A luxury townhouse in Auckland’s Remuera that sold last year for $2.875 million fetched $3.98m at auction last week as demand for quality homes in the city's double grammar zone intensified against a backdrop of low listings.

Ten bidders chased the modern three-bedroom lock-up-and-leave home on Furneaux Way, with six still in the game well up to $3.6m, according to listing agent Richard Thode.

The Ray White agent told OneRoof said the house was brought to market just before lockdown but the vendors had decided to wait until Auckland went to alert level 3 for the auction.

“We had a pre-auction offer and the pre-auction buyer won,” Thode said, adding that the last two bidders fought it out in $80,000 and $100,000s jumps.

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"We knew it would be a big sale. There’s nothing on the market of that calibre. That’s the upside of this timing, but it still would have stood out.”

modern townhouse with pool at 8 Furneaux Way Remuera

Ten bidders competed for the immaculately designed three-bedroom house in Furneaux Way, Remuera. Photo / Supplied

The house, which was built in 2012 and a CV of $2.575m, has been bought and resold several times over the last nine years. OneRoof records show it changed hands in November 2017 for $1.45m. Just over two years later it sold for $2.875m in a deal also brokered by Thode. The latest sale has delivered its owners a profit, on paper of just over $1.1m.

That’s almost double the average gain for Remuera where OneRoof figures show that the suburb’s average property value grew $602,000 in the past two years to $2.898m.

modern townhouse with pool at 8 Furneaux Way Remuera

Buyers who missed out on a $5m house on Lucerne Road, Remuera in June are still looking in that price range. Photo / Supplied

Thode said the disappointed under-bidders are now waiting for new listings to come to market, but he was surprised how long it was taking for listings to arrive under level 3.

“It’s still a tight market. I’ve got people looking at $6m or $7m properties who won’t sell their $4m or $5m property until they’ve bought something, they don’t want to be out of the market," he said.

“A $5m property I sold in Lucerne Road in May had 100 groups through. Some of those people are still looking.”

The immaculate three-living room, three-bedroom residence with a swimming pool and spectacular sea views in Newmarket’s Broadway Park had resident access to the gyms, tennis courts, and pools and was billed as a luxury lock-up-and-leave pad.