Adelaide joins Sydney and Melbourne's hot housing markets

Adelaide joins Sydney and Melbourne's hot housing markets
Staff reporterDecember 7, 2020

An inner city warehouse conversion that featured in the television drama series, Offspring sold at weekend auction in Melbourne's Clifton Hill for $1.805 million. 

A 195 sq m space styled by architect Grant Cheyne in the former 1890s Pitman Shoe Factory sold $305,000 above its reserve price given three keen bidders.

The 6/37 Groom Street warehouse (above) space included a 50 sqm outdoor terrace with district views.

The vendor - who paid $700,000 in 2004 - even threw in some furniture.

The Herald Sun reported the opening $1.505 million bid meant the property with exposed bricks, ceiling trusses and old original timber was on the market straight away. 

The apartment was the Offspring location where Geraldine, Dr Nina’s mother, hid out from her children and met her new beau.

Falling auction volumes have contributed to the early April clearance rate remaining very strong.

This weekend Adelaide joined Sydney and Melbourne's hot housing markets as the three cities notched up auction success clearance rates of over 80 per cent. 

The last time Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide all cleared the 80 per cent level was the Easter weekend of April 2015, when lower volumes boosted clearance rates.

According to CoreLogic’s latest report, the national capital city preliminary clearance rate remains in the mid-high 70 per cent range for another week.

The preliminary results this week showed 78.1 per cent of the 2,121 reported auctions were successful, up from 74.5 per cent last weekend and higher than the corresponding week last year when a 66.6 per cent clearance rate.

House price growth in March picked up to 19 per cent in Sydney and 16 per cent in Melbourne, CoreLogic said on Friday.

There were 2,646 properties taken to auction, down from 3,171 last week, when auction volumes reached their second highest level so far this year.

Melbourne's preliminary 80.6 per cent came from the 1,007 reported auctions sold this week. 

A 1912 five bedroom Canterbury offering (below) topped weekend auction results selling for more than $500,000 over reserve at auction at $5.81 million, the top result across the nation.

The house on 1222 sq m sold to a Balwyn family with two children through Marshall White who were advising $4.7 million plus. 

Three buyers battled it out for 31 Mangarra Road, which last sold for $860,000 in 1998, Domain advised.

Around $4 million was secured in Fitzroy in post-auction negotiations when Graeme Simsion, author of international bestseller The Rosie Project, and wife Anne Buist sold their home on Gore Street (below).

The couple transformed the derelict property into a five-bedroom, three-bathroom house with an internal tranquility pool, along with a striking spiral staircase leading to a ship's prow library and a roof garden.

Agent Arch Staver passed the home in on a $4 million vendor bid and sold it post-auction for an undisclosed price.

There were 1,139 properties taken to auction across the city, decreasing from 1,607 last week when the final clearance rate was recorded at 78.9 per cent.

The Inner region of Melbourne had a clearance rate of 79.7 per cent with the strongest rate recorded across the North West region where 86.3 per cent of auctions were successful.

One not selling was the Hampton childhood home of cricket legend Shane Warne which was passed in on a single vendor bid of $1.5 million.

The spin king's parents, Keith and Brigitte Warne owned the now much renovated home at 229 Thomas Street (below) in the late 1960s.

The Herald Sun wrote the family owned the California bungalow until 1976 when it sold for $41,000.

The vendors are selling because they’d just had their fourth child and needed more space.

In Sydney, the preliminary clearance rate of 80.7 per cent is up from 75.8 per cent last weekend, and also higher than the corresponding week last year, when a clearance rate of 69.8 per cent was recorded.

There were 1,098 auctions held this week, down from 1,098 last week.

A house at McMahons Point was sold for $4.425 million making it Sydney’s most expensive auction sale over the weekend.

Located at 13 Victoria Street, (above) the north facing, freestanding terrace style property has an elevated setting with views of the city and harbour.

It was sold by Colin Morgan, insurer Zurich's former Asia Pacific global life chief executive and his wife Louise.

The final sale price was $625,000 above the $3.8 million reserve after the bidding opened at $3.4 million.

Of the Sydney sub-regions, Inner West region recorded the strongest clearance rate of 93.7 per cent across 76 auctions.

The preliminary clearance rate in Brisbane this week rose to 56.8 per cent, from 42.0 per cent last week.

Auction volumes were lower this week with 173 auctions held, down from 196 last week.  

A two bedroom house at Riverview, near Ipswich sold for $222,250, the cheapest weekend result across the nation.

The 15 Station Road (above) was a dual title 971 sqm property.

A house at Coorparoo sold for $1.565 million making it Brisbane's most expensive sale.

Located at 79 Buena Vista Avenue (above), the 809 sqm property was offered for the first time in 40 years.

This week, Adelaide saw a preliminary clearance rate of 80.6 per cent, with 67 reported results across a total of 113 scheduled auctions.

In comparison, over the previous week Adelaide’s clearance rate was 66.4 per cent and 71.2 per cent one year ago.

A charming Leabrook bungalow sold for $1.6 million making it Adelaide’s most expensive weekend sale.

Located at 3 Godfrey Terrace (above), the three-bedroom sandstone family house sold at between 10 per cent and 15 per cent above reserve, according to Toop & Toop agent Tim Thredgold.

It sold to a downsizing couple.

Perth’s clearance rate of 35.7 per cent across 43 auctions is up slightly from last week, when 33 auctions were held and a clearance rate of 35.3 per cent was recorded.

Over the same week last year, the clearance rate was a higher 46.9 per cent, and 40 auctions were held.

Canberra’s clearance rate was 76.3 per cent this week across 66 auctions, down from 77.4 per cent last week across 103 auctions.

A besser block built house set against a bushland backdrop at Deakin sold for $1.455 million making it Canberra’s most expensive.

Located at 22 Galway Place (above), the 1073 sqm property was designed by architect John Scollay and sold in its original condition.

Jonathan Chancellor is editor at large at Property Observer.

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