Property market fired up by on-site auction return

BIDDERS and vendors today welcomed the return of on-site auctions in New South Wales with physically-distanced open arms as energy surrounding the property market re-ignited with incredible deals and ferocious bidding, according to the Ray White Group.

The leading agency, who had 45 per cent national auction market share, booked a preliminary auction day clearance rate of 74.1 per cent as Sydney stole the show with a 100 per cent clearance rate.

Ray White Group Managing Director Dan White said the strong number of registered bidders today was a sign of confidence flowing back into the market.

"The feedback I've received from both bidders and buyers have overwhelmingly embraced the return of on-site auctions and some outstanding results have been achieved today," Mr White said.

"You could feel the rise in confidence on the ground - and although physically distanced - there was a real togetherness during the auctions today.

"The success of online auctions were clear too as some agents opted to run a best of both worlds day with auctions running both online and on-site with parallel success.

"We can look forward to more restrictions being lifted and on-site auctions returning around the country in the near future - but as of right now - the on-site auction market is very much re-ignited in Sydney."

Ray White NSW Chief Auctioneer Alex Pattaro said the return of open for inspections and on-site auctions had started off with a bang.

"Some agents are reporting a higher level of enquiry and buyer activity with open for inspection attendances strong," Mr Pattaro said.

"Auctions across Sydney have also seen wonderful results with our preliminary data showing average registrations per auctions move north to five.

"The number of active bidders on average has also climbed to four - these are the highest sets of numbers we've seen since pre-COVID."

And that confidence was there in spades in Westmead as Ray White Commercial Western Sydney Principal Peter Vines, Associate Director Victor Sheu and Director Joseph Assaf managed the $3,855,000 sale of 1-5/35 Park Avenue (pictured above), hundreds of thousands over reserve and the preliminary highest under the hammer sale of the day.

“This really was a superb auction and I have absolutely no doubt this sort of result was only possible because of the competitive on-site auction environment,” Mr Vines said

“We had a whopping 15 registered bidders, 12 of whom were active, and they managed to generate a massive total of 118 bids between them before the hammer finally fell.

“Westmead as an area ticks all the boxes with a huge medical and student population, sat on the doorstep of ever-growing Parramatta, and right by the park for families.

“There’s very little product like this out there at the moment for investors, and going forward, we know that strong asset classes will continue to sell really well.”

But it was the beginning of the day that really got momentum going as Ray White Surry Hills Directors Shaun Stoker and Ercan Ersan orchestrated the $1,585,000 sale of 33A Pearl Street (pictured above) in Newtown - $85,000 over the reserve price.

“It’s absolutely brilliant to be back to on-site auctions - as soon as we heard the news from the NSW Government - we switched from online to on-site straight away,” Mr Stoker said.

“This is a real marker that shows confidence is still high in the property market, and with stock levels lower than usual, the competition at auction is fierce.

“I have to say the COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t had an overwhelming impact for us and in the last six weeks we’ve managed to sell 16 out of 18 properties under the hammer.

“The market was in a far worse state before the Federal Election last year and I hope potential vendors take today’s result as a barometer of what can still be achieved right now.”

Buyer Andrew Crouch said he, his partner and his young child had been looking for their first home to buy after renting in near-by Erskenville.

“We’ve been looking for a three-bedroom, two-bathroom property for a while and this home fit all of the criteria we wanted as a family,” Mr Crouch said.

“We love the neighbourhood of Newtown and to be honest, whether the auction was online or on-site like it was today, we still would have bid because we wanted it so much.”

And Mr Ersan made it a double-delight later in the day as he successfully orchestrated the $1,231,000 sale of 3/1 Cardigan Lane (pictured above) in Camperdown - $131,000 over reserve.

“This was another excellent auction with eight bidders registering and five of those actively bidding to drive the price up well beyond the reserve,” Mr Ersan said.

“On-site auctions really do evoke that raw emotion for the bidders - and particularly today stood in the park opposite - you can literally see the prize in front of you.

“The property itself was always going to sell because it was in just a small block of four townhouses and had a huge outdoor entertaining area.

“We had 53 private inspections during the campaign so we knew it was going to be a special auction and the winning bidders were a couple currently renting locally.”

The on-site confidence was palpable and it continued as Ray White Drummoyne Sales Consultant Chris Wilkins managed the $1,856,000 sale of 30 Byrne Avenue (pictured above).

“On-site auctions are in our DNA - we adapted pretty much overnight to online auctions - but at the first opportunity of doing what we do best, we took it as quickly as we could,” Mr Wilkins said.

“We decided to have the best of both worlds and had this auction split between on-site and online and it was a successful tactic with four registrations online and two on-site.

“We’ve been telling our vendors and potential vendors that the blue sky is coming and it is. We launched a property last week and have already had 40 people through.

“Hopefully today’s result gives people thinking about selling the confidence they need that the market is bustling and now is the ideal time to be coming to market.”

Buyer Steve Najovski said him and his wife Caitlyn were not even supposed to be bidding on the property as they had just had a baby boy.

"But it seemed people were more hesitant, what with COVID-19, so we thought it would be the right time to enter the market and buy," Mr Najovski said.

"We saw the property four weeks ago but I didn't really have 'that' feeling for it. But we saw it again yesterday and that all changed. So we're delighted to have secured the property today."

Ray White Victoria and Tasmania Chief Auctioneer Matt Condon said the online auction space had hit yet another level today.

"Our preliminary data shows a significant increase in the number of registered bidders per auction and a spike in online crowd size," Mr Condon said.

"Of the properties auctioned today, we've certainly seen a lot more competition and competitive bidding in comparison to normal with buyers doing everything they could to win.

"Of the few properties that didn't sell under the hammer, it was encouraging to see the gap between the highest bid and the reserve price was a lot closer than recent weeks."

The preliminary highest sale of the day came in Mount Waverley where Ray White Glen Waverley Sales Agent Darryl Wickham and Area Manager Alan Zhang managed the $1,078,000 sale of 530 High Street Road (pictured above) - $28,000 over reserve.

“Despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, we still managed to attract 22 people to private inspections and that turned into seven registered bidders,” Mr Wickham said.

“Five of those bidders were active so that gives you an idea that buyer confidence is still very much out there and there are a pool of buyers that have missed out ready to buy.

“The house itself is 60 years old and the lucky winning bidders were a local family not too far from here - they’re moving to the area for a better school catchment.”

In Keilor Downs there was a terrific result where Ray White Melton Principal Jae Doyle and Sales Agent Joe Mavrikos sold 35 Tarella Drive (pictured above) for $725,000 - $55,000 over reserve.

“We had an auction not too far from here in February prior to COVID-19 and we had half the amount of people through this property that sold today,” Mr Doyle said.

“The inspections were down 50 per cent but we had double the amount of registered bidders - so that goes to show it’s only really genuine buyers coming through.

“Most properties that come up in this area are very tightly held - the majority looking at this property grew up in this area, had family or already live here - it’s that tightly held.”

“We’re first home buyers and we’ve been looking for the past six months so we’re very excited to finally stop looking,” said buyer Chloe.

“We loved the renovation and the fact this home has been modernised on the inside. We live locally and it’s quite hard to buy in this area so we feel very lucky.

“We viewed the property online and Jae was able to organise the inspection. It has all been pretty smooth sailing.”

“We were really rooting for Chloe when we saw her and her partner’s excitement on the screen. We really didn’t expect such a fantastic result,” said vendor Amy.

“We were a little nervous about COVID-19 but we just had to keep moving forward - we were already committed elsewhere. I don't think it’s affecting the property market as much as it’s being hyped up to be. You just need some faith and a good agent.”

The success continued as Ray White Nagambie Principal Mark Boyer and Sales Associate Dylan Merritt successfully sold 15 River Street (above) for $405,000 - $45,000 over reserve.

"People not being able to travel and inspect was difficult as we have a tourist element in our area but the owners are really happy with the result," Mr Boyer said.

"It was an estate sale - a young family bought the property. The family selling it were really happy that the garden they created was going to someone who enjoyed the garden."

"It was an excellent result. We priced what we thought it was worth in our minds and we got a really good result - for us and for a long-term investment," said purchaser Brandon.

"The COVID-19 situation hasn’t really affected us. If anything, we thought we might be able to get a better price. We've been looking for a while now - for about 12 months."

And last, but by no means least was in Broadmeadows, where Ray White Glenroy Sales Agents Omer Koksal and Erhan Kalitsu sold 5 Stamford Court (pictured above) for $620,000.

"Online auctions has made for more genuine buyers and the process is transparent - I like it because you know people really are interested in the property," Mr Koksal said.

"The home had been in the family for years and the buyer started crying with joy at the end."

Ray White QLD Chief Auctioneer Mitch Peereboom (below) said the Sunshine State welcomed the announcement of the easing of restrictions from the State and Federal Government this week.

“This has injected more positivity and more energy into the marketplace and we averaged four registered bidders per auction over the course of the last seven days,” Mr Peereboom said.

“With auction volumes down over the last few weeks, we’re very excited and energised around the building of that volume into the end of May, through to June.

“Our members have been excellent with online auctions, but with the easing of restrictions, we have an optimistic view of the marketplace over the next few weeks.”

Ray White SA Chief Auctioneer John Morris said although restrictions were being lifted from Monday, there could still be some restraints with the 10-person limit.

“Our average registered bidders per auction are sitting at 7.2 so we’re just pushing that boundary there,” Mr Morris said.

“My first auction for the day had nine registered bidders, so that will increase the average as a whole, so I think online auctions may still be with us for some time yet.

“I have to give a special mention to Stefan Siciliano of Ray White Norwood who managed to attract 21 registered bidders to a property during the week with it selling under the hammer.”