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BOTH buyers and sellers were today eager to transact before the coming Easter and Anzac day long weekend slowdown.
The weekend was tipped to be a Super Saturday as both buyers and sellers took advantage of market sentiment before the Easter break, a looming election announcement and rumours of a rate hike. This week the Ray White Group scheduled 866 auctions while today alone there were 492 scheduled auctions - an almost 40 per cent increase on last year.
The leading auction group finished the day with a 76 per cent clearance rate and a count of 4.6 average registered bidders versus 2.9 average active bidders. Those sellers who held out and sold at auction this week also achieved 12 per cent more on their sale than if they had sold prior.
Sydney held onto the top sale of the day. Ray White Inner West agent Fiona Hellams sold 11 Minnesota Ave, Five Dock for $3.02 million to an international family moving to Sydney. A Sydney agent also claimed the title for top registered bidders today. Ray White Merrylands selling principal Michael Azzi had 24 registered bidders at his 7 Bago St, Pendle Hill auction which sold for $1.56 million to a Sydney family.
Sydney
Ray White New South Wales chief auctioneer Alex Pattaro said buyer demand for quality homes which were well priced was still strong.
“Buyers are still out in force looking to secure a property before the Easter and Anzac day breaks. However, they are being more cautious about what they are willing to pay,” he said.
“Super Saturday has certainly lived up to the hype. This weekend was the biggest auction weekend of the year so far and we did continue to see strong bidding and clearance rates which suggests now is a really great time to transact in the market whether you are buying or selling.”
Ray White Inner West - Fiona Hellams
Sold under the hammer for $3.02 million
There were 10 registered bidders and six active bidders
“At the moment it’s a bit unusual, there seems to not be as many properties on the market. I think some negative sentiment in the market has discouraged people from selling, which is unfortunate because we had so many registered bidders here today. Supply and demand seems to have become an issue again, we have people coming from all over Sydney to buy,” Ms Hellams said.
“The people who bought the house absolutely loved it. They are a family who have just moved to Sydney from overseas and have been renting for a while with plans to make Sydney their home. International and interstate interest is a positive, after all the lockdowns here it’s great to see people wanting to make Sydney their home again.
“The owners have been here about 20 years and are now moving out of Sydney and retiring elsewhere. The property went significantly over reserve with mainly families attending the auction. Many of them are coming from the inner west, there wasn’t a lot of local interest.”
8/32-34 Melford St, Hurlstone Park
Ray White Petersham - Luke Northcott and Nicholas Arena
Sold under the hammer for $1.2955 million
There were 13 registered bidders and six active bidders
Auctioneer: James Kerley, Ray White (pictured above)
The purchasers were a first home buyer couple looking for their dream home.
“We had a lot of interest in this property, over the four week campaign we had almost 200 groups go through,” Mr Northcott said.
“We had almost every sector of the market show interest, the majority were first home buyers or people upsizing from a two bedroom apartment who couldn’t afford a house. We also had a couple of investors and downsizers looking at it.
“What we’re finding is properties like this townhouse are selling well above reserve because they tick every box and are in between a house and apartment. Properties like that are running away but properties that we’ve got with a few compromises are making buyers just a bit more cautious.”
1/65 Lawson Street, Bondi Junction
Ray White Eastern Beaches - Nicholas Wise and Tom Fuller
Sold under the hammer for $1.58 million
There were four registered bidders and four active bidders
Auctioneer: James Hayashi, Ray White
The buyers were a couple who had already sold and were renting locally.
“The property was popular because it was a courtyard apartment with a semi style layout in a boutique block of four. What we’re finding is properties like this are bridging the gap between a house or terrace because of the space. They are always well sought after types of properties,” Mr Wise said.
“We’re seeing a bit of softening of the market but finding premium properties that have good marketing and photos in prime locations are still getting a lot of attention and selling well. Enquiry and engagement online is still strong but the buyer pool is softening.
“There are definitely still quality buyers in the marketplace but what I’ve found is it’s taking a bit longer to find who the buyer might be, therefore days on market are extending but only slightly.
“At the moment we are coming off an overinflated market from the last two years and are now seeing a more normalised market.”
Melbourne
Ray White Victoria and Tasmania CEO Stephen Dullens said while all eyes in Melbourne will be on Albert Park this weekend, there was still plenty of auction activity.
“There are almost 250 auctions scheduled across Victoria for the Ray White Group this week and buyers were not letting distractions get in the way of their property purchases,” he said.
“It’s a really busy weekend in Melbourne for auctions despite the Grand Prix at Albert Park. Interestingly, last time the Grand Prix was held in Melbourne in 2019, we had just 111 scheduled auctions for the week across Victoria - so to have more than double that number in 2022 is a reminder of just how busy the property market remains.”
Ray White Brunswick - Abdul Allouche and Jamil Allouche
Sold under the hammer for $1.33 million - $130,000 above reserve
There were eight registered bidders and three active bidders
Auctioneer: Jamil Allouche, Ray White
“The eventual buyers (pictured above with Abdul Allouche) kicked off the bidding and plan to live in the property,” Mr Allouche said.
“Overall auctions are still clearing and family homes are doing extremely well at the moment. The market still has a bite to it.
“The past two family homes I’ve sold at auction have had furious bidding, the bidders were there to buy. In regards to the changing market, we haven’t really seen too much of a dip in our area yet. Buyers are still there and hungry to buy.”
Ray White Glen Waverley - Darryl Wickham and Li Morris
Sold under the hammer for $1.852 million - $102,000 above reserve
There were eight registered bidders and six active bidders
“The sellers (pictured above) were a young couple who planned to move north to Brisbane. They bought it four years ago and have done some extensive renovations to the home so it was presented beautifully. The buyer lives just down the road and was looking to upsize,” Mr Wickham said.
“We had over 90 groups through during the campaign and more than 8000 views on realestate.com.au. The auction was very active, there was a crowd of over 100 people there and some really aggressive bidding.
“Homes like these that are well presented and offer a little bit more in a good location seem to have people gravitating towards them. Homes that need a bit more work that were selling four or five months ago now seem to be languishing a bit at the moment.”
Adelaide
Ray White South Australia chief auctioneer John Morris said the last weekend before Easter hasn’t disappointed.
“With mad March in South Australia well and truly behind us, this is the last weekend of auctions that we can have before the Easter break,” he said.
“And what a weekend it has been, so far we're at an 82.5 per cent preliminary clearance rate, with average registered bidders around about 8.5 and four of them participating. There has been bidding at 98.2 per cent of all auctions.”
Ray White Norwood - Derek Lee
Sold under the hammer for $2.362 million
There were nine registered bidders and four active bidders
Auctioneer: Sam Grover, Ray White (pictured above left with agent Derek Lee)
“It was so popular because the property itself is such a beautiful, loved family home, it also has huge development opportunities as well,” Mr Lee said.
“I had such a wide demographic of buyers go through - working executives, families, a few developers and some people wanting to renovate the home.
“It’s already been renovated nicely but a lot of buyers saw a blank canvas and potential to update it how they wanted. The home is also in one of the most sought after school zones, Glenunga International High School.
“The competition from every interested demographic was very evident. Buyers are still pretty manic trying to find a property. A lot of buyers are sellers who desperately want to buy so they can sell and leverage the market at the moment.
“The buyer was an investor who wanted to either renovate or knock down the house in the future. Meanwhile, the sellers were a family looking to upsize.”
Ray White Norwood - Linda Clemente
Sold under the hammer for $892,000 - almost $200,000 above reserve
There were nine registered bidders and five active bidders
Auctioneer: John Morris, Ray White SA chief auctioneer (pictured above)
The seller was an investor
“The property was built in 1952 so it needs extensive work and a full renovation but the purchasers were able to see past this,” Ms Clemente said.
“They are going to utilise the exposure of Payneham Road to put their office there as the block is housing diversity zoned. Being a corner block, the spot is advantageous for their office but they really bought it for the land.
“Buyers are still out in force and there is strong demand for quality properties, in particular properties with land are king. Families are all still looking for bigger homes as well.
“While we are probably seeing less bidders, prices are still holding firm.”
Brisbane
Ray White Queensland chief auctioneer Gavin Croft said clearance rates were beginning to lift across the state.
“After a couple of weeks where we saw Queensland clearance rates sitting around that 70 to 75 per cent, there are positive signs we’ve tipped back to above 80 per cent this week,” Mr Croft said.
“Part of what is really starting to emerge now is we are starting to see some disparity between vendor’s expectations and reserve prices and where the buyers sit.
“Normally, it's a tradition that you tend to see some small gaps, that gap has certainly started to widen. We've seen that unfold slowly a little bit more and certainly evident today across the market but with that being said average registered bidders across today of five is still a very positive sign for the market.”
Ray White Indooroopilly - Kirrilli Cobley
Sold under the hammer for $1.435 million
There were five registered bidders and three active bidders
Auctioneer: Adam Downes, Ray White (pictured above)
“The buyer is a local looking to use the property as a short term investment and then later move into it but throughout the campaign we only received interest from mainly owner occupiers,” Ms Cobley said.
“I have a number of auctions today, everyone is definitely trying to get in this weekend and get their property sold before the Easter break.
“I think talk of rate rises, especially around the election, has resulted in buyer enquiry going down slightly but there are still a lot of quality buyers out there. We are just seeing some of the FOMO come out of the market but we are still achieving good clearance rates.”
Ray White Maroochydore - Natalie Tink and Mitch Sinclair
Sold under the hammer for $1.72 million
There were five registered bidders and four active bidders
Auctioneer: Daniel Sowden, Ray White
“The sellers (pictured above) have been in the home for nine years, they have purchased a huge boat and are planning to live on it permanently with their kids. The buyers were locals who lived around the corner but wanted to get a bit closer to the beach.” Ms Tink said.
“Marcoola is still very tightly held, in the five weeks we were selling the home there were very few homes around it that went up for sale. People love the area so much so it’s not unusual that they move just a couple of streets away. Interested buyers were coming from just five to 10km up the road.
“The sellers had already purchased the boat so they knew they had to sell but we are finding a lot of people saying their biggest issue with putting their home on the market is then buying back into the same market.”
