Auckland auctions are going down to the wire with fierce bidding leading to strong sales, agents say.
Edward Pack, of Bayleys Ponsonby, sold two Herne Bay homes at auction recently with both hotly contested homes selling above CV.
A renovated double bay villa at 21 Ardmore Road, Herne Bay, sold for $3.35m, well over the $2.75m CV.
The auction room was packed for the sought-after property.
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“It was on the right side of the street, it was a 518sq m site so it was slightly bigger than your average on that street and it was a charming double bay villa,” says Pack.
There were a lot of disappointed would-be buyers who were a mixed demographic of families, young professionals and downsizers.
Another Herne Bay sale, at 101 Marine Parade, also packed the auction room, selling for $2.525m, again above the $2.075m CV.
The three bedroom, two level brick home was built in the 1970s and had a double garage, nice views, was sunny and light and was nicely renovated.
“Again, it had a wide demographic of buyers looking at it,” Pack says.
“The people who bought it were a mum and dad downsizing from a large family home.”
While these properties sold over CV, not all do: “It’s a mixed bag,” says Pack.
21 Ardmore Road, Herne Bay, sold at auction for $3.35m. Photo / Ted Baghurst
And, for every excited winner at auction, there are disappointed bidders who missed out.
John Lantz, from Ray White Remuera, sold 69 Meadowbank Road, Remuera, under the hammer this month for $1.580m, again above the CV of $1.340m.
The small four bedroom house was in a great and under-rated location, Lantz says.
“Meadowbank’s a great suburb. It’s still an under-valued suburb though it’s gaining in popularity.
“One of the things that attract people to the area is the Meadowbank School, the primary school, but it’s also a good distance to the train station, the buses run along Meadowbank Road, you’ve got the shops at the top of the road, five minute to the motorway.”
The auction was highly competitive, Lantz says: “We had extracted every little bit in the room.”
Diana West, of Barfoot & Thompson’s Epsom branch, says her team’s auction success rate all year has been 100 per cent and it was no exception on December 9 when three properties sold under the hammer.
Number 9 Gladwin Road, sold for $3.82, above the $3.5m CV, and bidding was heated.
“There were four bidders there and we had 51 bids and it ended up selling for a premium, well above the reserve.
“A number of people obviously exceeded their budget but in the end it always comes down to usually two and the final two really had a hammer and tongs battle; it went on and on and on.”
There was strong bidding action for 9 Gladwin Road, Epsom, which recently sold for $3.82m. Photo / Getty Images
The big, beautiful character house was on 1700sq m of land West describes it as “one of those forever homes”.
Another heated battle took place on auction night over 120 The Drive, Epsom, which sold for $3.32m, above the CV of $3.075.
West says a number of people were keen to own the house which showed the strength was back in the upper end of the market.
“There’s a lot more energy and it’s really good because generally the higher up in price you get the fewer bidders there are, so that’s a really positive sign in the market.”
Her third house to sell that night was 3 Ngaroma Road in Epsom and while there was only one bidder the $2.3m sales price was well above the reserve and higher than the $2.150m CV.
The family home with potential was in a great location by Cornwall Park and had a lot of character, West says.
