Auctioneer Jake Moore of Cooley at 1/63 Carr St, Coogee. Photo: Monique Harmer
A homeowner in Sydney’s east has made a resale profit of almost $950,000 on a unit he’s owned for seven years – without making any repairs.
A three-bedroom unit in Coogee sold at auction over the weekend for $3.01m, $401,000 above reserve, and above the $2.08m price paid by the seller in December 2018.
The sales wind equates to an average increase of $133,000 each year sellers own property on Carrs Ave.
Five buyer groups registered to bid and selling agent Mark McPherson of Sothebys International Realty, said the competition was “intense”.
The auction was expected to take place later this month but was brought forward.
“They all really wanted it, you could see it in their eyes,” said Mr McPherson.
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1/63 Carr Street, Coogee sold at auction for $3.01m.
Auctioneer Jake Moore of Cooley said he was surprised by the price, which was high for an older unit, even at Coogee’s high end.
“I first went in thinking it was worth about $2.7m. That would have been a good price,” he said. “It’s Coogee, but it’s still over $3m a unit. It’s a great price.”
Mr Moore said it was too early to say whether the sale reflected the state of the market or was simply a case of a rare, well-positioned property attracting buyers with big budgets.
“My opinion is that the market is still very strong because there are not enough listings,” he said.
“The real test of the market and the impact of this week’s interest rate cut will probably be in two weeks’ time, when there will be more auctions, especially (of houses).”
Mr McPherson said he expected blue chip real estate in the eastern suburbs to attract strong demand, even higher prices, as more buyers financed their purchases with equity.
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Buyers’ agent Richard Carwin from Lumin Property Buyers placed the winning bid on behalf of his client, a specialist. Photo: Monique Harmer
“Even those who buy their first house in this region often have a legacy behind them, and can borrow a small amount of money.
“There is still a shortage of quality stock in the market and there are many buyers still looking.”
The successful bidder for the Carr Ave unit in Coogee was a single professional, represented at the auction by buyer’s agent Richard Carwin of Lumin Property Buyers.
Mr Carwin said he came up with a strategy to open low bids and “tired other buyers”.
Only $1000 separated the winning bid from the next highest bid and Mr Carwin said he only had $1000 left in his budget to play with.
“The report from my client was that he wanted something close to the beach. The property had a shared garden, so it was like a semi and they could sell the property for around $6m.”
COMPETITION IS STILL STRONG IN THE SOUTH
A contemporary three-bedroom house in Cronulla has sold at auction for $3.08m, $208,000 above its reserve.
There were three registered bidders for the home at 7 Howie Ave, which is up for sale for the first time in 20 years, and the buyer was a developer.
7 Howie Avenue, Cronulla.
Auctioneer Andrew Cooley of Avenue Auctions said there was a spirit of bidding due to the pre-21m lots and the R3 zoning, which meant there was an opportunity to develop it.
“There hasn’t been a big impact on the price hike this week yet,” said Mr Cooley.
IINVESTORS ARE IN THE WEST
A house on an unusual triangular block in Chester Hill has sold at auction for just under $1.43m, $38,000 above reserve.
52 Bent St, Chester Hill.
Seven applicants registered to bid on the Bent St home – five were investors.
“Around 80-90 per cent of our buyers at Chester Hill are investors at the moment,” says selling agent Jordan Le Breux.
He added that the local interest in such an unusual area was “amazing”.
“There is a sense of desperation from buyers whose previous permits are about to expire,” said Mr Le Breux.
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