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Auctioneer Andrew Cooley at the sale of a Gymea Bay house for $417,000 over reserve.
It offered the prospect of a waterfront location in coveted Gymea Bay for a lower price but the auction for a dated house on a sloping block ended up delivering the opposite result.
The 1900 sqm property on Mypolonga Ave sold under the hammer for an unexpected $2.217 million, $417,000 over the reserve, after attracting 15 registered bidders.
The price set a new street record and is the highest sum paid for a Gymea Bay property since June last year, according to CoreLogic records.
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Selling agent Alex Pitsis of Greg Gilbert Real Estate released the home to market with a $1.6 million price guide, but later raised it to $1.8 million due to stronger than expected demand. “I still didn’t think it would go as well as it did because the house required a lot of work and we thought that might turn off a lot of buyers,” Mr Pitsis said.
The Mypolonga Ave home has water glimpses.
Auctioneer and Avenue Auctions director Andrew Cooley said the bulk of the registered buyers were upsizing families and some saw the dated interior as a chance to potentially get a lower price.
Instead, the high number of registered bidders meant there was strong competition. “The property had been held in the same family for 60 years and there was a lot of scope for a renovation,” Mr Cooley said.
He added that the price was likely the result of a “dramatic” shortage of stock in the area.
The Mypolonga Ave home attracted 15 bidders.
“There isn’t much to buy and people in the Shire are hearing about the hot market and how prices are increasing so they are going to more auctions and having a go,” Mr Cooley said. Shire auctions held last weekend delivered the vendors an average of $173,000 over reserve, according to Avenue Auctions data.
In neighbouring suburb Grays Point, a modern four-bedroom house on Noyana Ave sold under the hammer for $2.4 million – $200,000 over reserve.
“This sale was another example of what’s happening because there isn’t much on the market,” Mr Cooley said. “You just can’t predict prices right now.”
7 Noyana Ave, Grays Point sold for $200,000 over reserve.
There were plenty of other sales across the city where the vendors netted prices well above already inflated expectations.
On the north shore, a Lane Cove house sold for nearly $600,000 above the initial price guide after attracting bumper interest from buyers.
The price for the four-bedroom house on Coolaroo Rd was $2.69 million, but it first hit the market with a $2.1 million guide.
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The reserve was eventually pumped up to $2.5 million after more than 180 buyer groups inspected the property and 71 requested contracts of sale.
4 Coolaroo Rd, Lane Cove sold for $2.69 million.
Auctioneer Andrew Robinson and the Belle Property Lane Cove team at the sale of 4 Coolaroo Rd, Lane Cove.
Selling agent Simon Harrison of Belle Property-Lane Cove said this level of interest was “unbelievable”.
Auctioneer Andrew Robinson received an opening bid of $2.4 million and seven of the 26 registered bidders made an offer.
In the east, a ground floor apartment in Randwick with a prized courtyard sold under the hammer for $1.46 million, pipping the reserve by $60,000.
Eight buyers registered for auction of the property at 52 Cowper St and five of the bidders made an offer.
The Cowper St unit in Randwick sold for $1.46 million.
Selling agent Daniel Cachia of PPD Real Estate said the two-bedroom unit was popular because it offered rare outdoor space.
“Buyer activity in our area is probably up 40 per cent compared to this time last year,” he said.