147 auctions were reported to the REIV over the weekend producing a clearance rate of 97%. 72 properties sold at auction, 71 before auction, 329 were postponed and 4 passed in.  In addition, there were 152 private sales.  This time last year there were only 17 auctions.

Victorian premier Daniel Andrews announced at a press conference last week that private inspections of vacant properties MAY be permitted once 70 per cent of Victorians had received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine.  This was estimated to be by the 23rd of September however new data suggests it could be as early as the 18th of September.  Whist this is welcoming news for both landlords and owners of vacant properties, this only makes up one portion of the market.  Virtual inspections may be the only way in the short term to view occupied properties or some vendors may decide to move out into short term accommodation during their property’s sales campaign.

An interesting report was released this morning in regards to the amount of money Australians have saved in cancelled overseas travel.  The figures provided by the Tourism Research Australia found in the financial year to 2019, that Australian’s spent $62.3b on international travel.

The cancellation of this travel has resulted in over $60b being saved and in the pockets of Australians.  Some of this money has been used to purchase property with some buyers increasing their deposits or using extra funds to purchase a holiday house or investment property.  In addition to this, dining out, going to the movies and other entertainment has been very limited, particularly in Melbourne over the past 18 months which has also assisted to an increase in savings for the ones who have managed to stay employed throughout the pandemic.

Properties continue to sell sight unseen with a four bedroom home in Box Hill North selling at auction on the weekend for $1,557,000.  25 bidders registered for the auction of 50 Mersey St, Box Hill North with 5 bidders participating.  The property sold $257,000 over the top of the advertised price range, it is unclear what the reserve price was.

A house in Elwood also sold last week achieving six offers after one virtual open for inspection.  Buyers appear to become more accepting that this is the only way to move forward in the current environment with the saving grace being that builders are allowed to enter to conduct building inspections to ensure the property is structurally sound.

Have a great week.

Kim Easterbrook

The REIV reported 223 auctions over the weekend producing a clearance rate of 99%. Of the 223 auctions, 100 sold at auction, 120 sold before auction and 1 after auction.  441 were withdrawn and 634 postponed.  In addition, there were 144 private sales.

With no end in sight to lockdown ending, it is looking more likely that the busy spring period for real estate will be pushed out to summer with some selling agents suggesting that auctions could run as late as the 23rd and 24th of December.  The length of auction campaigns could be shortened from four weeks to three weeks and perhaps even two weeks if enough interest can be generated.  We should see an increase in stock at the cessation of lockdown due to some vendors holding off launching their campaigns but also selling agents are appraising and listing properties via virtual inspection.

Some vendors are pushing on with the sale of their property by offering virtual tours via zoom to prospective buyers.  I attended one of these over the weekend and it worked very well.  This can only occur at properties where either a tenant or vendor are currently living there as no one is able to attend a vacant property to film.  While the vendor walks their camera through the property room by room, the selling agent narrates in the background.  Whilst this is obviously not as good as inspecting in person, it is the best that can be offered in the current environment.  If a buyer chose to purchase this way, a building inspection (which are allowed) should be conducted to ensure any issues with the property are found.

3 Collis Street, Brighton East sold via virtual auction on Saturday to a buyer who had not physically inspected the property.  The property only had a short period of time for physical inspections prior to lockdown so inspections were converted to online with the vendors walking through prospective purchasers in the lead up to auction.  The auction attracted five bidders and smashed the reserve of $3,950,000 selling for $4,362,000 to a buyer who had not physically seen the property.

Have a great week.

Kim Easterbrook

Happy New Year and welcome to the 2019 series of Elite’s Melbourne Property Market Updates.  We are really looking forward to a great year.

The start of 2019 has been nothing short of positive for Melbourne’s Property Market.  Not only we, at Elite, have had an increase in enquiry from buyers but many buyers who were sitting on their hands last year, are now coming forward and are ready to buy.  We speak to other buyers advocates and selling agents regularly and they are reporting the same sentiment.  Selling agents are seeing higher volumes of groups through open for inspections.  Interestingly, some properties that had passed in last year and were getting no one through their opens, are now getting numbers in excess of 10 in some of their open for inspections.  Maybe the Christmas break was the market reset we needed to have.  Have we seen the worst?  Well we quite possibly have.

Sales volumes were reasonable last week with 184 selling under auctions conditions and 695 private sales.  The 9th of February will see an increase of auctions numbers with the 23rd of this month being the biggest auction weekend thus far this year.

So is it a good time to buy in 2019?  A question we are asked on a daily basis.  One thing to note when buying property for investment, its important to focus on time in the market, not timing the market.  No one can ever predict the peak or the bottom, in fact, we actually don’t know the bottom has hit us until six months after the event.  At that point, its too late and the market has started to creep back up.  What we do need to focus on though is population growth (demand) and stock levels (supply).  While Melbourne’s population keeps growing at the rate it does, it is highly unlikely we are going to see any sharp falls.  In fact, the property market last year copped a belting from the media and also many buyers were being restricted in their borrowing capacity.  With so much negativity thrown at the market, it still remained quite resilient.

The start of 2019 so far has shown a much more positive mindset for buyers with property but we are keen to see whether vendors are prepared to take the jump and put their properties on the market, or are they going to wait?  The wait is what could cause us back into a shortage of stock which in turn will likely see property prices stabilise and infact could increase in value.

If you have any questions in relation to the property market you would like answered, or if you would like a free property portfolio review, please do not hesitate to contact David Easterbrook (david@elitebuyeragents.com.au) or myself (kim@elitebuyeragents.com.au).

Have a wonderful week!

Kim Easterbrook and the team at Elite!

Clearance Rates
Melbourne

2nd and 3rd February 2019
This week: 283 Auctions

Clearance: 65%

Last Year: 75% [source: REIV]

#BuyersAdvocatesMelbourne, #BuyersAgentMelbourne, #EliteBuyerAgents, #Melbournebuyeradvocates, #Melbournebuyeragents, #Melbournepropertymarket, #MelbProperty, #MelbRE, #MelbRealEstate, #PropertyMarketWrap

The second last auction weekend of the year brought results that were similar to the weeks prior.  A clearance rate of 48% was achieved on 888 auctions.  347 sold at auction, 83 sold before auction, 458 passed in and there were an additional 158 private sales.

We now just have over two weeks until Christmas Day and we will see the urgency and motivation of vendors increase while they endeavour to sell before Christmas.  The agents are also carrying more stock than usual and will be very keen to secure some sales for their vendors prior to Christmas.

We are predicting stock levels to be a little light on in February and March while vendors continue to hold off from selling.   There are signs that the banks are already starting to relax some of their policies and this should even further improve next year. There is even talk that some of the foreign investment restrictions might become a little bit more flexible as the government under estimated the effect that the Royal Commission had on buyers ability to borrow money.  A few signs that we might see a recovery in the market in the not too distant future.

Have a great week!

Kim Easterbrook – Managing Director

82 Downshire Road, Elsternwick Sold for $3,175,000

This goes to show that well located, quality properties sell well in all market conditions.  This fully renovated, four bedroom Edwardian on 750 sqm with a pool was hotly contested by five bidders.  The property was quoted at $2,800,000 to $2,850,000 prior to auction with the property being declared on the market at $2,900,000.  The property price soared to $3,175,000 before selling in front of a crowd of 80 onlookers.

114 Eglinton Street, Kew Passed In

The auction of this well located family home achieved an opening bid of $2,000,000 was quickly countered by a $2,400,000 vendor bid by the auctioneer.  A new buyer increased the bidding to $2,450,000 and the auctioneer paused to consult with the vendor however the property was not put on the market.  The property passed in at $2,450,000 in front of a crowd of 60.  The property is not up for private sale for $2,795,000.

63 Addison Street, Elwood Sold for $1,600,000

This three bedroom single fronted home in need of repair but on good land size for Elwood achieved strong interest from three parties at auction.  Addison St is one of the premier streets of Elwood.  The property was quoted at $1,400,000 – $1,500,000 prior to auction with the property being announced on the market at $1,480,000.  The property sold for $1,600,000 to a young gentleman who is planning on renovating the property.

Clearance Rates
Melbourne

8th and 9th December 2018
This week: 888 Auctions

Clearance: 48%

Last Year: 68% [source: REIV]

The clearance rate remained under 50% again which now seems to be the new normal.  Of 946 auctions, 356 sold at auction, 106 sold before auction and 2 sold after auction.  There were also an additional 189 private sales.  Considering the higher volume of properties going to auction over the weekend, the clearance rate actually held up to be ok.  We also know that many of these properties did not sell due to some Vendors price extectations not being in line with the current market conditions, and that many of them are likely to sell in the next week or two.

Over the weekend, our team experienced first hand the challenges of some high Vendor’s price expectations.   We were representing an investor on a property that was quoted prior to auction for $700,000 to $750,000.  The property passed in to us after active bidding at $798,000.  To our surprise, and even the agents surprise, the Vendor set the reserve at $850,000.  This is far above what the property was worth.  We made a last and final offer of $805,000 in which the Vendor rejected.  We informed the agent we were bidding on another property that afternoon and even made a call to the agent 5 minutes before the next auction to ask whether they would reconsider our offer.  Our offer, which was the highest they had, was again rejected.  We were then successful in buying another property at auction that afternoon, where the Vendor was realistic with their price expectations.  We have no doubt over the next couple of weeks that the Vendor will realign their price expectations to where the true value sits.

We have two more weekends of auctions before the Christmas holidays. There will properties still on the market that have not sold at auction and Vendor’s will need tor realign their price expectations to achieve a sale before the holidays.  We anticipate December will be a very active month and likely to be right up until Christmas Eve.

Hope you all have a great week.

Kim Easterbrook – Managing Director

3/19 Silver Street, Cheltenham Sold for $760,000

Single level villas are very popular assets, especially the ones that are spacious, have good floor plans, a garage and in liveable condition.  Four bidders tried to secure this unit with the bidders being a real mix of buyers.  There were two first home buyers, an investor and a downsizer.  It was the investor (our client) that secured the three bedroom, two bathroom unit for $760,000.

22 Clarke Street, Prahran Sold for $3,435,000

Well located, unique (one of a kind) properties usually sell well in all market conditions and this was no exception.  The house was owned by the owner of an Art Gallery.  The property was quoted $2,800,000 – $3,000,000 prior to auction and was announced on the market at $3,100,000.  The property sold for a huge $3,435,000.

43 Macgregor Avenue, Portsea Sold for undisclosed

The Portsea home of TV and footy legend Lou Richards sold during the week after passing in at auction last Sunday.  The property is located in one of Portsea’s best streets.  The price quote prior to auction was $3,500,000 – $3,800,000 and it is thought that the property sold at a price within the range.

Clearance Rates
Melbourne

1st and 2nd December 2018
This week: 946 Auctions

Clearance: 49%

Last Year: 67% [source: REIV]

The clearance rate dipped under 50% again this week with 757 properties going under the hammer.  282 properties sold at auction, 83 sold before auction and there were 218 private sales.  Of the 392 that passed in, 170 were on a vendor bid.  Interestingly there is a divide between the clearance rate for houses and the clearance rate for units/apartments.

For the past few years we have seen the two tiered market with houses (generally speaking) outperforming units and apartments.  In the current market however more units/ apartments are selling at auction with more houses passing in and spending more days on market.  The clearance rate for houses over the weekend was 45% and the clearance rate for units was 55%.

This is certainly a representation of what we are also witnessing in the market.  The $2m plus market has softened where as the more affordable quality properties in premium suburbs are in high demand.  This demonstrates that it is a good time to upsize if you are thinking of doing so.  You can still maximise on a solid sale result for your current property and enjoy some savings on the larger home.  The softening of the $2m plus market has also put a lot of downsizers out the market and will do so until this segment of the market recovers.

As we close in on Christmas, December is still a very active time for real estate in Melbourne.  We will likely see agents working right up to Christmas Day this year as they will be holding more stock for longer as the days on market creeps up.  This also should make way for some good buying opportunities for buyers to take advantage of.

Hope you all have a great week.

Kim Easterbrook – Managing Director

3/296 Inkerman Street, St Kilda East Sold for $465,000

Two first home buyers (one of which was represented by Elite) went head to head to try and secure this one bedroom apartment with a courtyard in a very popular location.  Properties with courtyards are highly sought after due to their rarity.  Both parties we keen to secure this apartment in this tightly held block with the property selling for $465,000 under the hammer.

6/25 Windsor Place, Melbourne CBD Sold for $1,515,000

This apartment located in the Paris end of the CBD was extremely popular and attracted six bidders under the hammer due to its large size, location and also being located in a small block of nine apartments.  Small apartment blocks are rare in the CBD and highly popular when the quality ones come up for sale. The property sold well beyond its $1,250,000 reserve after selling in 1996 for $400,000.

3/44-46 James Street, Northcote Sold for $850,000

Its not often you see a property sell under the hammer with one bid, but this is what occurred at the two bedroom townhouse auction.  Three prospective bidders attended the auction but only one raising their hand to bid at the quoted price which was enough to take the property off the market.

Clearance Rates
Melbourne

24th and 25th November 2018
This week: 757 Auctions

Clearance: 48%

Last Year: 69% [source: REIV]

This weekend a clearance rate of 48% was achieved from 990 auctions. Of those properties, 386 sold and 515 were passed in, 254 of those on a vendor bid. There were also 183 private sales over the past week.

Buyers have four weeks to go to make the most of the eased buying conditions before the Christmas hiatus arrives.  The property market in December can present some excellent buying opportunities as vendors are wanting to sell their properties before Christmas.  It is unlikely a vendor will want a property sale hanging over their head at this time.

Even though sales are down from last year, we are still experiencing a very active property market although we are seeing differences in ways buyers are wanting to negotiate.  Many buyers are waiting for properties to pass in and then are negotiating.  More properties are also passing in due to vendor’s expectations not in time line with the current market.

We are expecting a very busy month in the lead up to Christmas and if you are still thinking about buying, it is not too late.  We will not only experience more motivated vendors wanting a sale, off market activity also increases this time of year as vendors are looking to sell in February however there properties are ready to be sold now.

Enjoy the sunshine and have a great day!

Kim Easterbrook – Managing Director

6/47-49 Willesden Road,Hughesdale Sold for $756,000

A very well attended auction mainly from first home buyers produced three bidders to secure this extremely well renovated unit in a very convenient location.  The auction however did fail to fire to some degree as there were many buyers who had been through two and three times who failed to put up their hand.  Again this could be a sign that some buyers are waiting for properties to pass in before negotiating.  I believe this is a wrong strategy in some cases as they have missed to secure not only a wonderful home but also a great investment property.  We were very happy to see our clients take home the keys after securing it for $756,000.

10 Craiglea Court, Doncaster East Sold for $1,242,000

The auction was well attended by approximately 80 people.  This well renovated home boasted four bedrooms, study, two bathrooms, double garage.  Superbly located in the premier Manningham pocket and zoned in the Serpell Primary School and East Doncaster Secondary College areas. The auction failed to attract multiple bidding due to buyers waiting for the property to pass in, even though three interested parties were in attendance.  One buyer smartly raised their hand to win the right to negotiate at $1,200,000.  After long negotiations the property sold for $1,242,000 which was a fair result for both buyer and vendor.

4/17 View Street, Reservoir Sold for $668,000

A crowd of about 30 gathered to watch the auction of a neat two bedroom unit in a very tidy development go ounder the hammer.  A call for bids was met with an initial bid of $550,000 from a gentleman in the crowd.  A young couple entered the bidding until the first party was out.  A downsizer and buyers advocate battled it out to secure this unit with the downsizer winning the keys are $668,000.  Updated single level units with good floor plans in neat developments are very popular with downsizers who usually have deep pockets to buy them.

Clearance Rates
Melbourne

17th and 18th November 2018
This week: 820 Auctions

Clearance: 52%

Last Year: 72% [source: REIV]

This weekend a clearance rate remains stable at 52% was achieved from 810 auctions. Of those properties, 420 sold and 390 were passed in, 171 of those on a vendor bid. There were also 162 private sales over the past week.

Buyer behaviour and strategy is now seeing the auction clearance rates consistantly hovering around the 50% mark. However properties attracting long term owner occupiers and in locations which offer lifestyle amenities and economic activity are constantly attracting buyers who are bidding strongly.

Stock levels are still strong with over 800 auctions on the weekend.  However in 2 weeks times the the new listings for 2018 will be concluding and besides to odd private sale, most properties listed will be off market until the 2019 auction campaigns recommence in late January, early Feburary 2019.

Regards,

David Easterbrook –  Director, Elite Buyer Agents

5 Clery Avenue, Donvale Sold for $1,570,000

60 people attended the auction of 5 Clery Ave, which was a reasonable low attendance considering there were over 70 groups that inspected the property on the opening Saturday. The property was being sold by a Trustee/Liquidator and the properties presentaion was poor and internally very dated, however in a great location, premium street, 5 bedrooms, 2 bath, 2 living areas, a pool and tennis court positioned on 4,000sqm of land. The auction had 5 bidders fighting for the property in rises of $100,000 at one stage and declared on the market at $1,370,000 and knocked down at $1,570,000.

22 John STreet, Kew Sold for $3,800,000

This land site of 836sqm with an east facing rear in Sackville Ward precinct sold on Saturday for $3,800,000 after it passed in on a single bid in front of a large crowd of over 80 people. The property was opened on a vendor bid of $3,600,000m and after what seemed like an eternity, he received a bid from one buyer.  The auctioneer vendor bid $75,000 to $3,700,000 and the buyer bid against himeslef with another $5,000 bid and it passed in at $3,705,000. This is a great example of a property which was passed in, but declared an auction sale because it was negotiated and sold directly thereafter for $3,800,000.

27 Lynch Street, Brighton Sold for $1,825,000

Renovator delights seemed to perform well over the weekend with this property no exception.  Also demonstrating that the market is still having properties sell with multiple bidders under the hammer.  The location was the drawcard with this property and entry level for a home at that. The opening bid of $1,600,000 was close to the $1,650,000 reserve however bidding soared past the reserve to sell for $1,825,000 to a local family.

Clearance Rates
Melbourne

10th and 11thNovember 2018
This week: 820 Auctions

Clearance: 52%

Last Year: 73% [source: REIV]

#BuyersAdvocatesMelbourne, #BuyersAgentMelbourne, #EliteBuyerAgents, #Melbournebuyeradvocates, #Melbournebuyeragents, #Melbournepropertymarket, #MelbProperty, #MelbRE, #MelbRealEstate, #PropertyMarketWrap

The clearance rate improved last weekend despite the weekend being a ‘Super Saturday’.  Higher auction numbers were expecting to show a decline in the clearance rate when infact the opposite occurred.  Of the 1,215 auctions held, 493 sold at auction, 138 before auction and 1 sold after.  Bringing the clearance rate to 52% on 1,215 auctions.

Even amongst the ‘better buying conditions’ we are still seeing some runaway results in the market.  5 Moule Street, Brighton sold under the hammer for $6,100,000, $1,000,000 over reserve with four bidders.  13 Yuille Street, Ashburton, a family home sold for $2.81m being sold for $410,000 over reserve.

Despite the media’s doom and gloom reporting, the median house price for Melbourne remained stable for the July to September quarter at $834,000. This reflects what our team have been experiencing in the market place.  Unit prices for the quarter actually increased by 0.2%  for the quarter.   Looking at the year as a whole, the median house price is Melbourne is up by five per cent.

With everything negative being thrown at the Melbourne Property Market with tighter lending conditions and the media’s doom and gloom reporting, the market is certainly demonstrating resilience and may only be time before we are back in a sellers market.

Have a wonderful week.

Kim Easterbrook – Managing Director, Elite Buyer Agents

13 Yuile Street, Ashburton Sold for $2,810,000

This five bedroom, two bathroom renovated period home was hotly contested at auction.  The auction was well attended with 100 people and the first bid came before the auctioneer even called for one.  The bidding commenced at $2,090,000 and quickly escalated with no need to have a half time break.  Many were left without even having the chance to put their hand up.  The property was announced on the market at $2,400,000 and sold for $2,810,000.

63 O’Connell Street, Geelong West Sold for $711,000

There is a lot of talk about the Geelong market at present and the Elite team were down there to see it first hand.  All auctions we attended were competitive.  Geelong West is a popular suburb due to its trendy Pakington St strip and proximity to the Geelong train station.  This well located period home in need of a facelift had three bidders trying to secure it at auction.  The property was announced on the market at $680,000 it sold for $711,000.

6 Leopold Street, Maribyrnong Sold for $815,000

The property was originally advertised from $800,000 to $880,000 and mid campaign was adjusted to $750,000 to $800,000 likely due to lack of interest.  The tenants who used to live in the property prior to the campaign opened the bidding up at $750,000, another bidder jumped in and the two went head to head until $785,000. Another bidder joined in with the property being announced on the market at $805,000 and sold for $815,000.

Clearance Rates
Melbourne

29th October 2018
This week: 1,215 Auctions

Clearance: 52%

Last Year: 73% [source: REIV]

The question on everyone’s lips at the moment is, “Is it a good time to buy property in Melbourne?”

The clearance rate in Melbourne dropped to 50% which is the lowest rate we have seen in quite some time.  Last year the clearance rate was 74% on 1044 auctions, this year the auctions held were 786 with a 50% clearance rate.   This rate could drop even further next weekend with a Super Saturday (being a weekend with a high volume of auctions) before the quieter weekend for Melbourne Cup.

As Christmas closes in, Spring naturally brings higher levels of stock with vendors anxious that they need to sell before Christmas.  This creates an ease in buying conditions for buyers to take advantage of.  In addition to this, we have some uncertainty in the market which is largely created by hyped up media reporting which has resulted in many buyers sitting on their hands just waiting to see how the market performs.  Banks have introduced some tougher lending criterias due to the Royal Commission but this should ease in time, and allow more investors back into the market place.

Stock levels will dry up over the Christmas holidays and lower levels of stock will be released onto the market in February.  We believe buyers will begin to feel more confident to make their move into the market which will in turn start to sway the market back into the Vendor’s court.

What we do know, is that the market conditions for buying are the best they have been in quite some time, however high quality properties are still resulting in competitive auctions, but just not as heated as they were twelve to eighteen months ago.

Is it a good time to take the plunge?  We know that it is always best to enter a market when the market is down, so why not take advantage of the opportunities in the marketplace now?  Once the stock levels disappear for Christmas, it is unlikely we will have the same market conditions going into 2019.

Have a great week!

Kim Easterbrook – Managing Director, Elite Buyer Agents

4 Belgrave Street, Hawthorn Sold for $ undisclosed

Renovated single fronted homes in quality suburbs are always in demand.  We describe them to be ‘bullet proof’.  This property was no exception.  This two bedroom renovated home located in a very convenient position of Hawthorn attracted some very keen competition.  Four bidders tried to secure this home.  The property was announced on the market at $1.53m with the home selling slightly above this level.  Had this property gone to auction at the same time last year, it would have likely have seen a couple of more interested parties, but also could have achieved a run away result.  Rarely do we see runaway results as such in the current market.

487 Dryburgh Street, North Melbourne Sold for $2,063,000

A historic terrace in need of renovating with potential off street parking for two cars was a popular property due to the location being so close to the city and Queen Victoria Market.   The auction attracted five bidders on the day with the auction commencing on a vendor bid of $1.7m.  The bidding reached $2m when it was announced on the market.  It as a two horse race only from this point on with the property selling to a family for $2.063m.  Five bidders is unusual in this market but due to the rarity of a property such as this, there was never any doubt this was going to be competitive.

611/2 McGoun Street, Richmond Sold for $833,000

This sale of this property is a very good example of why assumptions can not be made as a whole and each property needs to be analysed in its own right.  There is a sensis in the market place that the apartment market is flat, but this apartment demonstrated that this is not always the case.  Three bidders fought to secure this but there were others there that did not get a chance to put their hand up.  The property boasted amazing views of Richmond with a very good floor plan.  The property sold for amongst a competitive auction for $883,000.

Clearance Rates
Melbourne

22nd October 2018
This week: 786 Auctions

Clearance: 50%

Last Year: 74% [source: REIV]