Desperate buyers in Auckland are becoming more aggressive in their auction tactics as they fight to secure a home in the city's heated property market.
One of the country's leading auctioneers told OneRoof that house-hunters were increasingly making big pre-auction offers in order to get ahead of the competition.
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His comments come as Coast Breakfast host Sam Wallace brought forward the auction of his North Shore home by nearly three weeks to Thursday after a buyer made him a compelling offer.
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Harcourts Albany branch manager Andrew North, who is calling the auction for Wallace's house, said the lack of stock on the market was forcing buyers to act: “Last week, 11 out of 18 auctions were brought forward. With strong buyer interest, a lack of stock and a lack of choice, people’s priorities have changed. They’re just trying to buy."
Buyers were becoming more aggressive in their bidding style, he said. "They've seen how other people have been successful."
He said at an auction he called last night, the winning bidders had missed out on two other properties and didn't want to wait, so had made a pre-auction offer to bring forward the sale.
And the bids being made at auction are coming in fast, he said. "[Buyers] still want [the house], but they don't want to overpay. By going up $1000 at a time they are thinking, 'It's only one more.'"
Wallace and Bowman bought their house at just six months into their relationship. Photo / Fiona Goodall
North said Harcourts clearance rates were higher now than they were at the market peak in 2015, reaching 89 per cent last week. “Auction results are speaking for themselves.”
Wallace told OneRoof that even though his house had had no open homes, due to the alert level three lockdown, the offer he received last night was enough to convince him to bring the auction forward.
"I'm excited and we've had a lot of interest in the house."
Wallace and his partner Sarah Bowman are selling their three-bedroom house at 1 Margaret Place, in Milford, to get a bigger home for when their twins arrive next year.
The couple, who already have a 19-month-old son, Brando, told OneRoof last week: “We obviously need a room for the twins and then they will eventually need a room each, and then because we’ll have three young children we will need a separate room for support."
Wallace and Bowman said they bought the house eight years ago and had turned up to see it at an open home just six months into their relationship. They fell in love with it and went on to win the auction.
Harcourts Cooper and Co agent Damien Henaghan, who is marketing the property, said he had 40 groups view the property during lockdown. The auction will now take place online this Thursday at 6.30pm.
Wallace's Breakfast co-host Jason Reeves is also selling his house. His house at 56a Marlborough Avenue, in Glenfield, on Auckland's North Shore, goes to auction on September 17.
