First home buyer outbids seven others for $943,000 unit in Mortdale

A first home buyer outbid seven other parties, paying $943,000 for a two-bedroom apartment in Mortdale on Saturday.

The north-facing corner apartment at 3/35 Oxford Street had a guide and a reserve of $800,000.

The property was one of 807 scheduled to go to auction in Sydney this week, the first test of the market after Treasurer Jim Chalmers unveiled changes in the federal budget to tax concessions on investment properties, along with supply measures, to boost home ownership.

By evening, Domain Group recorded a preliminary auction clearance rate of 51 per cent from 445 reported results throughout the week, while 168 auctions were withdrawn. Withdrawn auctions are counted as unsold properties when calculating the clearance rate.

The clearance rate is slightly lower than the previous week’s preliminary result of 55 per cent, although both indicate a weakening market as buyers adjust to the three cash rate hikes this year.

Fifteen people registered to participate in the Mortdale auction, with eight active.

Bidding opened at $700,000 and progressed slowly with increments of $5000 and $10,000. When the offer reached $800,000, bids decreased again, rising in $2000 and $1000 increments.

Ray White Kingsgrove sales agent Karl Flaifel said buyers were attracted by the location of the “neat and tidy” apartment, which was on the corner of the street-facing building.

The successful bidder was a young man buying his first home, who attended the auction with his mother. He intends to move in.

The underbidders were a mix of first home buyers and owner-occupiers.

In Petersham, a local couple with a young child and another on the way successfully bid for a three-bedroom house, paying $2.07 million on Saturday.

The five-metre-wide, single-fronted cottage at 3 Audley Street sold for $130,000 below the reserve, which was set at $2.2 million. The property had a guide of $2 million.

There is no legal requirement for a vendor’s reserve to be in line with their property’s price guide.

Bidding opened at $1.95 million and initially went up in increments of $30,000 after auctioneer Toby Llewellyn rejected smaller bids of $10,000. But it slowed to bids of $20,000, $10,000 and finally $5000 before stalling.

While all three registered bidders took part, a young couple dropped out midway, leaving the local man, who was on the phone to his wife in London, to battle it out with a man from Mosman who was bidding on behalf of his daughter.

When the final bid was made, the Mosman man conceded “he owns it”, to which Llewellyn quipped: “Well, that’s my decision, sir.” After consulting the vendor, the property was declared on the market and the hammer fell.

The vendor is downsizing to an apartment with her daughter.

BresicWhitney sales agent Frederico Fraga-Matos said nine bids over the course of 20 minutes reflected the mood of the market at present.

“Six months ago, people were frustrated that the market was so strong,” he said. “But now the market is not so strong and there are some great opportunities, and some buyers are still second guessing themselves. They will be kicking themselves in a few months.”

In Connells Point, a well-maintained 1960s red brick home in original condition sold for $1,667,000 – $167,000 above its reserve – to a local family looking for more space.

Seven parties registered to bid for the keys to the three-bedroom home at 39 Condor Crescent, with four active. The guide was $1.55 million.

Bidding opened at $1.4 million, initially increasing by $25,000. By the end, it was down to $1000 bids before the hammer fell. Records show it last traded in 2009 for $500,000.

McGrath Sans Souci sales agent Robert Juric said that while it was too early to see the impact of the federal government’s budget announcement, negative gearing and capital gains tax were not the greatest concerns for most buyers.

“[Interest] rates will have a much bigger impact on the market than the reforms,” he said. “Good quality stock that is reasonably priced will always be popular, it doesn’t matter if the market is up, down or sideways.”

In Balmain, a young family on holiday in Bali outbid an investor, paying $2.32 million for a three-bedroom house with study.

Cooley auctioneer Jake Moore rejected an opening bid of $1.7 million for 2 Cardwell Street, before making a vendor’s bid of $2 million. The property had a guide of $2 million to $2.2 million and a reserve of $2.25 million.

All five registered bidders were active, with bids rising in increments of $50,000 until the offer reached $2.15 million, when they slowed to $10,000 and $5000.

The successful bidders intend to move in and improve the house over time.

The family is on holiday in Bali and had a representative bid on their behalf. The underbidders were a mix of investors planning to renovate and owner/builders intending to “flip” it.

The Agency sales agent Luke Evans said he was pleased by a result that stood $70,000 above the reserve in an uncertain market.

“There is definitely an increased level of indecision from the buying side of things and some apprehension from sellers,” Evans said. “We had three other [bidders] who said they would be there [today] and they didn’t show up.”