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The property at 12 Elinga Street, a four-bedroom home on a generous 1,153 sqm block, was designed and built by its owners, who raised their family within its walls over five decades. The sellers Jennifer and Eric Salzman, now both 87, were forced to make the difficult decision to move on following devastating storm damage last year.
On October 26, 2025, a large gum tree fell through the centre of the home during wild storms that swept over Brisbane.
The Insurance Council of Australia declared the event a significant event, with more than 11,000 insurance claims lodged within 48 hours. The sellers were home at the time, in fact Jennifer Salzman was sitting in the rear sunroom, praying her house would be spared when the tree came down. In a miracle, the gum tree missed her by more than 2m.
Ray White Centenary director Steven Kremer said the couple were insured and had hoped to repair and restore the home they had built with their own hands. But at this stage of life, the scale of work required simply wasn't something they were able to take on. They made the difficult decision to pass the home on to its next custodian.
Despite the storm damage, demand was extraordinary. Ten parties registered to bid on the day, with seven actively competing.
Ray White Queensland auctioneer Tom Gunness said bidding opened at $500,000 and did not slow, with 58 bids exchanged before the hammer fell at $1,010,000, well above the $850,000 reserve that the sellers had hoped for.
The buyer is a local family who plans to renovate and restore the home, a result that moved the sellers deeply. In a touching coincidence, Sunday also marked the buyer's wedding anniversary.
"This was a genuinely special result for genuinely good people," said Steven Kremer of Ray White Centenary, who marketed the property alongside colleague Scott Gemmell. "The sellers built this home with their own hands. They raised their children here. To see it sell for over a million dollars, and to know it's going to a local family who wants to bring it back to life, that's what this work is all about.
“We hit the reserve on the fifth bid. The sellers are over the moon that they can now move on. It’s a great outcome for good people all round.”
The result reflects strong underlying confidence in the Centenary suburbs market, with both owner-occupiers and investors actively competing on the day. The tightly held cul-de-sac position and substantial landholding attracted significant interest despite and in many ways because of the home's unique circumstances.
