-maintenance residence opening to alfresco spaces, has been listed through Georgia Cleary of McGrath.

The property with 9.3m frontage features a courtyard with built-in barbecue, basement cellar and off-street parking for two cars.

The couple, who spend much of their time at Burradoo, regularly hold court at Cafe Maybach in Rushcutters Bay which is run by daughter Serena, set alongside the Sandersons’ Mercedes-Benz dealership headed by their son Will.