STOP PRESS: March, while not huge in numbers, did finish the month with 3 solid mid week $3M+ buys – including 4 bidders at $7 million or better at 2 of them.

• Toorak Ottawa Avenue : Jeremy Fox of RT Edgar – quiet sale off market in the mid $8m’s
• Toorak 19 Huntingfield: Justin Long and Peter Bennison of Marshall White – mid week auction, 3 bidders and on the market at $6,700,000. Bought under the hammer for $7,060,000. James Connell said afterwards that this market was not all bad news and Huntingfield supported that.
• Canterbury 13 Rubens: Jeremy Desmier Fletchers and Tom Ryan, Sold before Auction: Over $3,200,000
• South Yarra – The Caroline Coachhouse – they were looking for $3m ish for a very long time (eg in the years) and now Mike Gibson – Kay and Burton has got it away.

South Yarra 17 Acland St: Gerald Delany. Fairly typical of the market for the slightly overpriced or slightly less than perfect. Passed-In with no bidders and now for sale at POA.

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Week Ending 26th March: The Market at this level was fairly quiet this week with the good sales, price wise but not too many of them.

• Templestowe, 9 Edwin: On the market since October of last year with Jeremy Tyrell of Fletchers. Has been bought for in excess of $4,700,000
• Richmond 37 Docker: Ken Griffith of Jellis Craig. Bought at auction, $3,300,000 – $3,500,000
• Hawthorn 23 Lisson Grove: Michael Lui of Marshall White. Bought after auction $3,600,000 – $3,800,000
• Toorak 17 Lansell: Lisa Jarrett of Abercrombys. On the market since December of last year and selling for circle mid $3′s

Armadale 1026 Malvern Road: The recipe was there for a good auction - quality period home on big land - however the market is a different beast from some time ago at this price level and a quiet auction took place with Jack Bongiorno in charge. Opened on a bid of $3,400,000, passed in to that bidder and was bought after for an undisclosed amount. Crowd of 40.

Week Ending 19th March:

Off Markets, Forthcoming Auctions and Expressions of Interest are increasing as market stock levels begin to rise dramatically. However some big sales including a $13,000,000+ in Toorak and a $7,000,000+ in Brighton along with a few other $3m+ buys indicate the market hadn’t completely gone to sleep .

James Tostevin: “Overall a good day. The $3m+ market is hard to read and we are not getting huge numbers of bidders at many auctions;  so there is a case to say the results may be looking healthier than the market actually is – but from a purely stats points of view (clearance rates) today was a good day.”

In Boroondara:

• Balwyn 34-36 Linckens:  (Toby Parker of Hocking Stuart) – a $3m+ auction slotted in for auction this weekend has been bought before.The quote was over $3.7m and if, as we believe, it was bought for close to $4 million then it was a strong sale.
• Kew 41 Victor Avenue: (James Tostevin) – Two strong bidders and sold under the hammer for $4,100,000.
• Canterbury 17a Alexander Avenue: Passed In $3,200,000. No bidders
• Kew 22 Stawell: Passed In $3,000,000. 0 bidders.

In Stonnington:

• 19 Kingston St, Malvern East, Iain Carmichael (BenMac); After auction in excess of $4,600,000
  “Auctioneer Iain Carmichael was in charge of proceedings for this picture perfect home.  A large crowd of over 80 packed in to the beautiful mature gardens surrounding the house, as the sun shone to show this property at its very best.  The initial vendor bid of $4,250,000 didn’t seem over the top given the location of this park-adjacent idyll.  Despite the auctioneer being confident of a sale, no further bids were forthcoming and, after referral to the vendor, the property was passed in. (Debbie McTaggart)
  Footnote: Nobody bid at auction at $4,250,000 but 2 bidders emerged post auction and fought it out afterwards to a price well in excess of the reserve and well in excess of $4,600,000. Go figure.
• Armadale 1026 Malvern: James Redfern of Marshall White: Passed in $3,400,000 and bought afterwards. 1 bidder.

In Bayside:

• Brighton 29 St Ninians: As always, auctioneer Jonathan Dixon opened proceedings right on time and the preliminaries were soon completed. This property has a supreme and uninterrupted view of the Bay from the City to Royal Brighton Yacht Club and the potential for future development was clearly explained by Mr Dixon. Nevertheless, no bids were forthcoming and the property was passed in on a vendor bid of $7,300,000.
• Brighton 18A Martin: Passed In for $3,300,000. 1 bidder.

Labour Day Weekend March 12th: As expected minimal activity over the weekend; well no auctions that is – a heap of new stock was listed to go onto an already over supplied market.

Brighton 2 Shandford: Bought Post Auction for over $7 million or in around $10,000 per sq metre - meaning Melbourne absolute waterfront is amongst the most sought after land in the world. Regina Schmidt and Brian Devlin from Buxton.

On a buying note, the Golden Mile in Brighton is still alive and well with Regina Schmidt and Brian Devlin from Buxton getting 2 Shandford away post auction for an undisclosed amount over $7 million and in fact over Shandford’s other $7 million sale of a few weeks ago. This home had some positives and will possibly be retained but with two blocks totaling around 1400 sqm going for nearly $15,000,000 this shows that Melbourne absolute waterfront has some of the most sought after beach front in the world on a dollar per sq metre basis.

Another quieter one in the Golden Mile just before the long weekend – 11 Kent Avenue (Stan Fisher of Biggin and Scott) – was reported as bought again for an undisclosed amount having been sold only last year for a tick over $4 million. The rest of Melbourne may be a little quiet, but Golden Mile Brighton is relatively hot for land sales (compared to previous years).

In the heart of the Bagel Belt at 85 Lumeah Road Caulfield North (Gowan Stubbings of Kay and Burton) a large block of land (around 1800 sqm) with a tired home on it was sold for an undisclosed amount for over $4 million, under the hammer, having been on the market at $3.5 million – 3 bidders. That makes it number two along with Langdon Road at or over $4m in the last fortnight in Caulfield.

In Stonnington 20 St Georges has been bought for an undisclosed amount. The property had been quietly on the market for some time before a more public campaign this year. The asking price estimate was $12,000,000 to $15,000,000 and it is believed to have been sold in the middle. Andrew Tolson of TBM was the selling agent. We went through it a few times on behalf of different clients and found it to be a home of some class with good light and a nice flowing floor plan – slight negatives were a less than full-sized tennis court and some overlooking at the rear (although it was not significant and, if you lost the tennis court, planting could remedy that). Being St Georges it commanded a premium – although to date its “little brother” down the road at No 10 hasn’t sold at an already passed Expressions of Interest deadline. However, considering the home’s characteristics, it would be hats off to the agents if it got near their $10,000,000 ask, even if it is St Georges.

Also went through 14 Bruce St Toorak late last month –  it has been bought for a reasonable margin over $3,000,000. Again showing the power of good architects and in particular Wayne Gillespie. Difficult block and orientation and a market place that has competition for supply, so this was a good result for an Expressions of Interest campaign and the man that sells a number of these very quietly – Marcus Chiminello.

‘Hoping for $3m in a different market but didn’t quite get there’ stories: In Port Phillip, 7 Pilley Street in St Kilda East, which was originally marketed at an ambitious around $3 million, has been bought for around $2.6 million - Jeremy Fox of RT Edgar. All things considered, this was still a very good result for the area. In Malvern, 5 Gaynor Court with Rob Vickers-Willis got to $2.73 million and a three storey terrace home in Carlton with Anthony Gattuso of AG Property got around the same amount. All solid results.

Overall still a lot of properties on the market at this $3m+ price level that have completed normal auction and Expression of Interest with no result.

Malvern 66 Claremont: Iain Carmichael: Bought for $3,700,000: 3 bidders: At this point, someone yelled "is it on the market?" and the BenMac team hastily retreated inside to speak to the vendor. Upon his return, Mr Carmichael said yes indeed it was on the market and it was here that the bidding really took off. After the price hit $3,625,000, one of the bidders went bang - $3,700,000 - and knocked everyone else out of the competition. A great finish to a great auction

Week Ending 5th March: All the bigger deals were basically in one spot, Stonnington.

Actual Boughts in Stonnington:

• Malvern 19 Hamilton – Justin Long – At Auction – $4,357,000
• Malvern 66 Claremont – Iain Carmichael – At Auction – $3,700,000
• Toorak 9 Ross – Justin Long – Auction – over $3,600,000
• Toorak – 3 Teringa – Andrew(s) McCann and Macmillan of Benmac – post last weeks auction – over $3,500,000 – nearly $5000 per sqm for rear south facing land
• Toorak – 611 Toorak Road – Expressions of Interest – Greg Herman of RT Edgar – $3,500,000
• Toorak – 231 Kooyong Road – James Redfern – Post last Saturday’s auction – over $3,500,000
• Malvern East – 127 Finch St – Rob Vickers-Willis – $3,300,000

Bayside: A Key land Indicator

• 11 William St Brighton with Rod Richardson of Hocking Stuart – $3,100,000 for 1383 sqm of land = $2,241 per sqm for land in central Brighton. Solid and expected result. 5 bidders.

Boroondara: Action at the Top End almost non-existent

• Stock Surge – Large amounts of $M+ stock are hitting the market for pre-Easter campaigns
• 61 Bellett Camberwell has been on the market since July of last year and was sold by Sam Wilkinson of Kay and Burton mid week for $3,100,000.
• The Balwyn formula of big block, new home, big price tag seems to have come to a grinding halt – very few high end new sales. Opportunity?
• Off markets are on the increase.

Port Phillip: The overpriced are as cold as ice in Port Phillip right now. No bites, no action – as evidenced by the pass-ins of yesterday and the first two weeks of this market.

• I went to a Beaconsfield auction yesterday – the offering slightly less than perfect but still a great spot – however the start was a $4million vendor bid and then a $4,250,000 vendor bid. I may have to eat humble pie when the result comes in but for me the four sales on this strip over $4m last year seemed different offerings.
• 49 Howe Crescent, which was advertised in an Expressions of Interest campaign for later this month, sold last week well over its $5m+ guideline for more than $6m (we believe). A very rare large land size at 915 sqm with a double fronted Victorian on it shows the pulling power of large land so close to the CBD in the St Vincent Garden precinct (or just off it). Michael Coen of Hocking Stuart was the dealmaker on this one. Good job.

TOORAK, 37 Lansell Rd: Andrew Macmillan (BenMac) passes in for $2,800,000, no bidders, but thanks the crowd for their participation with a wink or two.

Key Points:

• Off Markets, Forthcoming Auctions and Expressions of Interest are increasing as market stock levels begin to rise dramatically.
• Nobody bid at the 19 Kingston St Malvern East auction (Iain Carmichael) at $4,250,000 but 2 bidders emerged post auction and fought it out afterwards to a price well in excess of the reserve and well in excess of $4,600,000. Go figure!
• Armadale 1026 Malvern: James Redfern of Marshall White: Passed in $3,400,000 and bought afterwards. 1 bidder.
• 20 St Georges Toorak which has been on the quietly on the market for some time before a more public campaign this year has been bought for an undisclosed amount. The asking price estimate was $12,000,000 to $15,000,000 and it is believed to have been sold in the middle. Andrew Tolson of TBM was the selling agent.
• “Little brother” down the road at No 10 St Georges hasn’t sold at an already passed Expressions of Interest deadline – however it would be hats off if the agents got near their $10,000,000 ask, even if it is St Georges, considering the homes characteristics.
• 14 Bruce St Toorak late last month – and it has been bought for a reasonable margin over $3,000,000. Good result for an Expressions of Interest campaign and the man that sells a number of these very quietly – Marcus Chiminello.
• Overall a number of properties on the market at the $3m+ price level that have completed Private Sale or Expression of Interest campaigns with no result.

Agent Q & A:“What is your take on the Economist’s article that Australian house prices are overvalued by 56%?”
Justin Long, Marshall White, Armadale:” While I do not have a view on every sector of the Australian market, as for Melbourne I think the observation is complete nonsense and that by and large house prices for Melbourne seem to me to be reflective of people’s excellent earning capacity whilst still allowing, especially in outer suburbs, the opportunity for low income earners to get a foothold.”

Hawthorn 35 Mason: Scott Patterson and Michael Armstrong: Bought for over $3,100,000: 4 bidders

Some interesting results to finish off the month:

• 6 Teringa Place Toorak with Andrew Macmillan and Andrew McCann of Benmac was bought Sunday for an undisclosed amount over $3,500,000. House was quite serviceable but it would have also been considered as a bulldozer job placing land just under $5000 per sq metre
• 

  49 Howe Crescent South Melbourne - bought in excess of $6,000,000. Expressions of Interest - Michael Coen Hocking Stuart

  And a very quick and smart result at 49 Howe Crescent South Melbourne with Michael Coen of Hocking Stuart – due to be sold through an Expressions of Interest Campaign completing 21st March it was snapped up within a few days of advertising on the 25th of February. The result was a strong one and is undisclosed but the  quoting was over $5,000,000 and we believe in sold for in excess of $6,000,000 to give you some perspective. We do a fair bit of work in the is Expression of Interest area and this again proves that those who wait until the stated deadline do not put themselves in the best position to buy.

• 

  290 Beach Beaumaris - Len Sharp Chisholm and Gamon - Full asking price of $2,950,000 after a previously failed selling campaign.

  Private Sale at 290 Beach Road Black Rock with Len Sharp of Chisholm and Gamon for full asking price of $2,950,000. This again supports our comments that 1) Bayside and 2) New and 3) $3m (almost) price tag are a combination that is getting some runs on the board in the late Summer of 2011.

• Caulfield 20 Langdon Road – Rochelle Butt and Rodney Morley of TBM got away 1500 sqm of land plus home in Caulfield North for an amount believed to be in excess of $4,000,000. Showing that Caulfield’s prices can be Canterbury prices when the right package is sought after.

Week Ending February 26th: If last week was the season opener for the $1m+ auction market, then  this  week  was the beginning of the $3m+ auction market and the main  focus for this weekend’s report. We don’t have all this weekend’s numbers in yet, so it’s hard to call, but it seems that this upper  market cleared at 44% of the properties under the hammer. We at  James accept a slightly lower auction clearance rate on the day in this segment as indicating balanced, warm or even hot  markets, because the air is generally thinner at this level due to the lower number of bidders available at this price point, and because the pre and post auction argy-bargy is  generally greater. Today there were quite a few $3m+ homes on offer. We  think this market segment is underwhelming at present – however if it is the right price, the right property and the right position it is still being well  received and taken up.

A few of the biggies that were bought

• Armadale 23 Wattletree Road – Justin Long – 3 bidders – $3,300,000
• Hawthorn 46 Illawarra – Mark Dayman – Bought Before – $4,250,000
• Brighton 33 Middle Crescent – Jason Swift – 3 bidders – $4,300,000
• Malvern East 8 Westgarth – Andrew Macmillan – 2 bidders – Post Auction Buy a smidge under $3,000,000
• Hawthorn 45 Mason – Scott Patterson – 4 bidders – Under  the Hammer over $3,100,000
• Malvern East 118 Finch – Bought for $3,150,000
• Kew 4 Madden – Peter Batrouney – Bought After – 1 bidder – $3,050,000
• East Melbourne – John Bongiorno – 3 bidders – $3,000,000

Some of the biggies that missed the mark

• Balwyn North 15 Stephens  – 2 bidders – Passed In for $3,650,000
• Balwyn North 59 Hosken – Passed In for $4,050,000
• Toorak 44 Verdant – Passed In for $3,750,000
• Hawthorn 23 Lisson – Passed In for $3,600,000
• Toorak 231 Kooyong – Passed In for $3,500,000
• Malvern East 50 Finch  - 1 Bidder – Passed In $4,100,000

St Kilda West 49 Mary: Passed In $4,000,000 - 0 Bidders: Andrew Stuart was not in the mood for mucking around – he had an uphill battle and he knew it. An opening vendor bid of $4,000,000 immediately hushed the vibrant crowd of 120 and that was it. Game over – a half time break for show but the gate was shut. A duck for this auction. Photos by Phoebe James

Week Ending February 19th: This market is either poor or, what is more reasonable to assume, still on holidays. Mike Gibson of Kay and Burton says that most high end sellers, as advised, are waiting. Hence the quality currently on the market is average. He expects good stock at this level to come on post Labour Day and before Easter.

To support our claims that the $3m+ market hasn’t really got going yet, look at this weekend’s Pass–Ins of $3m+ properties  –

St Kilda West – Mary St – $4,000,000 –  0 Bidders
James Auction Report: See Report Above

Camberwell – Canterbury Road – $3,801,000 – 1 Bidder
James Auction Report: An air of expectation at another James Tostevin Boroondara tennis court auction. He has almost singlehandedly made them his own over the last 2 years or thereabouts. His focus has been 20000 sq ft tennis court at $6m plus. A huge crowd, around 200 with kids trampolining, people milling and cars driving by. Everybody seems to know at least one person to give a wink or a nod to. Carnival atmosphere. Then the business started – well this time it didn’t. One auctioneer bid at $3,800,000 and then surprisingly one crowd bid for $1,000 more. Small Argument – settled with pass-in to the bidder on his $1,000 bid. Inside to do battle and last check they were still banging heads. We await the result.

"You are all very naughty schoolkids and I'm going to keep you back here somebody bids." Well no, James Tostevin didn't say that but he may have been thinking this on Saturday. Camberwell 31 Canterbury: Passed In $3,801,000: 1 bidder:

Balwyn – 12 Creswick – $3,425,000 – 3 Bidders
James Auction Report: A genuine bid of $2,000,000 opened proceedings. Auctioneer Maurice Di Marzio politely accepted the bid, suggesting it was closer to land value than a sale price, before offering a vendor bid of $3,200,000. More than 150 people watched Mr Di Marzio field bids from another two bidders before passing the property in at $3,425,000. Both interested parties headed inside after the auction for further discussions.

Albert Park – 139 Beaconsfield – $3,250,000 — 0 Bidders
James Auction Report: Auctioneer David Wood from Hocking Stuart was seriously up against the elements today as he tried to make himself heard against the traffic noise and the wind coming off Port Phillip Bay. The preamble was short and to the point, before he asked for bids. No one was prepared to open the bidding and he immediately entered a vendor bid of $3,250,000. Still no response, so half time was called. After the think music was up, the question was asked again and still no bids. The property was passed in on the vendor bid.

Gowan Stubbings of Kay and Burton successful at 29 Scott Grove Glen Iris

Kooyong – 711 Toorak – $3,190,000

In fact the only auction sale over $3,000,000 we covered was 29 Scott Grove Glen Iris (Gowan Stubbings of Kay and Burton) for $3,032,000 – 3 Bidders.
James Auction Report: A triangular battle developed right from the word go, and auctioneer Gowan Stubbings orchestrated the bidding superbly to maintain momentum throughout. Only when the $3,000,000 mark was eclipsed, did one of the bidders drop out. $32,000 later and the property was secured. Good naturedly, the two bidders shook hands to acknowledge the end of the contest. A riveting event.

However a few strong private and off-market sales show this market is not completely morbid. There is still some pulse. There were three very solid such sales in Bayside this week:

Brighton Golden Mile: Scene of 2 big sales over $10,000 per sq metre in February 2011

Shandford Avenue – Nick Johnstone of JP Dixon – $7.3m for 600sqm approx – which translates to $10,000 sqm for Golden Mile beachfront

Chatsworth Avenue – Stewart Lopez of Kay and Burton – $11m+ for 1100 sqm approx – again, $10,000 sqm for Golden Mile beachfront

Kerferd Road – Andrew Stuart of Hocking Stuart – $4.9m off market – 440 sqm approx

Continuing with February Sales:

While we have seen no sales over $3m reported in Boroondara and only the long suffering and difficult to see what you can do with it 13 Como Sth Yarra finally sold (Jeremy Fox of RT Edgar) we have seen a reasonable amount of mopping up action in Brighton – a sort of summer clean out.

New and old Brightonians like to buy New in Brighton

1 Inner Crescent Brighton with Justin Follett of Kay and Burton for an undisclosed amount – proved difficult to move and while it was an impressive residence it must have been price that proved the sticking point. Having said that line it up against a number of apartments and I thought the final result was fair value.

This type of offering sold well over Summer

2 William St Brighton – cnr St Andrews –scene of the all the helicopter noise in recent weeks saw a similar offering to 1 Inner Crescent also sell –reportedly through Kay and Burton.

2a Mulgoa also with Kay and Burton and a similar offering got a lot of it’s 50% better price basically because of its golden mile location.

Another good result  in the Golden Mile this time for the dynamic duo Regina Schmidt and Brian Devlin saw another of the Glyndon apartments (no 4) bought for $3,200,000 which continues to emphasize the demand for “retiree” offerings and it shows the selling appeal for Friedrich designs.

The Buxton duo again  – 1/188 The Esplanade with waterfront views but unlike the Golden Mile also some traffic noise – bought for $3,500,000.

And finally also Buxton in Brighton – David Hart got away a very popular 62 Dendy when we  went through it (but for us main road, south facing , tight block) for a smidge under $2,950,000. And increase of just over 28% from the depths of the GFC,  2 years ago.

National Breast Cancer Awareness Month was celebrated at the auction of 12 Sunnyside Grove, Bentleigh (Andrew Chisholm, Buxton). Elmo was on hand to watch as the home was bought under the hammer for $1,165,000, 4 bidders

Key Points

• Ascot Vale, 13 Fisher – Ray White – With views over the Maribyrnong River, this was bought for $2,000,000. Land value $2,000+ per sq metre
• 8 buys over $1m in Caulfield and Elsternwick this week, including in the heart of the Bagel belt – 31 Aroona with Rochelle Butt of TBM at $2,511,000
• Templestowe, 70B Newmans – Robert Sordello – Bought Before for over $2,000,000
• Warrandyte, 31 Oakland – Spiro Drossos – Private Sale over $1,700,000

Agent Q & A

What advice would you give a buyer wanting to purchase a property between now and Melbourne Cup Weekend?
Bill Stavrakis, Biggin Scott, Elsternwick: “My advice to any genuine buyer would be to look at purchasing a property that suits their requirements, if the price is right. Procrastination might very well lead to buyers being ‘caught out’ through the lack of new listings coming onto the market post Melbourne Cup. Stock levels seem to be nowhere near the volume of last year and this may very well result in very few buying opportunities leading up to Christmas.”
David Oster, Jellis Craig, Ivanhoe: “I would suggest to a buyer that wanted to purchase between now and Melbourne Cup… to go for it. There are (higher) stock levels and the opportunity to enjoy a more balanced market.  If you are the highest bidder and it’s passed in to you, make sure that you enter into a reasonable negototiaion. Don’t outsmart yourself.  Be flexible.  And you aren’t paying or competing with the same market as 12 months ago. Enjoy it, as the market can swing again such as it did from 2008 to 2009..and it wasn’t in a buyer’s advantage.”
James Davis, Miles Real Estate, Ivanhoe: “With rates having stabilised, it’s a good time to solidify your position and take the next step on the property ladder and upscale. As the market keeps steamrolling on, now is the perfect time to buy property…today…if not yesterday!!”

Around the grounds
Moonee Ponds, 135 Park St, Brad Teal, Bought Under the Hammer, $1,230,000, 2 bidders
“A crowd of around 60 gathered to watch Brad Teal auction 135 Park Street, Moonee Ponds. A vendor bid of $1,050,000 opened the proceedings and things progressed slowly with the half time break, which occurred after one actual bid of $1,070,000. Then the sale was fought between two parties aggressively until a final result of $1,230,000. Solid result for the vendors.” (David McMillan)

I give up! Milo Rasinac (Nelson Alexander) at 15 Jacka St, Essendon. Passed In, $2,500,000, no bidders

Essendon, 15 Jacka St, Milo Rasinac, (Nelson Alexander), Passed In, $2,500,000, no bidders
“Just as the auction started the heavens opened up on 15 Jacka Street, Essendon and despite auctioneer Milo Rasinac’s best efforts no bidders emerged from the 100 strong crowd. The property was passed in on a vendor bid of $2,500,000.”(David McMillan)

Ivanhoe, 51 Robbins St, Rod Watson, (Jellis Craig), Passed In, $1,050,000, no bidders
“By the scheduled auction time at the Robbins Street auction, only a sparse crowd was evident, obviously having been frightened off by the torrential rains earlier in the day. Just as the sun was slow to come out, so were the spectators slow to gather. Yet assemble they eventually did, to witness a largely uneventful auction, despite the quality of the property up for offer. And, despite his best efforts, auctioneer Rod Watson was unable to elicit a response from the crowd to his numerous requests for an opening bid (unless a dog casually sauntering his way through the crowd can be taken as interest!?) and the home was subsequently passed in on a vendor bid of $1,050,000, leaving the surprised crowd silently stunned.” (Nikki Hills)

Templestowe 20 Edwin: Passed In $2,600,000: 1 bidder: Auctioneer Adrian Santini:

Templestowe, 20 Edwin: Adrian Santini of Barry Plant: Passed In for $2,600,000, 1 bidder:
They breed ‘em tough out Templestowe way. This was a knock down, drag it out affair and I was exhausted just watching it. Forty minutes – seven or more vendor bids and one genuine bid. Adrian Santini passed in this home at $2,600,000, having started it at $2,000,000 with a vendor bid. One bid from the crowd at $2,300,000. Next time I’m taking a cut lunch and if it’s that cold again – a sleeping bag as well. I’ll be honest I didn’t see why it took so long to achieve the result it did. A crowd of around 50. (Mal James)

What is it with redheads? They're running the country - and now they're taking over the auctions. We counted six in this photo in amongst auctioneer Phillip Kingston from Gary Peer. 7A Nightingale St Kilda East. Bought After $1,200,000. 1 bidder.

At 6pm Saturday the James Clearance Rate on the 22 $M+ Auctions we covered was 59%.

Our Demand Indicator Bidderman was 2.2.  Hmmm – an interesting increase but it was off a very low turnover.

Today’s Highlights

1)      Bidders were present at 18 of the 22 auctions we covered –  and at three auctions there were 6+bidders

• 23 Sunburst Avenue Balwyn North (Doug McLauchlan of Marshall White)
• 12 Lennox St Hawthorn (Russell Turner of Christopher Russell)
• 7 Monomeath Avenue Toorak (Justin Long of Marshall White)

2)      The Pies are top of the ladder – and the election is on

We couldn’t find many $M+ auctions worth covering and only one of the auctions we covered went over $2m this weekend. So with the small numbers – just coming out of  the winter hiatus – it was like a first back training run before we get into the winter season proper over the next few weeks.

Agent Quotes

Scott Patterson of Jellis Craig: “Sold 12 from 16 today throughout the company. Opens and auctions were well attended…those who wish to sell in next month or two could enjoy quite solid results due to lack of supply, because demand seems reasonable… August 28 is looming as big weekend, particularly as it is now the week after the election…only thing is that Hawthorn vs Collingwood might affect crowd numbers etc…’

Hamish Tostevin of Marshall White: ”Opens were steady without being over-run with buyers. Certainly a lack of property at the moment in terms of supply. Should be a solid spring, particularly when the election is out of the way.”

Now, where were we before we were so rudely interrupted (by the school holidays)?

It has been a month since we last reported, and we have seen more Top End activity at Tullamarine than in any other suburb. Was it sales? No. It was our selling agent brethren jetting off to Europe to recharge their batteries. This poor humble buyer agent can only give you a travelogue on the Dubbo Zoo so I won’t bore you with tales of kids and a 12-hour car drive or the fact it ain’t a patch on the Werribee Zoo.

The world is a different place since our last report: back then Kevin ’07 was in charge, Masterchef was still a competition to find the best amateur chef in Australia, not the luckiest cook as it is now, and our $M+ market had prices cooling quicker than a Melbourne winter, after a blistering start to the year (although there were still an incredibly high number of buys).

A month ago we reported that the early 2010 gains had evaporated in the five auction weeks of May due to the sheer number of listings. May’s record supply finally stopped what had, since March 2009, been a rising market, driven initially by international buyer demand and then solid local demand.

So what is happening in our Winter Market (June to August) right now?

To be frank we don’t know for sure yet. But here are some of our thoughts.

1. Prices Now
2. Stock Quality Now
3. Method of Sale Now
4. Risk v Reward Now

Prices Now
Selling agents love to use the ‘p’ word plateau (rather than the four letter ‘f’ word)  to reflect on, or deflect away, thoughts of a declining price market. Right now, we actually agree with the ‘p’ word – especially if you accept that prices fell significantly in May and June. (By the way, the ‘f’ word that selling agents don’t like to use is fall.)

Some reasons prices may be plateuaing are:

• Seasonally reduced action (winter)
• An election on the horizon –  so some buyers and would-be sellers will pause to wait for the result.
• We had a big price fall in May and  for most of us market watchers the way forward is still unclear. Will we see more price drops or …. who knows? Like many, we are waiting for a sign.

Demand in Relation to Price

• This weekend Bidderman was at 2.2 – but, please note, this is based on very low auction volumes and therefore statistical distortions are possible.
• As a buying company,  we have had commitments from a significant number of new clients over the past few weeks.
• We feel it’s better to reflect overall demand as more cautious rather than dropping – however another month or two may tell us a different story.
• Right now, buyers still do have the rare luxury of having their cake and eating it too – if they choose to. Prices have fallen in May/June, and in July we are in a market of reasonable choice. Hooray for buyers!

Private Sale Clearance Rate – the number of Proven Sales is only 11 from 50 – or 22% – over the past six weeks.

Six weeks ago we randomly selected a basket of 50 higher end Private Sale and Expression of Interest properties, right across our $M+ Melbourne market. We did this with the aim of  checking  what was bought 6 weeks later (roughly the same time as a “go to whoa” auction campaign), and to therefore calculate the clearance rates  to see how Private Sales and Expressions of Interest were really going.

We thought this snapshot would provide the best reflection of private sale market activity and confirm or question comments by some selling agents that: “Oh yes, auctions were not as good as March, but we are selling a heap via private sale”. The results proved that while in May agents were selling a heap, it wasn’t so much the case in late June to early July. However,  it could have just been that many agents were away.

• We have made an effort to contact those that were withdrawn without a sale price, and we may have missed a few sales – but overall the non-auction homes are NOT running out the door any faster than the auctions. In fact you could make a strong argument that, as an effective method of sale, auctions are still outperforming private sales in many cases – despite the declining clearance rates, given that only 1 in 4 private sale properties have been bought in 6 weeks.
• These figures must surely help smart buyers put together an offering strategy. It’s certainly prompted us here at James Buyer Advocates to change how we buy in the last two months.

Today’s final word on price – are you a glass half empty of half full person?

If you feel the double-dip recession is fast approaching and the world as we knew it is about to end, then, by all means, don’t buy – and in fact sell (and please give us a ring if you have a good home to sell).

If you feel Julia (Gillard) won’t be changing the legitimate immigration numbers any time soon (demand) and Justin (Madden) won’t be able to release large numbers of housing blocks in Inner Melbourne because they are not there (supply), you may wish to ignore the doomsayers and take advantage of this current price breather combined with good stock offering. The GFC lasted less than a year  (for us) and in July 2010 Melbourne $M+ home prices are still 20 to 30 per cent above 2008 GFC home prices. Remember the 2008 ‘bulls**t’ rumour of the year, which said the NAB and other banks were about to foreclose on 200 homes in Toorak alone – it never happened. Yes we are biased and make a living by encouraging buyers to buy – but the facts are still very positive for buyers.

Stock Quality Going Forward
Spring quality and auction numbers are the variables we don’t have a clear handle on as yet. Right here and now in July, we have a market with excellent stock numbers for buyers – if you know where to look and you actually act correctly (please see the following paragraph on methods of sale). We also think the quality is good. Going forward, quality stock levels are not clear to us, because traditionally when quality sellers see a declining market they are loathe to put their home on the market on a speculative basis (in that, if they don’t have to sell, they won’t). This obviously leads to less stock on the market, which may affect price but, more importantly, it affects choice. Good buying decisions are more likely when, along with good advice, you, the buyer, have good choice.  You have that now.

Method of Sale
As we said, there is choice now if you know where to look, whom to ask and how to deal. Look at the above private sale table – there are some good homes there. We keep overhang lists (stales and unsolds) and there are also a number of off-markets and quiet pre-releases available. Granted, some of the vendors are still in their price cocoons but  quality sellers who have adjusted their price expectations may have homes worth considering. The off-market (unadvertised properties) may well be the market of choice for a number of buyers and sellers in the next few months.  But, please note buyers, you will have to sharpen your negotiation strategies to take advantage of all that is on offer.

Risk v Reward
To digress – Risk v Reward is where Masterchef’s Adam and Claire had it all over Jono. While Jono was going for the big dish on every occasion – and you have to admire him for that – he wasn’t playing the game to the best of his abilities. Adam is the quiet master at the Masterchef game. He sees a situation and says: “Yeah, I want to try and make a dish that will impress the judges and maybe get me a shot at immunity – the reward – but I don’t want to push the boundaries that far that I risk getting in the elimination round if I fail.” Good Home Buying and Negotiation is absolutely the same as this. Why is that? Because in the first instance the strategy should be to get yourself into a strong position and not risk all for the pot of gold. Once you are in that strong position, then you can make a run for the prize. Another analogy is acclimatising at base camp before you make the assault on the Everest summit. This is Risk v Reward.

A full James Buyer Opinion on Risk v Reward in today’s Market will be published here on Tuesday – so look out for it this week. At the moment you will find our biggest ever ‘clicked on’ James Buyer Opinion article – The Learning Fee - right next to this article.

It’s good to be back

We Only Buy Homes

Mal

Balwyn North 23 Sunburst. Big Crowd for Doug McLauchlan of Marshall White - 125 in fact. Seven bidders. Bought under the hammer for $1,567,000.

McKinnon 40 Wheatley Road Nick Renna Passed In. Huge crowd of 200 saw 3 bidders fight strongly for the right to go toe to toe with Mr Renna post auction. We await the final outcome.

Unless you have been in a cave you would know that property prices in Glen Eira have been increasing for some time now. However in the past two weeks, after the Easter break,  million dollar prices have been common as common as Bagels in Glenhuntly Road; as common as Gary Peer signs on Bambra Road and as common as Collingwood premierships (woops that’s wrong); anyway (25 in total) in Elsternwick (5);  Caulfield (12), McKinnon (3) , Bentleigh (1), Ormond (2) and Murrumbeena(2). That is very strong and unlike early 2009 or all of 2008.

Caulfield North $2m+ private sales: 3 in fact at 5 Rowena (Rodney Morley TBM), 8 Craddock (Gary Peer) and 8 Fosbery (also Gary Peer) averaging out a tad over $2.5million. These were all new homes and shows that in Caulfield if you build it in 2009 they will buy it in 2010.

The market didn’t show a similar strength today on the 6 homes we chose today. Three had issues and they all passed in – the other three were bought. However there were bidders atall bar one auction.

Some land sales for values:

66 Shoobra Elsternwick with Bill Stavrakis of  Biggin and Scott. 668 sqm for $1,300,000 or just under $2,000 per sq metre. Seriously across Melbourne this far out from the CBD in that caliber of precinct it sounds cheap. The sale  is good – that is land value in the are – we are saying the precinct for what is offer is cheap. Glenhuntly road shops, synagogues and churches, rail and tram (sounding like a selling agent, but its true). It’s almost a hidden treasure except everybody knows – sort of.

20 Marriott St Caulfield with Mark Rogers of Buxtons. Nice north facing rear block of 73o sqmetres sold for around $1800 psqm. It’s a little bit away from the action but after a good home goes on it you are looking well north of $2,000,000 which supports those 3 new home sales mentioned above

So far this year we have seen regular crowds of up to 70 to 100 people; far bigger than in Stonnington and Bayside. Why I’m not sure – there maybe even greater buyer depth here than we first thought and many are not getting the chance to put their hand up on the goodies.

The median price trend chart below, courtesy of the REIV, shows as we are finding, a solid recovery in prices began around the middle of last year and has continued on into this year. We think these charts accurately reflect what is happening in the Glen Eira $M+ market.

All this is showing the potential of buying in Glen Eira for those that can’t afford Malvern or Brighton and for those who simply want to live here for the family life and period homes on offer.

If you haven’t noticed Glen Eira before then just take a drive around the suburbs and you will be pleasantly surprised.

Stay Focused, Stay Happy

Toorak 21 Evelina: Bought $1,515,000 under the hammer. Our favourite Lachie Fraser-Smith aka “Uncle F....” bursting another "foofer" valve on the way to his strong result.

I remember when I was at university, one of my text books was “ How to Lie with Statistics”. Well if you read this morning’s press you will have seen that house prices in Toorak were reported  to have dropped by just over 7% in the first quarter of this year. However, it’s hard to understand such a stat, when, in our view, prices ( the whole Toorak market without the focus on big trophy properties) have been somewhat increasing throughout the year – a trend which has continued this week. We acknowledge that Toorak has been weaker than say Armadale or Malvern in its rises; but it doesn’t appear to us as though it has been falling. Anyway no big deal it’s only a stat and mine only one opinion.

Consider for example the sale of 176 Kooyong Road by Clive Nettlefold and Gerald Delany of Kay & Burton. It was on the market for less than a week and sold in a boardroom auction on Sunday morning for a reported $6,500,000, some 10% above the indicative quote of $6,000,000. The neighbours at 172 Kooyong Road seem to be encouraged by such an outcome and have put their house back on the market, with Jeremy Fox of RT Edgar, with an asking price of $8,000,000 after its sale about 12 months ago.

Another strong sale was registered by Jeremy  at 26 Monaro Road Kooyong for the pre-auction offered amount just under $6m. The quote was $5,000,000 – $5,500,000.

At the other end of the spectrum two blocks of land on Trawalla Ave, each of 1160 square metres, sold under the hammer today for $5,300,000 and $5,150,000.That’s a total sale of some $10,450,000 and equates to approx $4500 per square metre – that’s hardly a weak price for Rodney Morley of TBM and Mike Gibson of Kay and Burton.

Other informative land sales were 963 square metres at 13 Fraser Street Malvern ( with permits for three town houses) which sold for $2,800,000 or $3093 per square metre – Mark Wridgway of RT Edgar; and then 1 Ellerslie Place, Toorak with Elliott Gill of Benmac where 518 square metres sold pre-auction for $2,100,000 or $4055 per square metre. Strong.

Sales of smaller properties were also quite strong with 21 Evelina Road, Toorak a well renovated cottage selling for $1,515,000 through Lachlan Fraser – Smith of Benmac – comfortably above the quoted range of $1,250,000 – $1,450,000. Secondly a smaller Robert Mills designed townhouse on Meredith Street in Malvern sold through Andrew Baines of Kay & Burton for $1,720,000 against a quote of $1,500,000.

So, if you are a buyer, after having been an underbidder at x auctions so far this year with these results; do you think prices are dropping?

Looking at the charts below, courtesy of the REIV, from a big picture point of view it shows the market began to turn upwards around mid last year (we think a bit before) and is continuing on into this year right up till now. The Armadale roller coaster shows the folly of looking a very small number of sales in very tight timelines. It’s the trend that’s important and Stonnington prices are up.

Make good decisions

Strange. Very strange. Yes Glen we can see you but check out the guy to the right. I'm not sure if he was there for marketing or to revive injured buyers. Maybe he will be mandatory at all auctions soon. Camberwell: 52 Athelstan Road: Glen Coutinho. Passed In.

It is 6pm Saturday and the James Million Dollar-Plus Clearance rate for the 38 Auctions we attended today was 74%; basically no change on the 77% ( pre Easter Super Saturday -March 27).

Bidderman was down from to 3 to 2.3 bidders per auction but that is still very strong all things considered (stock quality and Easter holidays).

Market Mood

Today was expected to dip to reflect this being a secondary weekend for $m+auctions; but it didn’t. Many of the really top homes wouldn’t have been launched with an Easter or School holiday start and May 1 and May 22/29 are shaping up to be the next $M+ Super Saturdays (stock quality and numbers wise).

The last 2 weeks confirm the March 27 strength. Hot! Hot! Hot! You know the market is very strong when you see that REIV agent members have reported 170 properties $m+ properties as sold since that pre Easter Super Saturday. That does not include today’s auctions. So basically the large majority were private sale at a rate of 8.5 a day.

This tells you the mood far more accurately than auctions today. Some expected and some unexpected suburbs below ($m+ sales in last fortnight).

Balwyn (5); Brighton (7); Caulfield (11); Docklands (3); Eaglemont, Elsternwick and Elwood (4 each); Hawthorn East (5); Malvern (5); McKinnon (3); Melbourne (5) and how about Mounts Eliza and Martha (6 between them); Surrey Hills (4) and Williamstown (4).

Interest Rates, Population Pressures, Volcanoes  – not sure what is going to stop this speeding train but it does need to and should slow down some time ……..

FIRB rule changes and major price increases confirmed.

The REIV trend chart confirms the effect on prices the FIRB rule changes had in March of 2009 and the leveling off that occurred when the Aussie dollar started to strengthen strongly against the US dollar (relevant to the Chinese community) later in 2009. With the help of Canberra, the Chinese community single handedly (a bit of exaggeration) rescued our Inner East $M+ property market and whether you like what is happening now with prices this was the beginning, one of the catalysts for the incredible 2009 price improvements right across Top End Melbourne.

Liar Liar Pants on Fire

Hi I’m Mal James and some people think I’m a liar.

It’s a bold statement. Is it grounded in truth? Initially, when representing a client, if I do not know the other side well, I instinctively hold information back. I offer information in a structured way, which helps me in assessing the objective and subjective connection to whatever information I perceive they control. If I am asked a direct question, but I believe that it is not in my client’s best interest to give up that information, then, at times, I will make a statement that may not disclose the whole picture or may allow confusion. Eg Privacy of a client’s identity or limits.

So, to some people, I am therefore a liar. That’s fair enough – you can call me what you like, some people do. I also assume that, at any time, I may be lied to – not always to deceive but I assume that some people are communicating to me in a way that, if I want to jump in over my head, then they will let me do that.

What is a liar?

Is it one who makes false statements? False is a most interesting word with a myriad of meanings and powerful consequences, depending on the interpretation applied in each and every specific instance.

On the definition of making false statements is Channel 7 weatherman David Brown a liar when he tells me tomorrow will be sunny and it’s not? Is Eddie McGuire a liar when he says Collingwood will win and they don’t (it seems he could be an infrequent liar this year) or is your bank manager a liar when she promises something will happen by next week and it doesn’t?

In real estate, is Low Bidders Real Estate’s Artina Deco a liar when she says a property should go for $X and it sells well above reasonable expectations, meaning she is 12 per cent out? Is Top Drawer’s Eddy Wardian a liar if he says a house will be on the market at $Y, the vendor changes their mind and it’s not? Is Victor Rian of Home Sweet Home  a liar if he says Z will be sold by tomorrow and that doesn’t happen, because a previously trustworthy buyer recants?

Are any, or all, or none of the above liars?

You may say lying depends on intent. In the end, does that really make any difference to you?

Is it important?  It was rainy, Collingwood lost, the loan didn’t go through or you missed the property.

Is it the lie itself that is of importance or the rules you apply and your reaction to the lie?

The community views deliberate and accidental “lies” very differently in law, despite in many cases the consequences to the “victim” being the same.

Let’s forget the word semantics. Let’s say an agent told you the reserve on a property is $2.45 million when, in fact, he knew it would not be sold for under $2.7 million, or, conversely, it could be sold to you at $2 million. Is it the deliberate lie or what you do with it – and how you react to it – that is the issue? Or does the lie itself determine the end result?

A deeper question is how should a lie affect you?

That may lie (excuse the pun) in the rules you apply to the circumstance.

If you perceive buying a home as being like a relationship, then you will probably react very differently to a lie or liar than if you perceive buying a home as like a business transaction.

What is the right way to react to a lie?

For me, truth or lies are mostly varying shades of grey – even the ones that seem black and white have shades of grey. To be honest, in business, I prefer truth but I’m not fazed that much, if at all, by a lie. In my personal life I take a very different stance. You may have an alternative take and fair enough, but if that different take involves an emotional response that doesn’t maximise your outcomes then …..

Is lying right or is it wrong?

1.  Is wrong related to unacceptable behaviour or self-interest or the greater good?

2. Unacceptable behaviour usually revolves around

• community self-interest (standards, laws etc) and/or
• individual self-interest (your opinion).

3. If it’s right for you but wrong for other guy – is it right or wrong?

Your self-interest opinion may be different to mine, in turn different to the seller’s, the seller’s agent and different again from community expectations. A current real estate and lying conundrum is notional propriety and the disparate self-interests of underquoting.

So, is a lie always right or wrong? You know, truthfully, I’m not exactly sure. We are taught that, morally, a lie is always wrong. I think a lie that kills a soldier is wrong but, if it saves 100 others, maybe it is right to tell a lie in those circumstances. A less dramatic situation is whether a lie is wrong that gets two parties together on a $2.5 million deal, which would not have happened but for the lie and the fact that the deal is in the best interests of both the buyer and seller.

Does a lie really matter?

Let’s return again to the example of a house quoted at $2.45 million, when, in fact, it can be bought at either $2 million or $2.7 million. Is the real issue the lie of $2.45 million? Or is the real issue the fact that you might get it at a different price if you know how? Is the issue that the lie is a danger to you or is it that you don’t have a lie detector process that is the real danger to you.

If you have a tried and true process – in other words a certain set of self-interest rules (such as the CAN process that we use) then is a lie a big deal?

If you have a process such as the CAN process,  then no matter what is presented, you or your advisers will break it down and look into it in an organised and beneficial self-interest manner. You will save flair and risk for the last little leap of faith when the agreement gap is small and all other elements of the deal have been explored and confirmed. Your procedural disciplines will discourage reactions that can be dangerous for you in the event of a lie.

In real estate, when you have such a process, liars are just interesting people you meet along the way that present opportunities to you rather than dangers.

If, however, you do not have a solid set of rules such as the Clarity-Assess-Negotiate process, then liars are Melbourne Real Estate dangers to you.

Is the issue in home-buying the lie or the process required to obtain the truth?

Finally sometimes the liar is within

Yes, some liars are faceless agents representing their clients. However, for some buyers, a far more dangerous liar is part of the inner sanctum.

He says to his family. “It’s just bad luck” that he keeps missing out. He is constantly surprised by the actions of agents, the process of real estate purchasing, the sold prices compared to the quotes. He has missed numerous times on homes his family wanted to –and should have – bought.

Or it’s a she: one who expects history to not repeat itself, just for her, and reacts badly when it does. She ignores that her emotional world of buying a home has collided head-on with the unemotional world of selling agents. She has taken no action, and made no change to her modus-operandi to cope with the emotional/unemotional disparity.

These liars take a “she’ll be right” attitude and say to their family “Let’s move further away” and accept less than they have to, or they say “Let’s look again in five years time, when prices will be cheaper.” Furthermore they take the identity of a victim, a victim with a family and worthy of pity, but a victim without a family home.

In real estate, and in life, some lies are very wrong and can hurt deeply. We have all seen and experienced that. However, lies can allow beautiful things to happen. As truth does; lies save and destroy. Truth and lies are a part of life. Your level of understanding, management and reaction to lies will ultimately determine your short and longer term property outcomes.

Buy happy

Mal

Footnote: Clarity on my position: I personally think truth adds considerable value to the home buying process. The best agents, deal makers and negotiators know how to use both lies and truths to maximise their client’s position and most do so with little emotion. Most experienced negotiators realise truth often bridges gaps that lies cannot. Please, for all my talk of lies, most of the deals James Buyer Advocates are involved in with high-quality selling agents are often win-win and with a high degree of truth. Truth and lies are why again and again we outline the benefit of professional buyer and seller agent relationships.

Rocket Rodney Morley and Marvelous Mike Gibson; Real Estate’s dynamic duo usually playing on opposite sides - this time K&B and TBM were working together to extract a lazy $10,000,000 plus from the market. Toorak: 4 Trawalla and next door: Sold $10,450,000. 4 bidders.

Elwood: 127 Mitford Street. Bidderman 5. A confident Mark Tappin (Rand) kicked things off.There was fast and furious bidding from 5 buyers and it was bought for $1,831,000 - a super strong result.

10 out of 15 million dollar plus homes on offer were bought at auction today. A little off the stellar performance of two weeks ago, but nonetheless still pretty solid.

Following on the strong Elwood results was the auction at 127 Mitford Street with Bernadette Cheet of Rand.
James Rating 738/1000: “Great block to start again in Elwood – big reno (keep Spanish Mission facade) or bulldoze (STCA) – your choice. Rear Access. Good central part of Elwood. Like this one.”
James Auction Report: A confident Mark Tappin (Rand) kicked things off and was rewarded by a genuine bid of $1,300,000. There was fast and furious bidding from 5 buyers and it was soon on the market at $1,560,000. There was no vendor meeting and no let up. These fired-up buyers had a battle on their hands. It sold for $1,831,000 – a super strong result.
James Analysis: We thought $200,000 for the home but it could be a bulldozer and it certainly confirms that right now good blocks of land in Elwood right now are over $3000 per sq metre.

Another advertised land sale was with Robert German of Bellers over the highway at 16 Hughenden St in St Kilda East – it topped the $2m mark (the third Port Phillip sale reported over $2m since our last news) at $2,100,000 for 657 sq metres and depending on your thoughts on house value also over $3000 per sq metre.

Apartment buyers are coming back a bit with 4, million dollar plus sales reported in the last fortnight at 1/2701 Freshwater Place through Tony Noonan of Dingles around one and quarter million; 1/6 Pullman St Kilda East with Rafi Joffe of Gary Peer just under the ask around $1.6million; a $2m plus sale in the Lucient Tower (4^th level) almost 300 sq metres with the apartment expert Andrew Tolsonof TBM and the effervescent Kehren Eade of Hocking Stuart sold 7/97 Fitzroy St St Kilda (advertised as the former French Embassy) at auction today  just above the quote range at $1.68m.

With around 40 auctions over a million planned in the next two weeks it will be interesting to see if the Port Phillip continues to hold up.

Buy Well

John Clarkson of Hocking Stuart on his way to producing a stellar result (for the seller) at 38 Montclair Avenue Brighton North

To quote Rodney Morley of TBM real estate  at the auction of 23 Loch Street today, “That’s 8 of you!”  – and the bidders weren’t just there.  They were everywhere!  Loch Street, in St Kilda West, was buzzing with a crowd of more than 150 and bids came from everywhere.

Stuart Lopez of Kay & Burton achieved a fantastic result at 40 Sussex Street, Brighton.  Considered land only (725 sqm) by many, it sold for $3.25M.  That’s  a little over $4,500 per sqm.  Further down south, Hocking Stuart’s pair Stephen Tickell and Jenny Dwyer sold 5 Jennings Street, Sandringham for $1.85M.  With a feeling of yesteryear, this property needed a lot of work, and was rated as such.  If you put no value in the house (although many would keep it),  at 749 square metres, that’s almost $2,500 per sqm.

Family homes sold well today: John Clarkson of Hocking Stuart, sold 38 Montclair, Brighton for $2,225,000 with 3 bidders.  A property in Alicia Street, Hampton that did not move at all last year has sold via an expression of interest campaign, and we believe it sold this week for a little over $4M.  Leigh Hallamore and Bert Stewart of Buxtons ran a good campaign at 2a Rippon Grove, Brighton, selling under the hammer in the early $3M’s.

And it wasn’t just family homes selling today with multiple bidders -  the Leigh and Bert duo continued on to successfully sell 170 Were Street, Brighton, a small townhouse, for $1.283M with 5 bidders; up from just under a million when it last sold about 18 months ago.

The question now is whether this is a sign of things to come.  Will bidders remain at these numbers?  Will an increase in properties affect the current heat in the market?

Happy Wife Happy Life

At 5pm Saturday, the Auction Clearance Rate of James Attended Auctions was 38%. Nothing new here; but the market does have a slight sense of upbeatedness (if there is such a word), as a number of long-running deals and expressions of interest were concluded during the week.

4 Deepdene Place Balwyn – good home on more than 1770 sq metres – reportedly had three interested parties, and sold for in excess of $4.6 million via a Jellis Craig Expressions of Interest.

9 Bramley Crt Kew – on about 13,000 sq ft with a good but not great home – has been on the market for most of the year. Quiet auction with one bidder saw Richard Earle pass it in at $3 million. A reserve was declared at $3.5 million. It has been bought for under $3 million less than two weeks after the auction.

21 Park St South Yarra – classy terrace home that went to auction on a windy day in September. No bids at the auction forced RT Edgar’s Jeremy Fox to pass it in. A reserve was declared at $3.5 million. It sold this week between $2.8 and $2.9 million.

36 Clendon Road Toorak – large luxury 38-square apartment is believed to have sold for in excess of $3.5 million, making it the first $3 million-plus sale in apartments in four months (that we are aware of). This was a Kay and Burton Expression of Interest campaign. The trend has been downwards for a number of apartments that are owned by people that need to sell, seeing some sold for as much as $500,000 less than what they were purchased for.

112 St Georges Road Toorak – a deadline private sale through TBM and Kay and Burton ending 8 December. Was sold during the week for in excess of $2.5 million.

8 Davis Avenue South Yarra – auction was due today. A solid pre-auction offer launched interest from multiple bidders, with the eventual price being $1.45 million. This was $150,000 above the quote. A well organised campaign by Will Walton from Hocking Stuart South Yarra.

17 Byron St Brighton – Good quality Art Deco, north-facing rear home on 750 sq metres. Failed auction a few weeks ago. Quote was around $1.8 million. Reserve $1.6 million. Later advertised at $1.5 million. Sold sticker up this week. Believed to have been bought around $1.3 million. All that within a month.

So what do the above results tell us? The market is hot or changing? Nope, not yet.

What it tells us is that there is action outside auctions. It tells us that non-auction campaigns are increasing and buyers will need to develop a whole new set of skills if they are to manage the smarter sellers who are insisting on better ways to market their home than a pass-in and failed auction.

Furthermore, buyers who do “work a campaign of price lowering”, or monitor a falling quote that is perfectly reasonable when we see such wild swings in quotes as we have witnessed in recent times, also need to keep at the front of their mind the “end game”. Is it to buy at a reasonable price or to go low but miss out? Most of the above had multiple bidders – in other words, while initially the vendor was your competition, as the prices lower, other buyers or bargain hunters become you, the buyer’s, competition.

We cover this in more detail in Negotiation Corner below.
What this week also shows is that Christmas time is a great deadline. Overpriced properties get reduced and fence-sitting buyers fall off as they realise that eventually, no matter what you read or hear, you still have to live somewhere.

That is why buying properties is such a good investment!
Demand will always go up and supply drop, thus forcing prices up in the longer term.

Next week is our final week of 2008 and we like to have a bit of fun – no auction reports. We are at the coalface on the buying side week in and week out. You really do get to see who the good agents and auctioneers are. So all our reporters and advocates have got together and come up with:

Top 10 Sales Agents – including best younger sales agents;

Top 10 Auctioneers – including Best Auctioneer and Best Young Auctioneer;

and we will finish with a review of 2008 and a couple of predictions for 2009.

Over the Christmas break, we will be settling into our new Brighton offices. We will reopen on 12 January and auction reports will begin in February.

Our James Home Rating main office at 313 Glenferrie Road Malvern will open 19 January.

Buy Well

Mal