A buyer has attempted to low-ball a vendor, hopeful of a bargain in a cooling market, before the time-warp house passed in at auction.
The 1910 home at 2 Northcote Street, Torrensville, in Adelaide’s western suburbs had a price guide of $895,000, but saw a registered bidder offer a measly $500,000 in private negotiations prior to the auction.
It was revealed to the crowd by the auctioneer on Saturday that $500,000 had been offered but was firmly rejected by the vendor.
Listed by Harcourts Sheppard and represented by Matilda Todman, the auction began with a vendor bid of $850,000 after minutes of awkward silence.
With prospective buyers and the vendor failing to come to an agreement, Nine understands negotiations for the four-bedroom family home will continue for at least another week.
Agent Darcy Harcourt of Harcourts Sheppard told Nine that the asking price remains at $895,000 but will likely change on Monday.
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The property contains one bathroom, a generously-sized backyard and a two-car garage.
It requires extensive renovation with dated vinyl floor in the kitchen, cabinet doors falling off their hinges, and a garish green and red interior color palette.
The façade is also in need of some TLC with cracked white paint and basic wire fencing.
It comes as the national clearance rate last week hit the 50 per cent range for the 14th week in a row. At the same time last year it was almost 70 per cent.
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This is another indication that the housing market is slowing down, with nervous buyers holding off on purchasing amid mounting inflation and interest rates.
Meanwhile, a very different outcome occurred in another of Adelaide’s western suburbs.
Another time-warp house at 19 Whimpress Avenue in Findon, which the owner had held for around 50 years, hit the market for the very first time and sold under the hammer for $682,000.
Listed by Ray White Henley Beach and represented by Mark Bowden, the two-bedroom home had an opening bid of $550,000, with the auction between two bidders.
The price the owner paid for the property almost half a century ago is undisclosed.
Containing one bathroom, a decent-sized backyard and shed, the property was pitched to those who are wanting to renovate or build their dream home.
The interiors are in need of a refresh, with it currently boasting a retro color palette, a dated fireplace and old-fashioned carpet.
Over in Cheltenham, Melbourne, a vendor who held a family home for 18 years sold the property for $1.5million.
According to PriceFinder, the owner purchased the three-bedroom, one-bathroom home at 9 Herald Street for $369,555 back in 2004.
Listed by Hodges and represented by Pandelis Plousi, proceedings kicked off with a vendor bid of $900,000.
The indicative selling price of the property was between $1million and $1.1million.
Two bidders went head-to-head and when the reserve price wasn’t met at $995,000, the home was passed in.
After negotiations, the property was sold to the highest bidder at $1.5million.
The home is located in a desirable area of Melbourne that’s close to schools and cafes, and boasts a picturesque lawn at the front.
Interiors are in need of a “modern makeover” as per the listing’s description, with dated tiling, carpet and paint color choice.
In Melbourne’s Mitcham, a 15-year old unit attracted plenty of buyer attention, with four bidders competing in a spirited and fast auction.
Listed by Philip Webb Real Estate Doncaster, the two-bedroom brick home at 3/38 Linlithgow Street sold for $775,000, which was $40,000 more than the reserve.
“The auction started with an opening bid of $650,000 and went up in $10,000 increments up until $750,000,” Anthony Webb, chief executive of Philip Webb Real Estate said. “The eventual buyer was very keen and a rapid-gun bidder, securing the keys after a 15-minute auction.”
As a whole, despite interest rate pain causing uncertainty elsewhere in the market, the number of properties going to auction continues to rise.
Domain’s latest auction report shows there were 1,324 auctions scheduled across the combined capitals this Saturday – an 8 per cent increase nationally from last week.
Brisbane and Adelaide have seen a decrease in the number of properties going under the hammer compared to last week.
Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra have more than last weekend. Sydney and Adelaide have a greater number of auctions than the same time 12 months ago, defying the overall trend.
