Governor-General Peter Cosgrove leads the retreat with unsold offering amid saturated auction weekends

Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove and his wife, Lady Cosgrove, failed to sell their Neutral Bay home amid today's saturated weekend auction offering.

It has now been listed for private treaty sale after the $2.1 million vendor bid, pulled from auction without any buyer bidding.

There was a 74% overall Sydney clearance rate today, which mirrored last weekend's revised lower 74% clearance rate.

With around 1170 offerings, the Melbourne result was 72% today matching last weekend's revised 72% success rate.

Sydney's house auction median was $1.1 million and it was $810,000 in Melbourne.

The top sale around the nation was in Elwood where $6.55 million was paid for 6 Dickens Street, the 1890s property,Trefusis, which was sold by interests associated with DFO founder and former chief executive Geoff Porz. It cost $3.5 million in 2009 before its renovation. Agent Abercromby's were saying $5 million plus.

Sydney's top reported sale was 20 Agnes Street, Strathfield at $3.45 million.

The Cosgrove listing following the couple's recent move to their official, vice-regal residences, nearby Admiralty House in Kirribilli and Government House in Canberra.

McGrath Estate Agents had expected $2.1 million plus for the three-storey Spruson Street semi.

They paid $1.95 million in 2007, two years after Sir Peter ended his term as the Defence Force chief.

They were in Brisbane at the time of the auction having greeted the US President Barack Obama on his arrival to the G20.

It was among the 882 listings across Sydney today, of which 106 were on the lower north shore.

The total number of Melbourne auctions held so far this year is 17 per cent higher than the same time last year, with 32,874 auctions held in the year to date, according to the REIV CEO Enzo Raimondo.