“Vendors no longer in control!”. “Seriously for Sale! Do Me Up or Detonate!”. “Reserve Set – Rough as guts!”.
They’re not the real estate billings you’d normally expect to read when hunting for a home, but brutally honest listings in Auckland are helping shift homes where the shortcomings are obvious or the vendors are under pressure.
Ray White agent Charlie Brothers has several homes on the market that are upfront about the vendors’ motivations to sell.
Last week, one of his listings, a two-bedroom home on Frizell Street, in Beach Haven, which he had described as “rough as guts”, sold under the hammer for $620,000 after four minutes of intense bidding.
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He has two more properties set for auction this month that have declared reserves: a four-bedroom home at 16 Matamata Place, in Otara; and a six-bedroom home at 26 Othello Drive, in Clover Park.
He told OneRoof those properties that were seen by buyers as “giveaways” stood out from the competition. “That’s why Frizell Street went off. I say to people, ‘These are definitely bargains in the market’.”
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16 Matamata Place, which has a declared reserve of $500,000, has already been vacated by its owners. “They’ve had enough of New Zealand. There are better prospects for them in Australia – better jobs, better housing, better for the family.”
The fact that the 1960s weatherboard house could be picked up for $430,000 less than its CV is, according to Brothers’ advertising, an “unbeatable deal”. The agent is upfront about the state of the house – calling on buyers to either renovate or “detonate” – with a 731sqm site that is also zoned for development.
The circumstances around the sale of 26 Othello Drive are different, with Brothers’ listing even noting that the declared reserve of $680,000 – well below the $1m CV – was a sign of distress.
“So SAD! Vendors are no longer in control!”
16 Matamata Place, in Otara, Auckland, goes to auction with set reserve of $500,000. Photo / Supplied
He told OneRoof that a change in the family’s circumstances and pressure from the bank had forced their hand. He is now helping the family with water-blasting and filling skips in the lead up to the July 25 auction.
Brothers said: “You can tell they’ve had the hard word [from the bank] but won’t divulge it to us.”
He said the house was a bargain. “It will be the cheapest. That sort of property in that condition normally sells for $750,000 to $800,000 in this market. A similar house in good condition would get $900,000 to $1m, depending on how well it is renovated.”
Brothers said interest in both these properties was more likely to be from professional renovators or tradies who know what they’re doing and can focus on a likely sale price.
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