Fresh Market News

Melbourne June 21st & 22nd, 2008.

This weekend there were 545 auctions, 336 sold resulting in a clearance rate of 62 percent.

Last week was the lowest week for quality new stock coming on the market this year - what that means in forthcoming auctions we will find out in July and August with regards to the market. This weekend’s auction market seemed lacklustre in terms of excitement.

Million Dollar Melbourne.

Overall this weekend was reasonably good for million dollar plus buyers and not the best for sellers compared to say the last month or so.

It is hard to know what the future holds and we think the most accurate comments revolve around the market is volatile – but it is a very different kind of volatility to last year. Last year an auction volatility was connected with just how much over an educated guess will the property sell for - now the question is will this property sell at a reasonable asking price or will it pass in. We should note there is no volatility around overpriced properties – they are not selling no matter how good they are.

AUCTIONS THIS WEEKEND - 21st, 22nd June 2008

4 Ballara Court, Brighton. We attended this auction when it sold in February 2007 for $1,405,000 and watched with interest this weekend when it sold again for $1,625,000. The block is in a great location and has difficulties as its irregular in shape and has a south facing rear. We rated it 439/1000 which is a weak rating. The sold figure actually reflects where the market in general has gone in the last year.

By December 2007, 4 Ballara was probably worth over $1.7m and now it has retreated back to its weekend sold price of $1.625m which on the face of it on a difficult weekend for sellers proved three things:

1. Competent agent management – Chris Carrington of Buxton
2. Realistic Vendor
3. Good position will always protect you even when you have other faults

105 Wilson Street, Brighton. A great home on a pretty average street. We rated this home at 818 out of 1000 which is a 4 star or excellent rating for long term growth and happiness. The auction was well attended on such a bad weather day with one main bidder and it was passed in at $3.55m and later selling for a figure we understand to be around $3.75 million; which is a good result for Kay and Burton and their seller (Jason Scillio auctioneer and Stewart Lopez agent) but not completely unexpected owing the quality of the home.

8 Selborne Road, Toorak. We rated this at 763 out of 1000 and this weekend sold at auction sold for in excess of $2.75 million. In this market quite an acceptable result as while the position was first rate the quality of renovation was below average as was the living room light owing to its south orientation.

26 St Johns Avenue, Camberwell. We rated this home at 761 out of 1000 and the result was of interest as across the road sold under very strong competition for $2.2m a few weeks ago. In some ways similar properties in other ways very different – both sales a reflection of what the market wants and how it values certain property characteristics.

Show Me The Money

Auctions this weekend.

1 Durban Street, Bentleigh.
This home has been very cleverly renovated to a very high standard. In better parts of Bentleigh, my guess this is a million dollar plus home, but in this pocket, which I think can reflect Bentleigh East prices, probably held it back from a runaway type result.

About fifty people attended the auction on Sunday 22/6 and Auctioneer John Pollard from Woodards in Bentleigh opened the bidding with a vendor bid of $850,000. Bidding took a while to start, but once underway three bidders went up in $10,000’s to $910,000. The auctioneer went inside to seek his instructions at this level. Once outside, John Pollard confirmed the bidders bid at $910,000 and continued calling for bids. There were none forthcoming and the property was passed-in. We believe It sold in a negotiation after the auction at $937,500. We rated this home at 751/1000. According to REIV data, it last sold 19/9/05 for $416,000.

19 Maple Grove Toorak.
In front of approximately 80 people, this substantial home in one of Toorak’s nicest streets did not sell at auction on Saturday 21/6. It was passed-in on a vendor bid at the agent’s marketing quote of $5,000,000, A massive home of 80 squares!

A very high quality build, great location, every conceivable inclusion; a lift, gym, guest accommodation, cellar, ensuite to each bathroom and probably the best kitchen I have ever seen in a residential property. Why no bidding? My guess is the land size;  613 sqm (approx) is not a particularly large block and even if you paid a premium for the land, is the house a multi-million dollar build? It is a superb home and in terms of a building, rated strongly, but the smallish land and south facing orientation kept our rating to 746/1000.
Short term history according to REIV data:

• 23/5/05 - Land sold for $1,570,000
• 20/10/07 – Passed in at auction at $5,750,000 (unsure if vendor or public bid)
• 21/6/08 – Passed in at auction at $5,000,000 (vendor bid)

4 Ruyton Street Camberwell.
A crowd of fifty or sixty people attended this action. We rated the home 571/1000 and felt it had shortcomings even though it is on a substantial block of land; south facing rear, lack of privacy in the back yard, floor plan and not particularly high quality. In saying that, it does have a number of significant positives – pool, tennis court, opposite brilliant parkland and located in a very nice area.

The property last sold on 18/11/06 for $2,020,000 according to REIV data and during the sales campaign was quoted at $2,400,000 - $2,700,000. It was passed in on a vendor bid of $2,250,000 according to Sundays Age, but the last bid I heard was a vendor bid of $2,120,000. There were a few cars that went by at the end and I could well have missed the final bid. No bidding was received from the crowd.

Room with a View.

261/55 Victoria Harbour Promenade, Docklands.
This property located on the 26th floor commands outstanding views of Docklands and the west of Melbourne. Two stories, approx. 313 sqm of living and 57 sqm of balcony. Yours for $3,000,000ish according to marketing agent Glenn Donnelly from City Residential. Three bedrooms, three bathrooms and expansive living spaces, all with views. The challenge for apartment buyers; views of the leafy east and MCG, or views of the water and Docklands.  Dock 5 (name of the building) also has a temperature controlled cellar, where your collection can be securely stored on the ground floor. Pool, gym, it is impressive. Lack of supply in the precinct is a significant concern for future growth; but if lifestyle and WOW views are the driving force, this could be a consideration.

Lack of historical sales data also means there is some risk in buying an expensive apartment in Docklands; it is not the same as buying in Toorak or South Yarra or East Melbourne, where there is history and risk can be measured. In saying all that, the building in isolation is good, location is great, living spaces sensational. We rated this property 533/1000.

Architectural advisory

Auctions this weekend.

Overall an interesting auction weekend – the shortest day of the year (in terms of daylight hours) and a typically cold and wet Melbourne one. Crowds at auction were down, and typically there were one-to-two bidders. Vendor bids and pass-in are becoming more and more the norm and buyers need to be prepared for this. The difference between a good and bad agent is becoming more and more obvious.

8 Glen Street Hawthorn. Step back in time 30 years to experience some real 70’s architecture here. Typically small bedrooms and a floor plan which does not really suit contemporary living contributed to a rating of 553/1000. The big positive here was the location – Scotch Hill.

This auction was always going to be interesting and the upper end of the quote range was always going to be tough to achieve. A vendor bid opened the bidding at $1.275m and two bidders nibbled at this in the $1.3m’s. It would take a skilled agent such as James Tostevin to sell this, and it did after passing in for $1.32m to eventually sell for $1.42m. Not a bad result, we have seen many properties of this ilk pass in at land value and not sell on auction day recently.

8 Colvin Grove Hawthorn. Not the same esteemed position here, but a renovated period style house of some quality which may appeal to more. This rated 668/1000. 

About 40 at the auction, yet it was clear to me that there was only one serious bidder. The auctioneer Maurice Di Marzio of Jellis Craig opened with a vendor bid of $1.2m and the one bidder was easily dragged along to $1.27m. The property was then passed in. Perhaps a pre-auction offer might have been the way to go here – or maybe just a match of the original vendor bid. The property is now for private sale for $1.42m.  

40 Frederick Street Yarraville. Attractive period style home close to the village. North facing rear with off-street car-parking and a lovely feel. We rated this 722/1000. In front of a crowd of around 40 people, auctioneer Craig Stephens of JAS H Stephens opened the bidding with a vendor bid of $540K and then 2 bidders fought this out. On the market at $625K then selling for $635K. A good campaign by Tate Moore, and a good result for vendor and purchaser alike.

Happy Spouse, Happy House

Cold, wet and grey weekend.

I was excited last week with the increase in the clearance rate of 67%. This weekend I was brought back to earth with a clearance rate of 62% from 545 auctions. The cooling of the clearance rate is purely an anomaly, matching the cold, wet and grey weekend.

Apart from auctions, there were a large amount of private sales sold last week, 470 in fact. With the lower amount of stock on the market agents are saying they are clearing-out passed-in properties from weeks ago. In their words “they are getting rid of their tail’.

For example, 1 Rouen Street Hampton which we rated 861/1000, was passed-in 3 weeks ago on a weekend that was overstocked with good family homes. It sold last week for $1,455,000 with an asking price of $1,550,000.

Albert Park, Middle Park and Port Melbourne are still doing it tough. However a sale to note on the weekend was 70B Beaconsfield Parade Albert Park. The property was a 10 year old, 2 storey rendered home which shared a common wall with the property next door. It had good land for the area of 220 sqm and sold through Hocking Stuart for $2,700,000. In our opinion, its land size and beach front views were the only positives to this home. The home was tired and worn and in need of a cosmetic makeover. A good sale.

A property that wasn’t so lucky to sell yesterday was 275 Danks Street Middle Park. A fantstic home which we rated 789/1000. An eight room, period home on an excellent north facing block of approx. 273sqm. The home boasted off street parking with an automatic double garage at the rear. 275 Danks Street was passed-in for $1,675,000 with an undisclosed reserve.

The majority of auctions this year are selling after the property is passed-in and negotiated afterwards. In a number of cases there is an auction after the auction with two or more interested parties. Why buyers are not putting themsleves in the box seat and bidding in this situation, I don’t know. In the words of Steve Tickell of Hocking Stuart at an auction of 47 Flowerdale Road Hampton East on Saturday, ‘we haven’t sold a property under the hammer for three months’. At this auction there was the usual three minute silence, then Steve Tickell went inside, came out, passed the property in on a vendor bid well within the quoted range and was then surrounded by three parties all interested in buying the home! The property was quoted $590,000-$640,000 with an opening vendor bid of $600,000. The home was sold later that afternoon for $620,000. You do not get a more transparent auction scenario than this. What are you doing? Call us if you are unsure about bidding at auction.

Another auction on Saturday which followed the usual auction scenario of the announcement of a vendor bid, three minutes silence, agent/vendor discussion, re-opening of bidding and eventual pass-in on a vendor bid, was at 23 Grout Street Hampton. We rated the home 718/1000. A delightful Spanish Mission in fairly original condition was quoted by Jessica Harrap of Buxton $950,000-$1,050,000. With no bidding Mark Earle passed the property in on a vendor bid of $1,000,000 and sold after auction for $1,020,000.

Other Off Market and Quiet Sales

A quiet Off Market week.

One property we visited, rated and we believe was sold before auction was 9 Maleela Avenue, Balwyn. Peter Smith of Jellis Craig was the agent and achieved a very good result. We rated this property 909 out of 1000. The price was undisclosed.

Overall Off Market action is still reasonably quiet – while there are many on the market quietly a large number of them are without interest owing to asking price.

MILLION DOLLAR SALES (all results can be found at REIV)

ALBERT PARK
S 70B Beaconsfield Pde B 6rm 220sqm $2,700,000 Hocking Stuart
PI 29 Herbert Pl B 5rm 100sqm $1,075,000 res $1,165,000 Bennison Mackinnon
PI 34A St Vincent Pl North B 9rm 329sqm $2,800,000 VB res undisc Cayzer
PI 71 Richardson St B 6rm 110sqm $1,400,000 VB res $1,600,000 Buxton
BALWYN
S 33 Yongala St B 5rm 747sqm $1,000,000 Marshall White & Co
S 49 Metung St WB 4rm 739sqm $1,000,000 Noel Jones
PI 1 Belgrove Av BV 12rm 957sqm $1,750,000 VB res $1,900,000 Hocking Stuart
PI 38 Birdwood St BV 9rm 670sqm $1,700,000 VB res $1,820,000 Jellis Craig
PS Hertford Cr $1,250,000 Hocking Stuart
BALWYN NORTH
PI 28 Harrington Av BV 8rm 981sqm $1,000,000 VB lo $1,075,000 res $1,150,000 Fletchers
BLACK ROCK
PS Iluka St B 7rm 654sqm $1,170,000 Buxton
BRIGHTON
S 4 Ballara Ct B 7rm 590sqm $1,625,000 Buxton
PI 21 Moffat St BV 6rm 560sqm $1,660,000 lo $1,735,000 res $1,850,000 Hocking Stuart
PS New St Rend 5rm 305sqm $1,100,000 Buxton
BRIGHTON EAST
S 24 Cluden St 6rm $1,150,000 Buxton
PI 4 Blanche St BV 8rm 475sqm $1,210,000 lo $1,300,000 res $1,450,000 Buxton
PI 14 Connor St Rend 8rm 660sqm $1,800,000 VB res $2,175,000 Buxton
PI 22B Centre Rd BV 7rm s/div $990,000 VB res $1,250,000 R T Edgar
PI 23 Clonaig St WB 6rm 650sqm $1,080,000 VB lo $1,100,000 res $1,225,000 Hocking Stuart
CAMBERWELL
S 13A Bowen St BV 6rm strata $1,004,500 Jellis Craig
S 26 St Johns Av WB 8rm 743sqm $1,680,000 Marshall White & Co
PI 36 Cochran Av B 10rm 749sqm $1,350,000 res $1,450,000 Noel Jones
PI 28 Sycamore St BV 7rm 592sqm $1,225,000 VB res $1,250,000 Jellis Craig
PI 4 Ruyton St BV 10rm 1504sqm $2,250,000 VB res undisc Hocking Stuart
PS Wattle Valley Rd BV 8rm 490sqm $1,300,000 Marshall White & Co
CANTERBURY
S 25 Alexandra Av B 8rm 980sqm $2,340,000 Kay & Burton
CARNEGIE
PI 23 Kingsley Pde B 5rm 100sqm $1,050,000 VB res $1,150,000 Hocking Stuart
CAULFIELD NORTH
S 52 Langdon Rd B 5rm 820sqm $1,725,000 TBM Caulfield North
CHELTENHAM
S 1-5/26 Camelia Gr BV irregular $1,260,000 Wentworth Real Estate
DONVALE
T 6 Mullum Dr BV 10rm 4000sqm $1,630,000 Barry Plant
EAST MELBOURNE
PI 25 Hayes La 5rm strata $1,350,000 VB res undisc R T Edgar
FITZROY NORTH
S 194 Mckean St B 6rm 7mx45m $1,211,000 Nelson Alexander
PS Alister St B 7rm 9.2mx50m $1,101,100 Nelson Alexander
GLEN IRIS
S 220 Burke Rd B 6rm 20.1mx42.9m $1,011,000 Kevin Sheehan Property
S 40 Peate B 11rm 10824sqm $1,360,000 Noel Jones
PI 1/23 Scott Gr B 5rm strata $950,000 VB res $1,050,000 Bennison Mackinnon
PI 32 Celia St B 5rm 743sqm $1,000,000 VB res $1,300,000 Marshall White & Co
GLENHUNTLY
SB 35 Royal Av WB 6rm 762sqm $1,000,000 Woodards
HAMPTON
S 23 Grout St Rend 6rm $1,020,000 Buxton
PS Rouen St 5rm 721sqm $1,455,000 Buxton
HAWTHORN
S 8 Glen St C 6rm 605sqm $1,420,000 Marshall White & Co
PI 6 Wright St B 5rm 602sqm $1,250,000 lo $1,300,000 res $1,350,000 Jellis Craig
PI 8 Colvin Gr 8rm 411sqm $1,275,000 res $1,420,000 Jellis Craig
PI 35 Park St WB 5rm 440sqm $1,050,000 VB res $1,270,000 Fletchers
IVANHOE EAST
S 23 Beauview Pde B 9rm 583sqm $1,410,000 Jellis Craig
PS Mcarthur Rd BV 7rm 733sqm $1,700,000 Duncan Mcintyre
KEW
S 17 Atkins St WB 4rm 480sqm $1,050,000 Jellis Craig
PI 35 Macartney Av B 9rm 732sqm $1,750,000 VB lo $1,770,000 res $1,975,000 Jellis Craig
KOOYONG
PI 1/717 Toorak Rd C 4rm strata $1,650,000 VB res undisc R T Edgar
LANGWARRIN
PS Guava Ct v/land 1300sqm $1,000,000 Stockdale & Leggo Langwarrin
MALVERN
S 51 Ewart St WB 6rm 465sqm $1,211,000 Marshall White & Co
MALVERN EAST
S 37 Tennyson St WB 5rm 402sqm $1,000,000 Marshall White & Co
PI 26 Manning Rd B 7rm 605sqm $1,800,000 VB res $2,050,000 Marshall White & Co
PI 30 Rothesay Av WB 7rm 700sqm $900,000 VB res $1,100,000 Marshall White & Co
MENTONE
PI 23 Marina Rd WB 10rm 720sqm $1,000,000 VB res $1,200,000 Buxton
MIDDLE PARK
S 230 Richardson St B 5rm 188sqm $1,240,000 Bennison Mackinnon
PI 275 Danks St B 8rm 282sqm $1,675,000 VB res undisc Cayzer
MONT ALBERT
PI 21 Barloa Rd WB 9rm 818sqm $1,025,000 VB res $1,090,000 Jellis Craig
MONT ALBERT NORTH
PI 33 Cairo Rd B 10rm 582sqm $1,310,000 lo $1,320,000 res $1,359,000 Jellis Craig
PS Dunloe Av B 6rm s/div $515,000 Noel Jones
OAKLEIGH
SB 111-113 Atherton Rd WB 8rm 1080sqm $1,000,000 Ray White Oakleigh
RICHMOND
S 64 Coppin St B 5rm 10mx38m $1,095,000 Chambers Fitzroy North
SANDRINGHAM
PI 288 Bluff Rd BV 8rm 669sqm no bids res $1,220,000 Hocking Stuart
SOUTH MELBOURNE
S 108 Nelson Rd WB 6rm 200sqm $1,260,000 Hocking Stuart
PI 346 Park St B 6rm 144sqm $940,000 VB res $1,020,000 Hocking Stuart
SOUTH YARRA
S 20 Portland Pl B 7rm 289sqm $1,650,000 Hocking Stuart/Ian Reid Vendor Advocacy
PI 27 Powell St 5rm $1,355,000 lo $1,375,000 res $1,495,000 Kay & Burton
PI 4B Copelen St 5rm $1,750,000 VB res $2,050,000 Kay & Burton
TOORAK
PI 19 Maple Gr 13rm $5,000,000 VB res undisc Kay & Burton
PI 7 Glen Rd 10rm $2,350,000 VB res undisc Kay & Burton
WEST MELBOURNE
PS Flagstaff La B 5rm $1,275,000 Thomson
WILLIAMSTOWN
S 86A Bayview St Rend 7rm 345sqm $1,450,000 Sweeney
PI 13 Hoffman Tce B 6rm $1,000,000 VB res undisc Williams RE

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