Street Advocate Auction Review 12th July
Today the Street Advocate team ventured down to not-so-sunny Richmond to follow a few auctions that were taking place and gauge property interest on two rather contrasting properties and auction. After what were predicted to be blizzard weekend conditions, the weather held up despite some patchy rain.
The first auction that we reviewed was: 16 Madden Gr, Burnley (Advertised as Richmond) which was a “pretty”, cottage-style, renovated Edwardian described as “A renovated Edwardian that creates an indoor-outdoor world of its own in a location of consummate convenience“.
Renovated to a high standard the home had that feeling of being bright and airy. Despite being immediately across the road from Burnley Train Station, it’s proximity to public transport and Richmond’s bustling Swan St appear to more than compensate for the noise factor of passing trains and nearby Burnley Street.
Inside, the property consisted on 2 well-sized robed bedrooms as well as a smaller third bedroom which could also pass as a study or home office. Serviced by one central bathroom, the property had polished floorboards from the front hallway ascending to the main hub of the property’s kitchen and dining area with a polished concrete flooring area for the lounge.
From the living area, the property opened up to a large, decked Al-fresco area that would lay host for an exceptional summer gathering. Well furnished, screened for privacy and neatly landscaped were factors which boosted the property’s overall appeal, a credit to the vendor who had clearly put in the necessary time and effort in preparing the property for sale. Something we see as so important, when selling in today’s market.
A crowd of around 50 punters had gathered with a mix of young professionals, empty-nesters and nosy neighbours.The auction got off to a slow start with the auctioneer asking for a $950,000 opening bid. After some unsuccessful calling, auctioneer Clayton Smith from Jellis Craig Richmond, exercised his right to a vendor bid of $950,000 to open proceedings and the auction began to gain momentum.
Two young professionals bid solidly in $10,000 increments as the auction moved along in a steady motion with a third young professional entering at approximately the $1,130,000 mark. The first bidder continued strong whilst it had become clear that the second bidder had exceeded their budget limitations. The first and third bidders continued to rally until the property reached $1,170,000 and the auctioneer declared that the property was officially on the market and was going to be sold. The auction slowed to $2000 increments with the final price being $1,180,000 and the third bidder successful on the day.
The property was advertised without an asking price but it would be a fair assumption to suggest that the vendors would have been reasonably happy with the days proceedings as their expectations appeared to be surpassed, just above reserve price.
The home had sold for $935,000 back in September 2013 with a profit to this day of $245,000 with renovation costs, agent fees, interest payments and stamp duty to consider.
The second auction up for review was: 34e Canterbury St, Richmond which from the street was oozing with modern appeal. This townhouse not only looked the part from the outside with it’s exposed aggregate concrete driveway and timber clad garage door but presented as a neat, spacious and warm townhouse. Described as “A quality built near new town residence offering an ultra-modern contemporary lifestyle – Ideal home for the Empty Nester having the master bedroom and all living areas on the ground floor.”
Inside I was impressed by the bathroom’s floor to ceiling tiles, polished floorboards that bounced light throughout the house and the very intimate outdoor area with high fences and light timber screening to allow for privacy in what is a densely built-up area.
The kitchen was modern as you would expect with stone bench tops and Smeg appliances complete with a butlers pantry that doubled as a laundry which was to be honest, a little bit of a squeeze. The floorplan was well thought-out with master bedroom complete with ensuite downstairs suitable for down sizers/empty nesters, as well as two good sized bedrooms upstairs sharing a two-way bathroom. Location was good, nestled away conveniently between Swan St and Bridge Rd on a quiet one-way street with garage space for one vehicle and an additional car park to the left of the house which is extremely convenient given the lack of parking options in the area.
Another slow start to the auction saw auctioneer, Russell Cambridge from Biggin & Scott – Richmond start with an asking price of $1,300,000. Without an opening bid, Mr Cambridge went inside to seek instructions from his vendors and unfortunately from that point on the auction never gained momentum aside from a lonely bid of $1,000,000 which was declined much to the bidders bemusement who muttered a few expletives under his breath in rejection.
With no further interest the property was passed in at a reserve price of $1,490,000. This was a complete contrast to the previous auction of the Edwardian house in Burnley and shows how fickle the current market is. There is no doubt inner city houses are seeing the strongest interest in the current market and these two results reflect that.
