`Keep bidding until I buy’: Wantirna house sells for $420,000 above reserve
Ballarat doctor takes train to Melbourne auction, wins bidding and returns to work
Bidders determined to secure homes in Melbourne’s outer-east suburbs have delivered stunning auction results.
A Doncaster East buyer instructed a Barry Plant Wantirna agent “to keep bidding until I buy” at the auction of 7 Wondalea Crescent, Wantirna.
About 150 people watched the property sell for $1.77 million, more than $400,000 above the $1.35 million seller’s reserve price.
“The buyer had missed out at an auction six weeks ago and told the agent to keep bidding for him till he bought the home,” Barry Plant Wantirna director Brendan Murphy said.
“He was determined to secure the property.”
The buyer was among five bidders, including an underbidder who had been looking to purchase a home for a year.
“The house is spacious and in a lovely part of Wantirna, and it is the limited stock that is giving sellers strong outcomes,” Mr Murphy said.
“Although the market is still tight, we have listed 30 homes to sell in June.”
On the same day, 13 Sundew Court, Knoxfield, attracted seven bidders and changed hands for $1.515 million, a whopping $315,000 above the seller’s reserve.
“A gentleman was bidding on behalf of his daughter, who is a first-home buyer, and there were tears of joy and relief at the end,” Mr Murphy said.
He added homes in Knox suburbs tended to be kept in the same family for long periods and this contributed to the tight supply.
In nearby Glen Waverley, a home of almost 50 years in original condition has sold for more than $230,000 above the seller’s reserve when it changed hands for $2,010,500.
The 5 Greenways Road home was “in a liveable condition” and positioned in the sought-after Glen Waverley Secondary College zone, Barry Plant Glen Waverley agent Kathleen Kuang said.
The auction attracted five bidders, including a medical specialist from Ballarat and an investor from Singapore.
“The doctor caught the train to the auction, bought the house and then returned to Ballarat to get to work,” Ms Kuang said.
“I was a bit nervous about whether he could arrive in time for the 11am auction.”
Ms Kuang had not expected such strong interest and bidding, and the result was among the highest prices achieved in that pocket.
The agency also had another outstanding auction result at 48 Shaftsbury Drive, Mulgrave, where the seller’s reserve of $850,000 was easily eclipsed by the $1.045 million final bid.
Five bidders pushed up the price, which was almost $200,000 above the seller’s reserve.