Following the interest rate cut earlier in May, last weekend’s strong auction results reflected the rebuilding of confidence in the market place. Clearance rates across the board were among the best of the year so far. Marshall White sold 4 properties before auction and a further 16 at auction on Saturday with 10 of these auctions being contested by 3 or more bidders.

In particular, a stylish Deco residence at 23a Miami St, Hawthorn East attracted bidding from 8 different parties before selling for $822,000.

Much of the interest in property at the moment is from people looking to upgrade. In The Sunday Age, John Bongiorno said “Upgraders saw an advantage in buying in the current market but stock shortages in the inner suburbs were keeping prices up.”

Auctioneer: Hamish Tostevin

Bought range: $1,894,025 - $2,083,625 - 3 Bidders

"Auctioneer Hamish Tostevin was looking very dapper today - crisp and sharp in his grey suit. Around 50 people turned up braving the chill and basking in the sunlight whilst Mr Tostevin delivered his preamble. Once that was done, a strong opening bid of $1,700,000 was offered and the auction got going. Although there were 3 bidders the price never reached the reserve that Mr Tostevin was looking for and the property was passed in at $1,920,000. Bought after for an undisclosed amount." (Joshua Bong)

Source: James Market News

Auction Date/Time:        Saturday 12 May 2012, 10:30am

Auctioneer:                  John Bongiorno

Children were playing on their scooters while their parents chatted in the gentle morning sunshine. Auctioneer John Bongiorno, in front of the crowd of 50, enthusiastically described the property as a magnificent family home in a special position which ticked all of the boxes. And, he said, given the current economy it represented the “best time to buy.” Mr Bongiorno opened with a vendor bid of $1,450,000 and sought $25,000 rises - and he was soon obliged by a crowd member. With Mr Bongiorno’s encouragement, a second and third bidder joined the mix and the rivalry for the property intensified. The property was announced on the market at $1,705,000 and with bidding continuing, the property was bought under the hammer for $1,775,000 to the delight of the all present.

Source: James Market News

Although it may take some weeks for the full effect of last week’s 0.5 per cent interest rate cut to flow through to the property market, early indications are that buyer interest has increased.

Many of Marshall White’s auctions attracted bidding from multiple buyers including a much sought after double storey residence at 405 Nott St, Port Melbourne that sold at auction for $1.312 million after 7 bidders entered the fray.

Other notable sales included an impressive Victorian residence at 43 Power St, Hawthorn that was sold at auction for $2.11 million after bidding from 3 buyers and an immaculate Georgian style family residence at 3 Tormey St, Balwyn North that saw 6 buyers compete resulting in a price of $1.295 million.

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Auctioneer: Andrew Hayne

Under Hammer: $1,225,000 - 3 Bidders

With a taste of Autumn in the air, and a medium sized crowd, Andrew Hayne opened the auction with one eye on the threatening rain clouds. After no opening bids, Andrew offered a vendor bid of $1,000,000 which was quickly followed by a genuine bid of $1,020,000. Two other bidders had now joined in and the bidding reached $1,200,000 before the property was declared on the market. Bidder two had now dropped out and the battle trickled along before the property was knocked now to the opening bidder for $1,225,000. " (Guy Angwin)

Source: James Market News

Auctioneer: James Tostevin

Under Hammer: $1,350,000 - 6 Bidders

"Wow! What an auction! Under light drizzle, auctioneer James Tostevin conducted an auction that left the crowd of 60 breathless. Once the formalities were done the auction took off with an opening bid of $950,000. It was quite hard to see who was bidding at first as so many jumped in offering bids left, right and centre. Before you knew it the property was on the market at $1,170,000 and the bidders quickly went on the defence. The total of 6 bidders stopped, looked around and took turns trying every trick in the book- small bids, large bids, late bids all in attempt to outfox each other. The pace of the auction was frenetic which was aided by the skilful Mr Tostevin who managed to extract every bid from the bidders. The property was finally knocked down at $1,350,000 which brought applause from the crowd who were blown away from the spectacle they just saw." (Joshua Bong)

Source: James Market News

Auctioneer: Kaine Lanyon

"A sea of colourful umbrellas filled the street at this Port Melbourne auction. In his preamble, auctioneer Kaine Lanyon explained that the buying “conditions could not be better” and that there had been a great deal of interest in the property. An opening bid from the crowd of $900,000 was promptly offered and instantly followed by a substantial rise with a bid of $1,075,000. With bidders continually emerging, the competition was obvious. The property was announced on the market at $1,300,000 but with a fifth and sixth bidder joining the rivalry, bidding was far from slowing. The property was bought under the hammer for $1,312,000 to the loud applause of the crowd of 80 in attendance. A great auction." (Kate Agnoleto)

Source: James Market News

This week... the word is the bird with two literary events flying high for avid bookworms out there. Firstly, there’s the Williamstown Literary Festival with a great program of talks, reading, guest authors and more, while the rural town of Clunes gets a grand and cluttered makeover with the Booktown Festival converting many a venue into a weekend treasure trove for readers.

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Reflecting the significant rise in confidence this year, Melbourne’s median house price rose by 1.6 per cent for the first quarter of 2012 according to figures released by Australian Property Monitors. Importantly, the report indicated that it was the upper 20 per cent of the market, which rose by 4 per cent, that was the major contributor to the overall price rise.

Marshall White’s success rate of 75 per cent provided further evidence that confidence has returned to Melbourne’s property market with 7 properties selling at auction in addition to one property selling prior. Among the results was Melbourne’s top auction result for the weekend for 29 Mayston St, Hawthorn East.