Auction wrap: Reserve prices hit for six across the nation

IT was fitting that the day after the Women's T20 World Cup began in Australia, reserve prices were being hit for six, as the nation's biggest auction house played host to 306 scheduled auctions across the country.

Ray White Group reported a whopping 580 auctions scheduled for the week - as today saw a preliminary clearance rate of 80.2 per cent - as average registered bidders sat at 5.1.

Across New South Wales, preliminary data showed a clearance rate of 85 per cent across the 103 scheduled auctions, as the number of active bidders sat at a healthy 4.4 on average.

Ray White NSW Chief Auctioneer Alex Pattaro said although Valentine's Day was in the rear view mirror, the love affair with property in Sydney in 2020 was only just beginning.

"The mood's one of real positivity and there's a sense buyers want to get in now and secure a property with prices predicted to continue an upward trajectory," Mr Pattaro said.

"We've seen some incredible results across Sydney today, and it all started at 9am with an Atarmon unit selling 107,000 over reserve, from there it was hammer drop after hammer drop."

It was no surprise that the biggest preliminary sale of the day was in Sydney, as Ray White Oatley Principals Matt O’Shea and Fraser Glen managed the $2,506,000 sale of 9 Wyong Street (pictured above), a whopping $306,000 over its reserve price.

“There was a real sense of occasion around this auction with more than 200 people in attendance and the crowd wasn’t left disappointed as five active bidders competed,” Mr O’Shea said.

“The property itself was a beautiful family home and it was sat on a 1,000sq m block, which is unusual in Oatley, as block sizes generally range between 500-600sq m.

“The start to the year has been fantastic - it really feels like it was 2-3 years ago again. There are plenty of buyers and lots of bidders and the Oatley office sold five from five at auction today.

“The tone has changed completely and there seems to be this fear of missing out. People are trying to buy before the prices increase even more and that’s generating competition.”

Reserve prices were falling like dominoes and it continued in Maroubra, where Ray White Surry Hills Managing Director Peter Natoli and Director Teresa Natoli orchestrated the $2,466,000 sale of 168 Storey Street (pictured above), $216,000 over reserve.

“This was a terrific auction as 15 registered bidders, six of whom were active, battled it out for a property that was on the market for the first time in over 55 years,” Mr Natoli said.

“It offered lots of options. You could come in and renovate, you could add a second storey, or you could rebuild. The buyer came from St Peters and plans on rebuilding and occupying.

“There’s definitely a lot of momentum in the market right now with plenty of buyers out there. We issued more than 25 contracts on this one and had over 130 groups through the opens.

“We always recommend auction as the method of sale, and you could see today with the number of bidders and the fact that bidding started at $2,000,000, that it generates real competition.”

And much like Ashton Agar against South Africa, the hat-trick of reserve-smashing sales was complete in Ermington where Ray White Gladesville Sales Executives Neil Robson and Colin Liotta oversaw the $1,526,000 sale of 26 Murdoch Street, more than $200,000 over reserve.

“This was an auction full of competition with six of the 12 registered bidders going back and forth to the tune of more than 60 bids before the hammer dropped,” Mr Robson said.

“We had 60 groups through the opens but the interest was actually far greater than that. The site has potential to be turned into a duplex so people didn’t actually need to see the house.

“We have a very strong market here. We’ve had six auctions in the area in the last four months and all six have sold well over reserve and have also had multiple bidders.

“Ermington is a bit of a sleeping giant with its river parks down by the water, cycle ways to Parramatta, proximity to ANZ stadium and being a short drive into the CBD.”

Ray White Victoria/Tasmania Chief Auctioneer Matt Condon said said it was an exceptional day across Victoria, enhanced by the great weather.

"Looking at the data, this week has seen yet another increase in the number of active bidders per auciton," Mr Condon said.

"Given the shortage of properties available, and the amount of competition we're seeing per property, there's never been a better time to sell."

And the success did continue across the border, as Ray White Bundoora Sales Specialist/Associate Director Joe Torzillo and Agent Cathy Liu oversaw the $1,175,000 sale of 6 Snake Gully Drive (pictured above), a huge $225,000 over reserve.

“This particular home is in an area where not many properties hit the market so when one does become available it generates a lot of interest and you saw that on the day,” Mr Torzillo said.

“This is one of few single-storey properties in a predominantly double-storey area so it really appealed to downsizers, and indeed, it was a Victorian downsizer who was the winning bidder.

“The market is definitely upbeat right now and we’ve noticed, starting back from the last quarter of 2019, that there are more investors around and first home buyers have more confidence.

“There is still a shortage of stock, and because we have fewer properties than this time last year, it’s driving competition and you can see that with seven registered bidders today.”

Over in Blackburn North, Ray White Forest Hill Sales Consultant Steven Yuen was getting in on the act as he managed the $1,880,000 sale of 44 Hibiscus Road, $130,000 over its reserve.

“We had five registered bidders and all five of them participated in competitive bidding on the day, and interestingly, they'd all been through the property 2-3 times,” Mr Yuen said.

“There’s still a constraint on stock at the moment and looking at what’s available on the market in the local area, this was the best big-family home available today.

“This property had it all, from five spacious bedrooms through to the alfresco area, it was styled really nice and the winning bidder was a family from near-by Ivanhoe.

“The market is positive right now and it looks like buyers that missed out on a property last year have come back even hungrier and they want to buy before prices increase too far.”

Ray White QLD Chief Auctioneer Mitch Peereboom said it had been a great day under the hammer for the Sunshine State.

"We've seen some great results throughout the course of the day, with stand-outs across a number of different markets, from lower price points up into the millions," Mr Peereboom said.

"If you are looking at coming into the market, there's certainly activity. Buyers are looking to compete unconditionally so now is the time to be picking up the phone."

And Queensland was not to be outdone, as Ray White Mooloolaba Director Brent Higgins and Sales and Marketing Agent Simon Howe oversaw the $705,000 sale of 34 Neerim Drive, $55,000 over the reserve price.

“We had more than 65 groups through during the open homes and that resulted in 14 registered bidders on the day, six of whom actively battled it out for this property,” Mr Higgins said.

“The street has a number of waterfront homes under construction so it gave potential buyers confidence they were buying into a particularly up-market and safe neighbourhood.

“There’s a lot of confidence in the market right now and we’ve seen a significant shift since November with the value of properties very much on the up.

“The Sunshine Coast will always be popular, and with the ‘wall’ of a general election and tough lending conditions seemingly brought down, the buyers are definitely back.”

Ray White SA Chief Auctioneer John Morris (pictured below) said Adelaide and South Australia had been the tale of two cities in the auction field today.

"The reason I say that is because I've had one auction where there were no bidders, and another where there were 17 bidders, and that one sailed past its reserve price," Mr Morris said.

"I've been receiving messages throughout the day that bidders are out and properties are selling - so I'm expecting an uptick in clearance rate before too long."

The property in question with 17 registered was 74 William Street and 34 Elizabeth Street, where Ray White Norwood Sales Executive Linda Clemente managed the $1,250,000 sale.

“We made a real occasion of the auction by knocking on doors and inviting everyone and we even had a coffee cart for people - we had over 170 people attend in the end,” Ms Clemente said.

“These were two titles that we sold as one. The villa at William Street was from the 1900's and the Elizabeth Street cottage, one of the oldest in Norwood, was locally heritage listed.

“Selling as one offered buyers more flexibility to realign boundaries and perhaps restore the old cottage into a B'n'B or into a pool house. I’m excited to see what the buyer does with it.

“I’ve seen an increase in open home attendances and activity since the turn of the year, and having only been with Ray White for six months, I’ve now sold six out of seven properties at auction.”