Luxury buyers underpinning Perth market

MEDICOS, mining executives and overseas expats are underpinning a strengthening prestige property market in Perth, according to the top agent in the west, Vivien Yap, director of Ray White Dalkeith | Claremont.

Ms Yap - who is based in the blue chip western suburbs - said she was seeing more buyers move to the west for work in both the mining and medical fields.

In the last three weeks alone, Ms Yap has exchanged contracts more than $25M worth of Perth's finest homes.

“Some of my owners who moved to Brisbane are now flying back more often to pick up mining contracts for six months at a time. Not many mining companies are handing out three or four year contracts anymore but people in that sector are certainly feeling more confident and it’s underpinning the property market,” Ms Yap said.

“I have a lot of buyers who work in the hospitals and universities. Quite a few of my buyers are relocating back to Perth from England to work at the University of Western Australia and the Perth’s Children’s Hospital - which are both in my core area - because of the lifestyle.

“Many buyers feel a 500sqm is a big block compared to what they can get overseas and I sell everything from 500sqm size blocks to 1000sqm. Many expats are also getting a great exchange rate when converting their pounds too,” she said.

Last weekend, Ms Yap sold 37 Riley Road, Claremont for $4M under the hammer with five registered bidders and more than 200 people spilling out onto the street to watch the riveting auction action.

Auctioneer Rob Hunter took an opening bid of $2.8M for the six bedroom elegant turn of the century home, which then moved up in $200,000 lots to $3.825M when it announced on the market.

“It was such an exciting auction and my vendors were over the moon with the result while my heart was racing with excitement,” Ms Yap said.

“It was a true auction campaign, and I told my vendors ‘trust me and come with me’ and they did.

"This sale is a great sign of confidence in the Perth luxury market.”

A firm believer in the method of sale, Ms Yap is taking 32 Boreham St, Collesloe (above) to the open market via auction.

This family sanctuary in Cottesloe will go under the hammer with strong interest building for this home built with the utmost luxury and comfort in mind.

Ms Yap said the property was a contemporary family home with a large floorplan that was made to provide every family member with their own retreat.

“Boreham St is a very sought after enclave as it’s so close to all the private schools in the area. Location wise - its hidden secret - as it’s got a true community feel. There’s great neighbours and all the amenities you need right there."

Ms Yap said auction campaigns helped her to quickly identify the right buyers with more flags raised after each open home and enquiry.

"There’s no doubt that it’s a more transparent process, and creates a buzz in the community. It’s almost like ‘breaking news’. It’s exciting to have an auction in your street, everyone wants to come and see the live market action,” she said.

“I believe auctions are the best traffic driver - they drive traffic to my opens - and we get to meet people and listen to their feedback.

“It doesn’t matter what they think - positive or negative - as once we know what people are thinking we can make changes for the next event as we are always striving to make our opens better.

“But a good agent must be able to recognise when it’s the right time to sell the property, and that might be to take a prior offer but overall, auctioning is a process that must be taken to the end and I know the system works in all markets.”