Tony Lapic at 7 Dorothy St, Ryde.

QUESTION: When is it advisable to sell before auction?

Answer: When you have a buyer like Tony Lapic, who had been disappointed at so many auctions and wasn’t going to cop it anymore.

Mr Lapic came to 7 Dorothy St, Ryde, with all guns blazing.

The property was perfectly proportioned to accommodate a granny flat, and the location was ideal — a short walk to Midway shops and buses to the city and Macquarie University.

In the market for about six months, Mr Lapic had missed out at auctions in Eastwood, Epping and Denistone East.

7 Dorothy St, Ryde.

Developers were pouncing on large blocks with duplex-size 20-metre frontages.

“The people who show up to these auctions are on the phone speaking to somebody to make an offer,” Mr Lapic said.

He saw the five-bedroom brick veneer brick house on 988sq m and decided to go for it.

“It had an appropriate price guide under $2 million and the vendor was realistic so we made an offer,” Mr Lapic said.

The 18m frontage, two metres short of the required 20m for a duplex site under Ryde Council zoning, meant he didn’t have to contend with developers with deep pockets.

Land lots of land: 7 Dorothy St, Ryde.

After negotiations with the vendor, Mr Lapic bought the property for $2.045 million just days before the scheduled auction.

Mr Lapic, from Canley Heights, has no regrets about his purchase.

He sees the potential of the property and believes this pocket of Ryde has yet to be discovered.

His initial goals are to rent the house and get moving with the plans for a granny flat.

In about three years, a knock down and rebuild is on the cards.

Tony Lapic bought 7 Dorothy St, Ryde, before auction.

Agent Phillip Allison from Belle Property Hunters Hill said the strong offer from Mr Lapic was hard to ignore.

“We had two other buyers negotiate alongside (Mr Lapic) but he was the right buyer,” Mr Allison said.