A two-storey terrace home in Darlinghurst that last sold for $3.15 million five years ago passed in on a bid of $2.95 million at auction on Saturday, amid Sydney’s weak property market.
The well-kept four-bedroom home at 439 Liverpool Street came with period details such as iron lacework, fireplaces and ceiling roses, plus a courtyard overlooked by a Juliet balcony. It was still available at the time of publication.
The property was one of 520 scheduled to go to auction in Sydney last week. By Saturday evening, Domain Group recorded a preliminary auction clearance rate of 50 per cent from 292 reported results throughout the week, while 94 auctions were withdrawn. Withdrawn auctions are counted as unsold properties when calculating the clearance rate.
Sydney’s preliminary result is two percentage points higher than last week, but is likely to be revised lower as more results are collected. A result at this level is well below the 60 per cent threshold that indicates a balanced market between buyers and sellers, and suggests that prices are likely to fall further.
The Darlinghurst home set on a 166-square-metre-block was listed with a price guide of $2.8 million.
Two buyers registered and an owner-occupier made an offer of $2.9 million, then bid against himself to offer $2.95 million, BresicWhitney director Shannan Whitney said.
As the reserve was $3.2 million, the home was passed in.
There is no legal requirement for a vendor’s reserve to be in line with their property’s price guide.
Whitney said the sellers had bought the home in 2021 intending to renovate and move in, and had rented it in the interim, as it needed some updates. The home was offered with DA-approved plans for an extension that could include a studio above and an underground home theatre/gym.
“There is a gap between the market and the vendors,” Whitney said. “That is fairly common at the moment in the current cycle.
“There are plenty of buyers in the market, it is just, finding the market value seems to be challenging in terms of where vendors’ expectations are.”
He thought there would be more homes for sale in spring compared to the rest of the year, but not a record amount.
Elsewhere, a local upsizing family paid $3.35 million for a Carlingford house under the hammer on Saturday after the vendors were willing to meet the market.
The five-bedroom house at 3 Tudor Place was set on a spacious block of 835 square metres. It had a price guide of around $3.2 million, Uniland Real Estate sales principal Andy Lin said.
Seven parties registered and three made offers, starting at $2.8 million with increments of $100,000.
The stride shortened to $10,000 bids after $3.3 million, he said.
The reserve price had been $3.5 million, but on the day the vendors were willing to sell for $3.35 million.
Lin said the home was close to sought-after schools, such as The King’s School and James Ruse Agricultural High School. Interest had been from upsizers and first home buyers.
“The market is in a downturn at the moment, they are taking this opportunity to upsize to a bigger [block of] land, a bigger house,” he said. “I haven’t seen seven bidders for a while.
“The market generally is still tough. I would say very tough.”
He said some scheduled auctions had been withdrawn, and established homes were still selling but at a discounted price compared to before the federal budget.
“There is still buyer demand in the market but buyers are being more conservative.”
In Burwood, a brick family home is also still available after passing on a vendor bid of $2.68 million.
The freestanding, four-bedroom house at 38 Stanley Street was offered with a price guide of around $2.75 million.
The owner had set a realistic reserve of $2.7 million.
Four owner-occupier parties registered for auction but when no-one would make the first move, a vendor bid was placed at $2.68 million. But with no further offers forthcoming, the home passed in.
LJ Hooker Burwood selling agent Joe Murania was hopeful the property would sell soon. He thought some of the buyers assumed the owners had wanted more money, while other buyers thought they could perhaps pick the home up for less.
Murania said his vendors are motivated and realistic.
“[People think] ‘The owner probably wants over $3 million,’ but it is not the case. It is available for $2.75 million, probably $2.7 million,” he said.
“They are very realistic, they do want to sell and they are willing to meet the market.”
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