Determined Auction Goers Defy Grand Final Fever

The Age

Monday September 26, 2005

Kate Nancarrow

ON THE one weekend of the year when Sunday auctions come within cooee of Saturday's numbers, there were some strong results across Melbourne.

With only 54 auctions over the two days, it was a quiet weekend for most agents, buyers and vendors.

In Elsternwick, TBM's Rodney Morley had good results from his two Sunday auctions following the grand final. He auctioned a large Edwardian home at 1/30 Victoria Street. The backyard had been sold off for a townhouse some years ago, but the remaining home brought $690,000. "Obviously, having no backyard cut it back but it was a nice home," Mr Morley said.

His firm also auctioned a large, five-bedroom home at 364 Alma Road, Caulfield North, yesterday. "It was a nonauction," he said. "There were three parties but no one wanted to bid. Then, after the auction, I had a succession of about 15 offers. I said to one guy, 'if you'd just put in one bid you would be negotiating with yourself instead of competing with all these people'. People have got to slowly learn they need to bid."

The property eventually sold for an undisclosed price "well in excess of the $1.1 million we were quoting", he said.

Unlike many firms, TBM also conducted auctions on grand final morning. "We got $495,000 for a two-bedroom flat at 32/50 Ross Street, Toorak," Mr Morley said. "There were about 50 people. Where is everyone at 11 o'clock on a grand final day? Only 90,000 people go to the MCG, so I don't think it hurts. We're going to do more next year."

With the spring selling season beginning in earnest next weekend, Mr Morley said there was plenty of interest from buyers and sellers but "we've got the perennial problem of what we call 'agents buying business'.

They tell the vendors $500,000 more than we would. It's nearly our best source of listings - disgruntled vendors who've gone to auction with someone else."

He said the "spring rush" was late this year and vendors deciding to sell now would be holding early November auctions.

Adrian Jones, of Noel Jones Real Estate, reported a happy, if rare, result for the weekend - a 100 per cent clearance rate."

We had three properties scheduled for auction but two sold prior and one sold on the day."

A "tiny investment flat" at 5/39 Paxton Street, Malvern East, sold at a 10am auction on grand final day for $267,000."

We are seeing encouraging signs of increased activity but ... the Melbourne property market has come through 18 months of difficult times," he said.

Fletchers, one of the few firms consistently holding auctions on grand final day, didn't fare as well. Both properties at two prematch auctions passed in.

A new four-bedroom home at 174 Mont Albert Road, Canterbury, passed in on a vendor bid of $950,000. The reserve was undisclosed. A four-bedroom rear unit at 12A Lemon Road, North Balwyn, was also passed in on a vendor bid of $450,000, below the reserve of $485,000.

© 2005 The Age

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