Sydney’s spring auction market bloomed into life at the weekend, recording the highest preliminary clearance rate in two years.
Yesterday, the preliminary clearance rate sat at 81.9 per cent after 444 auctions and 316 confirmed results.
Domain economist Trent Wiltshire said it was the highest result since March 2017. Sydney’s prices peaked in June that year.
“Yesterday’s result for Sydney is preliminary, so it will likely be revised down to around 75 per cent when all the results come in,” he said.
It was welcome news to auctioneers and agents across the CBD and outer suburbs.
Auctioneer Damien Cooley, managing director of Cooley Auctions, said he had the biggest number of registered bidders he’d seen – averaging 8.5 at each auction.
“I don’t remember seeing a registered number of bidders that high ever,” Cooley said.
One of those auctions was 37 Elswick Street, Leichhardt, which had 22 registered bidders fight it out for the keys.
Selling agent Namir Mikha, of Cobden and Hayson Marrickville, said a quiet buyer made the winning bid of $1.77 million – $120,000 above the reserve.
Another property, at 22 Searl Street, Petersham, auctioned on behalf of Cobden and Hayson Annandale, had 14 registered bidders fight it out.
The two-bedroom, one-bathroom home also sold above vendor expectations – for $1,425,000 – $150,000 higher than the reserve.
“There’s no question fewer properties are having some impact [on results] but by far the biggest impact is borrowers ability to borrow more money,” Cooley said.
Recent changes to bank lending rules has enabled borrowers get an extra $50,000-$100,000 on an average mortgage, according to brokers in Melbourne.
Being able to borrow more is encouraging families to venture back into Sydney’s market looking for their first or next home in which to raise their children, agents have been reporting.
One such family snapped up a five-bedroom, three-bathroom home at 73A Epping Avenue, Epping. The home sold under the hammer for $2.53 million.
McGrath Epping partner Betty Ockerlander said a young family from outside the suburb had bought the home for its proximity to schools, including the much sought-after Epping Heights Public School.
Ockerlander said there four registered bidders fought it out to win the keys.
It was a similar story in nearby Beecroft, where three different properties sold for above $1.5 million on Saturday.
At 35 Bembara Crescent eight registered bidders competed as the three-bedroom, two-bathroom home sold for $1,608,000.
The buyer had been looking for a house since December, principal agent Kevin Dearlove, of Stone Real Estate Beecroft, said.
“The underbidder had flown over from Hong Kong and had bought another house in Castle Hill that morning and then missed out on this one,” Dearlove said.
A family were also the buyers of 63 Orchard Road, Beecroft, which sold for $1.58 million. A family from Singapore looking to settle in Australia snapped up the home, which sold under the hammer.
Adding to the Beecroft trifecta, a five-bedroom, three-bathroom home at 191 Copeland Road East sold for $1.92 million. A young family who were first-home buyers and renting in West Ryde, snapped up the home in front of a crowd of 200 people. Selling agent Teena Vaughan, of McGrath Epping, said there were seven registered bidders on the day.
In an emotional sale, a young family purchased the home at 2 Prindle Street, Oatlands, which was being sold for the first time in 23 years.
Selling agent Paul Conti, of Ray White Castle Hill, said the four-bedroom, three-bathroom property was hotly contested with 35 bids from four registered bidders.
The vendors, who had raised their children in the home, were looking to move on, making the sale a “changing of the baton”, Conti said.
The home sold for $1,556,000 under the hammer.
“The phenomenon we’re seeing in our office is that normally we see a faster start to spring, but this has been a slower start,” Conti said.
“The people who were ready to get their property on the market either on the last week of winter (last weekend) or the first week of spring [have been] the beneficiaries.
“They saw the benefits of supply and demand,” he said.
article by domain.com.au