Brighton home in need of renovation sells for $7.3 million at auction

Key points

  • There were 786 scheduled auctions in Melbourne on Saturday. 
  • A two-bedroom townhouse in Fitzroy North sold for $1.11 million. 
  • An investor beat out to two owner-occupiers to buy a freestanding home in Northcote. 

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A five-bedroom house in Brighton has sold for $7.3 million at auction despite needing a renovation, bucking a recent trend in buyer preferences towards turn-key homes.

Three bidders took part in the auction for 26 Bay Street, which was one of 786 Melbourne properties scheduled to go under the hammer on Saturday.

Kay & Burton director Alex Schiavo said the home had attracted interest from international and local buyers who were considering renovating the house and were attracted to the 1311-square-metre block.

“The home itself needed to be remodelled but at the same time it was livable,” Schiavo said. “[The buyer] may do something to it but if you’re spending that sort of number and beyond you’re going to want to have a home that’s modernised and updated.”

Bidding opened at $7.1 million and 10 bids later Schiavo sold the property to local buyers. The home had a quoted price guide of $7.4 million to $7.6 million.

The five-bedroom Brighton house sold for $7.3 million.

Schiavo said a lack of available homes for sale meant buyers were willing to take on the challenge of a renovation, despite increased construction costs and supply shortages.

“There’s a preference to pay more money for something that’s ready-made, but we are in a low stock market where there’s little choice,” he said. “So they are happy to buy it and maybe renovate it because there’s a lack of choice.”

Schiavo declined to share the reserve price.

Earlier in Fitzroy North, a two-bedroom townhouse on its own title sold to an upsizing buyer in a competitive auction.

The buyers of 1/157 Holden Street celebrating with family. Credit:Justin McManus

Nelson Alexander auctioneer and listing agent Robert Enes was surprised with the interest in the home, given he had only listed it two-and-a-half weeks before the auction, instead of the usual four.

“There were six parties that were here to buy and what we’ve learnt from this campaign is there’s a few new buyers coming into the marketplace,” he said. “We were totally blown away.”

Bidding for the home opened at $900,000, above the bottom of the quoted price range, $870,000 to $950,000.

Rapid bidding between two parties then took the price past the $950,000 reserve. Two others jumped in after, and the home eventually sold for $1.11 million. The price was $160,000 more than the reserve.

Enes calling the auction. Credit:Justin McManus

Enes said he was surprised by the final sale price, which was a very strong result for his market.

He said the property had been popular for its proximity to Edinburgh Gardens and St Georges Road.

In Northcote, investors outbid two homebuyers to nab a three-bedroom home at 403 Clarke Street in a hard-fought auction.

The home had been extended and featured a small studio in the backyard. Jellis Craig auctioneer and listing agent Sam Rigopoulos priced the home between $1.55 million and $1.65 million.

A buyers’ agent, acting for the investors, attempted to open the bidding at $1,475,000 but Sam Rigopoulos refused and opened on a vendor bid of $1.55 million.

From there, that buyers’ agent and another, then pushed the price up to $1.77 million over almost 50 bids, which tapered off to $1000 increments towards the end.

Downsizers then attempted to enter the bidding but were outbid by the investor’s buyers’ agent. The buyers paid $1,775,000, which was $125,000 more than the vendor’s reserve price.

“There was a really diverse mix of bidding and these sorts of homes, slightly larger single-fronted homes, tend to attract different buying groups because it can appeal to each audience for different reasons,” Rigopoulos said.

Rigopoulos said he had been seeing more investor activity at his auctions.

“It’s a good time to consider property,” he said. “It’s clearly not running out of control and the balance of fair pricing and rising rents makes it inviting for investors.

“So we’ve seen a resurgence of investor activity over the last couple of months.”

Rigoplous said the weak property market had little effect on the sale of 403 Clarke Street.

“That’s the value of buying a good position and good real estate,” he said. “It transcends all of those market challenges and it’s insulated from, from dips, and you and you consistently get bidding and that’s why it’s smart to buy houses like this.

“I won’t go as far as saying it’s bulletproof, but it’s pretty damn close.“

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