Hawthorn 18 Melville: With the sun in his eyes, auctioneer Alastair Craig took the helm on this crisp, sunny morning in Melbourne. There was a strong atmosphere in the crowd. With three bidders, it was passed in at $1,605,000 and was bought afterwards well above this figure.

As we approach the shortest day of the year, we saw a record number of auctions in Boroondara on Saturday (compared to equivalent weekends in past years). Given the large supply, the market seems to have  some resilience. In fact, there is so much going on that  many key agents are delaying their traditional mid-year holiday by a few weeks.

Of the 11 auctions we featured, two were bought under the hammer, six were passed-in,  one was bought after and two were bought before. Our demand indicator, Bidderman, was 1.4 for the weekend.

The word from some of the selling agents we respect:

Richard Winneke (Jellis Craig) – “The market is patchy right now. There is certainly a lot of stock on the market. Jellis Craig’s clearance rate for the day was around the 65% mark. Hawthorn appears to be holding up quite well.”

Geoff Hall (Noel Jones) – “Good results for the company with 6 out of 7 selling. The one that didn’t sell should sell soon. Not listing too many to sell in the immediate future. There should be some good buying opportunities in the next 6-8 weeks. Then, as property levels dry up going into spring, the market (and bidders and clearance rates) will probably rise back up.”

Paul Keane (Jellis Craig) – “Strong results in Glen Iris, with three sales at the mid-to-late million dollar levels.  Market seems to be steady, yet is struggling a little under the sheer weight of numbers. Glen Iris represents a good option for family buyers in the sub-$2 million bracket – as opposed to Camberwell and Hawthorn East where the same demographic of buyer needs over $2 million to buy.”

James Tostevin (Marshall White) – “The company had a clearance rate of 77% rate which, given numbers for this time of the year, was very good. Most vendors are coming into line with the market.  Australians as a rule are resilient and, despite what is happening elsewhere (and written in the media), are fighting through. Mid August through to late September looks to be an interesting period in terms of market activity”.

A tale of two auction reports - both surprises.

16 VAN NESS AVENUE, GLEN IRIS 577sqm Doug McLauchlan.  Strong Vibe Crowd of 50. Bought Under Hammer at $1,580,000.  6 bidders 19 Jun 2:30pm
Doug McLauchlan, Anthony Reis and James Redfern had a good home here with some unusual features – a lift in the almost ‘burbs and a piano player warming us up prior to the auction. Before half-time it was like pulling hens teeth from the three bidders. However after half-time (when I left –  thanks to James Redfern, who finished the report) it was a very different story – especially once the home was on the market at $1,480,000. Three more bidders emerged and the home was bought for $1,580,000 – something of a surprise. Mal James Reporting

49 PARKHILL ROAD, KEW 810sqm Maurice Di Marzio. Quiet Vibe Crowd of 80. Passed In at $3,200,000. 1 bidder 19 Jun 11:00am
The auction started positively as auctioneer Maurice Di Marzio commented on the size of the crowd (about 80) and the good level level of interest this luxury home had attracted during the marketing campaign. But that interest did not follow through, with most of the crowd preferring to keep their hands firmly in their pockets. Mr Di Marzio opened with a vendor bid of $3,100,000, followed by another of $3,150,000. Mr Di Marzio’s announcement that there would be no further vendor bids was successful in eliciting one genuine bid. The property was passed in to that single bidder at $3,200,000. Overall a very quiet auction. Amy Wong Reporting

Auction Clearance Rates

45 monitored – 26 bought – 58% clearance rate ( last week 52%/week before 70% )

Design Smart

Kew 49 Parkhill: Big crowd - a new home that a few months ago would have had some legs. Passed In $3,200,000. 1 bidder.