An affordable Californian bungalow in a scenic country town has changed hands at auction for $357,000, drawing Melbourne buyers into a contest against local farmers.
Elders Real Estate Euroa auctioneer and agent Brendan Allen says the winning bidders are farmers from the region who will renovate and eventually move in.
Elders Real Estate Euroa auctioneer and agent Brendan Allen says the winning bidders are farmers from the region who will renovate and eventually move in.
The underbidder is from Melbourne, he adds, and sees value in doing much of the reno work themselves, using it as a weekender at first, and possibly a permanent base. Another Melburnian and a bidder from the Seymour area also took part.
“We had a combination of people looking to renovate and rent out or flip the property, as well as people looking to renovate and retain the property as a home,” Allen says.
In Melbourne, the weekend clearance rate was 56 per cent, with 347 properties sold from 618 reported auctions and 838 scheduled. One hundred properties were withdrawn from auction and 171 were passed in.
The Euroa property is part of a deceased estate, blemished but full of character, from patterned carpets to a pink-and-turquoise kitchen, faded lino floors, an amber glass shower screen, and a classic Hills Hoist in the garden.
The auction opened at $250,000 and was “really hotly contested”, Allen says. Bidding rose in increments of $10,000, $5000 and $2000, dropping to $1000 from about $350,000 onwards, until the potential buyers ran out of steam at $357,000.
Melbourne’s median house price is $1,014,335, falling 3.3 per cent over the quarter and 4.7 per cent year-on-year, according to the September Domain House Price Report. It’s expected the median price will fall below $1 million by the end of this year .
The market in historic Euroa, about 125 milometres north-east of the Melbourne CBD, has fared much better. The median house price here is $560,000, reflecting 13.1 per cent annual growth and 45 per cent over five years.
History boffins know Euroa for an 1878 bank robbery by bushranger Ned Kelly and his gang. Horse enthusiasts know it as prime thoroughbred country, home to elite trainers and stud farms.
However, the buyers were more interested in Noble Street itself, which Allen says is one of the best addresses in town. “It’s on the north side of the street as well as having the character appeal, so that was a unique combination of factors at an entry price point that attracted a broad audience and a really competitive auction,” he says.
Allen says it is not unusual to see Melbourne buyers competing for Euroa properties. They appreciate that it’s less than a two-hour drive from the city on the Hume Freeway and has V/Line train services. “There are people who see Euroa as good for a weekender, and then potentially a good retirement town, having that village integrity,” he says.
They live close to the newly built 130 Stanley Road, but the father had to work, so they bid down the phone, says agent Shane Hicks from Place Estate Agents Camp Hill . The vendor adjusted the reserve during the auction to meet them on price.
After earlier disappointment, they will now celebrate Christmas in a dream home. “T hey missed out at one of our auctions last week, and viewed this home three times,” Hicks says.
Brisbane recorded a weekend clearance rate of 20 per cent. Of the 200 scheduled auctions, 135 were reported to Domain, 27 sold, 16 were withdrawn and 92 were passed in.
Another family was the only opposition for the luxurious two-storey house, which has five bedrooms, four bathrooms, a second living room, a mud room, wine storage, and an outdoor kitchen beside the pool and lawn, on a 607-square-metre block.
The buyer opened for auctioneer Sam Kelso at $2.4 million and bidding jumped immediately to $2.5 million, followed by increases of $5000, $20,000 and $10,000. At $2.62 million, the auction paused so Hicks could discuss price with the bidders.
“We negotiated backward and forward for about 10 minutes,” he says. The underbidder didn’t budge, but the buyer was willing to increase his bid to $2.7 million. The vendor dropped their reserve to $2.7 million, and Kelso dropped the hammer.
Hicks says the Brisbane market has the “wobbles”, but families are using the softer conditions to upsize into a larger home with a narrower price gap.
Brisbane’s median house price fell by $66,000 in the three months to September , the city’s steepest quarterly fall on record, according to the Domain House Price Report.
The buyer, a north shore investor who has completed several similar renovation projects, showed nerves of steel and entered the bidding late.
He paid $145,000 more than the $1.8 million reserve for 70 Cooper Street, to the delight of the vendors. The campaign guide was $1.7 million. Ray White Touma Taylor Redfern agent Hayden Richards expects the buyer will fix it up and then sell it.
Sydney ended the weekend with a clearance rate of 45 per cent. Across the city, 223 properties sold from 499 reported auctions, and 885 scheduled. An additional 184 homes were withdrawn, and 92 were passed in.
The Surry Hills auction started at $1.7 million, and Richards says it quickly reached $1.8 million. Three bidders competed until about $1.9 million, when the buyer finally joined in. He and the underbidder, a woman bidding for her brother overseas, were the last ones standing.
Richards says the location, near major developments such as software company Atlassian’s new global head office, appeals to investors.
“It’s in an interesting part of Surry Hills, close to Central Station and business hubs,” Richards says. “There’s a lot of money being put into that little area.”
Next door, 68 Cooper Street sold for $3.9 million last October, as the Sydney market neared its peak. The previous owner paid $2.203 million in 2023, did an architectural renovation, and flipped it.
“I think a lot of people are getting inspiration from that,” Richards says.
Emily Power Emily Power has been a newsroom journalist for almost 20 years. She was previously the editor of Domain magazine in Melbourne, and is a specialist in property reporting.
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