Bill Jowett (Buxton) basks in the sunshine and the successful sale of 4 Susan St, Sandringham. Three bidders, bought under the hammer for $1,400,000.

Key Points:

• We attended nine auctions across Bayside this weekend. Of those, only two were bought under the hammer.
• While Brighton was very average at auction today, it was the stellar performer for stales (long term unsolds) over $3m+ this week. Behind closed doors at Kay and Burton, there was plenty of action.
• We have a special report for you on Monday on $3m+ homes. The upshot is that we should see more new stock coming onto the market over $3m, while new sellers of homes around $2m are becoming less inclined to dip their toe in the water
• Three apartments/townhouses in the Golden Mile were sold by Kay and Burton over $3,000,000 each - Justin Follett of Kay and Burton
• Both the Wellington St, Brighton properties that had been on the market for a long time, recently sold for over $3,000,000 – Ian Jackson and Stewart Lopez of Kay and Burton
• Knox House in North Road was bought – Stewart Lopez of Kay and Burton
• Gordon St Hampton was the hot street in town with Nick Johnstone of JP Dixon selling No. 34 through an Expression of Interest for around $3,400,000 and David Hart selling No. 23 post auction today for a bit over the pass-in figure of $2,725,000.
• 94 Dendy St Brighton defied the trend, selling for an undisclosed amount under the hammer of around $1,400,000. That was a $250,000 increase on its last sale in December,  placing land at $2300 per sq metre. Miriam Carraro of Hodges

Campbell Cooney of Hodges motivates 2 bidders from within a small crowd to pay over $1,470,000. 94 Dendy St Brighton.

Analysis: Why is this happening? Because buyers are there at the $3m+ level.

Why now? Our best guess is that buyers never left, but that we needed some vendor price adjustments and that they are now being made. If this is the case then this may simply be a statistical coincidence as opposed to a market change. But it may also bring on additional quality stock which may or may not give the market a more sustained lift.

September is going to be quiet due to Election interference – so October will be the telling month to see if this market is trending back or remaining flat.

Why is it not happening at the $2m level? There is simply too much stock and no vendor adjustments.

Agent Comments:

Nick Johnstone, JP Dixon, Brighton: “We are seeing a cross-section of stock at the moment.  I’m finding the strong demand is for homes under $1m at the moment.  The biggest shortage for Middle Brighton is the $2-3m family home. My feeling is the election has made a slight impact , it is a bit like being in a church at a wedding and everyone is just waiting for the bride to arrive. Once we have a resolution we are away.”

Jenny Dwyer, Hocking Stuart, Sandringham: “I think we’ll find we will have a late spring market with school holidays, election, football finals etc. In terms of the election, we found there were still a lot of people out and about on election day and the open houses were well attended….I think the fence-sitting we saw during the (election) campaign will continue whilst there is no outcome.”

Bidderbizz Auction – 4 Susan Sandringham – Bill Jowett Buxton – Bought $1,400,000 -  3 bidders
A warm buzz was evident in the 70 strong crowd as they awaited the commencement of the auction and it did not disappoint. Auctioneer Bill Jowett of Buxton was in fine form as he took the opening bid of $1,000,000 quickly followed by a vendor bid of $1,200,000. Three bidders were determined in their approach and seemed very familiar with the auction process. Mr Jowett announced the property on the market at $1,300,000 and it was bought soon after for $1,400,000. The successful bidder punched the air with his fist in victory as the crowd applauded. (Sue Agnoleto)

Check out the Auction Video of 42 Foote St Brighton with JP Dixon.

Clearance Rates & Monitor Table:

We Only Buy Homes

John Clarkson (Hocking Stuart) throws himself into the auction of 100 Were St, Brighton. Unfortunately, none of the 30 or so spectators took his lead and the property passed in for $1,950,000. One bidder.