Real Estate auction blog: Livestreams and rolling updates from Melbourne’s auction market
One of North Melbourne’s earliest surviving row houses has sold almost $400k above expectations at auction today, while 12 bidders went toe-to-toe for a Hawthorn apartment.
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A historic North Melbourne house soared way past expectations at a competitive auction today as multiple bidders vied for the keys.
Victoria’s property market is heating up with 821 properties set to go under the hammer by Sunday’s end ahead of an anticipated busy spring.
Watch live auctions at Gavl.com or catch up on the latest auction replays.
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PropTrack figures show Victoria will likely next week see its first Super Saturday since early April, with 1122 auctions expected.
Another 1050 auctions are on the cards for the week starting August 28.
PropTrack economist Anne Flaherty said interest rates have held steady for two consecutive months and property prices were “continuing to rise off the back of strengthening buyer demand”.
“Seller confidence is rebounding and, if the recent pick-up in auction levels is any gauge, we could be in for a busy spring,” Ms Flaherty said.
A house that achieved a strong auction result recently is 749 Drummond St, Carlton North.
Former Essendon and GWS Giants player Devon Smith bought Victorian-era single-fronted terrace when he was aged 22, the first property that he ever purchased.
Smith, who briefly lived in the home, recruited his family and friends with a trade background to upgrade the pad’s interior and garden.
“The home became a bit of a meeting point for friends before going to footy or going to sport on the weekend,” Smith said.
Nelson Alexander Carlton North’s Charlie Barham said five bidders competed for the two-bedroom house when it went under the hammer last weekend.
“The reserve was $1.4m and the first bid was $1.45m, so it was on the market straight away,” Mr Barham said.
He said “hard and fast” bidding led to the house selling for $1.6m, a sum $200,000 above reserve.
“A young professional first-home buyer who had been looking in the area for about six months won the keys, he was thrilled,” Mr Barham added.
The fact the house had been renovated made it popular with buyers, he said.
And nearby, a former Carlton hotel frequented by Melbourne gangster Squizzy Taylor and the house next door, which were both headed for auction this weekend, sold on Wednesday when the owner accepted an early offer.
The ex-Weedon’s Hotel, now a three-bedroom house at 84 Barkly St, and the neighbouring 86 Barkly St were snapped up by the same buyer.
AUCTION REPLAYS AND RESULTS
The properties’ owner said Squizzy, famous for his criminal exploits including armed robbery and murder in the 1910s and 1920s, had been a hotel regular.
Nelson Alexander’s Janine Ballantyne said the two houses sold for an undisclosed price higher than both home’s combined asking ranges.
The former hotel was listed for $1.4m-$1.5m and the other home for $1.3m-$1.4m.
“They hadn’t been offered in over 50 years,” Ms Ballantyne said.
According to PropTrack, the state recorded a 61.8 per cent auction clearance rate last week
172-174 CHETWYND ST, NORTH MELBOURNE
A bluestone North Melbourne house sold for $395,000 above its upper advertised range at a nailbiting auction today.
The three-bedroom house at 172-174 Chetwynd St was listed with a $1.4m-$1.54m price tag but fetched $1.935m under the hammer.
Bidding began with a $1.39m offer and quickly escalated, with the home announced on the market at $1.6m.
Some of the bids came so fast that the auctioneer, WB Simpson & Son’s Richard Simpson, barely had time to do more than nod.
Mr Simpson said the home started life in 1853 as two bluestone row houses.
A Geelong grocer, John Holman, Ballarat miner William Holman and North Melbourne plumber Joseph Hallows are among the previous owners, according to Melbourne City Council records.
The house is listed under a heritage overlay as “one of municipality’s earliest surviving row houses”.
Mr Simpson said the home was updated and extended in 1994, becoming a double storey with its period features like decorative fireplaces, internal bluestone steps and a central staircase retained.
“I think a lot of people really like the quirkiness of it,” Mr Simpson said.
“The living has two fireplaces, you don’t get that very often.”
The lockup garage was also popular with buyers, he added.
Mr Simpson said groups from Sydney, Canberra and Tasmania had inspected prior to auction.
1/114 RIVERSDALE RD, HAWTHORN
Twelve buyers registered for the auction of a one-bedroom apartment at 1/114 Riversdale Rd, Hawthorn, today.
Listed with a $380,000-$410,000 price guide, the property sold for $460,000.
The Agency’s Luke Saville said the reserve was $410,000.
Only a handful of buyers able to make a bid before the hammer came down, he added.
“It sold to a young first-home buyer from Surrey Hills who only just saw it for the first time on Thursday,” Mr Saville said.
More than 90 groups inspected the apartment, featuring timber floors, light-filled living and dining area, kitchen with stainless-steel appliances and a north-facing balcony, before the auction.
37 FRIENDSHIP SQUARE, CHELTENHAM
The owners of Cheltenham townhouse were overjoyed when their investment property sold today in a lightning-fast auction.
Four bidders participated in the auction for 37 Friendship Square.
Ray White’s Angela Limanis said the “quick and fast” bidding process lasted just 4.5 minutes and the entire auction less than 15 minutes.
“The winning bidder had been in the market for a few months,” Ms Limanis said.
The townhouse sold for $850,000, a figure $100,000 above the $750,000 reserve.
Ms Limanis said the two-bedrooms abode had no body corporate, which made it popular with buyers.
She said the owners were “stoked” with the auction result.
The home was their investment property and they had rented it out for 22 years prior to selling, and previously lived in the block’s front property, she added.
69 GOWANBRAE DRIVE, GOWANBRAE
A three-bedroom Gowanbrae investment property was sold by its young owners today.
Ray White Gladstone Park’s Malek Younan said the house at 69 Gowanbrae Drive had four bidders register for the auction but only one buyer ended up taking part.
“The sellers were a young family who originally lived in the home but then rented it out,” Mr Younan said.
“They sold the investment to release some pressure and spend more time with the family.”
The house sold for $800,000 under the hammer.
“The winning bid went to a young couple of first home buyers.,” Mr Younan said.
“There were a lot of emotions from both parties.”
Mr Younan said there was plenty of interest in the lead up to the auction.
“We had 65 groups inspect the property throughout the three week campaign,” he said.
“People still have that FOMO and there’s still not much stock on the market.”
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Originally published as Real Estate auction blog: Livestreams and rolling updates from Melbourne’s auction market
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