A three-bedroom, detached house on Sydney’s lower north shore sold for $2.39 million at auction on Saturday, $40,000 above its $2.35 million reserve.
A classic redbrick house there 78 Burns Bay Road it featured a front yard and a back yard, and was priced at $2.4 million.
Three Lane Cove buyers, all young adults who live in a unit or townhouse, competed from start to finish for the keys to the property, selling agent Jimmy Psaltis of Stone Real Estate Roseville Willoughby said.
Bidding opened at $2 million and rose in increments of $50,000 and $10,000 to the $2.3 million mark among three bidders. Small bids of $5000, $2000 and $1000 continued the battle between the three, each fighting to the finish.
Psaltis said: “There were no interested investors, but I don’t think that in any market there will be investors for this property.”
He also said that he expected the developers to show up, but they didn’t.
“I think they’ve realized that it’s too risky to pay to buy a house, tear it down, rebuild it, and then try to make a profit in this current market,” he said.
Broker Edward Riley from a well-known brokerage said: “While broader market sentiment may be subdued … smart buyers are not waiting for confidence to return, they act when an opportunity presents itself.”
The vendor, who lived and raised his family there for more than 60 years, has moved into a nursing home, Psaltis said.
The property was one of 712 scheduled to go to auction in Sydney last week. As of Saturday evening, Domain Group had recorded an initial auction clearance rate of 52 percent from 428 results reported throughout the week, with 158 auctions cleared. Canceled auctions are counted as unsold properties when calculating clearance rate.
In Padstow on Saturday, a brand new duplex in 5A Wyreema Avenue sold for $10,000 over its auction reserve, for $1.81 million. It had a guidance of $1.6 million.
More than 50 people watched as the two registered parties made offers of $50,000 and $25,000. The buyer was overseas and bid over the phone, while the lowest bidder was in the neighborhood.
Sales agent Abir Eddine of Ray White Revesby said the market was “going well … We’re not seeing 10 registered bidders like before, but we’re still getting work done.”
The seller was a builder-manufacturer. The duplex site address last sold for $1,537,000 in 2024, records show.
In Liverpool, a three-bedroom house with a swimming pool 84 Medley Avenue it was snapped up by a neighbor for $1.05 million, a $50,000 adjustment from its $1.1 million reserve.
Five bidders were registered and three participated. Bidding opened at $950,000, and bids of $30,000, $20,000, $10,000 and $5000 went back and forth until the house sold under the hammer.
Selling agent Fahde Yousif of Elite Sydney Property said the guided range was based on buyer feedback of $925,000 to $950,000.
“In general, the majority of buyers who come to Liverpool are more from the surrounding suburbs,” he said, as the suburb is more affordable.
Seller is downsizing to Camden.
The home last sold for $79,950 in 1988, records show.
In Ramsgate Beach, two bedroom, ground floor unit 1/65 Alfred Street sold for $25,000 over its $900,000 reserve for $925,000.
Guided by $850,000, the home attracted five registered bidders, all owner-occupiers.
Bidding opened at $800,000 and three participated: two were first-time home buyers, who missed out. The buyer was a young couple who will be renovating and moving.
McGrath Sans Souci listing agent Trent Tarbey said: “Although there has been less interest from investors, there is still sufficient buyer demand from first home buyers, which is keeping prices stable in that market segment.”
The unit last sold for $335,000 in 2004, records show.
AMP chief economist Dr Shane Oliver said Domain’s 52 per cent approval rate for Sydney was “another smooth week”.
“I think investors are waiting for lower prices because, basically, the tax changes have been that the after-tax income that the investor will get will be much lower than before,” he said.
Oliver added that “there may be some first home buyers who are taking advantage of the weak market, but first home buyer demand is a small part of the overall property market … certainly not enough to support the property market on its own”.
