No auction cash bonanza for Larry Emdur as prestige sale volumes slump in every state

The Dover Heights home of Channel Seven Price Is Right presenter Larry Emdur passed in on a $3.8 million vendor bid on its latest auction attempt.

Its failure to sell highlights the trend of a dramatic decline in prestige residential sales.

Its happening in every state, according to analysis by Dr Andrew Wilson, the senior economist at Australian Property Monitors.

Sales above $2 million in the six months to April were down by 38% in NSW, the APM survey revealed. There were just 776 NSW sales in the six-month period, compared with 1,255 sales in the same period to April 2011.

NSW wasn't the worst state when it came to the prestige inactivity in the $2 million-plus sales market.

Source APM

Victoria recorded a 57% decline with just 272 sales, compared with 646 in the same period in 2011.

Wilson says WA was down 41%, with 128 sales compared with 220 sales.

South Australia had the lowest drop, albeit a 25% reduction in its prestige sales tally.

The downturn is accompanied by price weakness.

Last October when Emdur pulled the house from auction its price hopes were more than $5 million.

The extensively renovated P & O-style house was listed as Emdur and his wife, Sylvie, have upgraded to a $6.8 million Dover Heights clifftop residence. They bought from the Moss family, who had paid $7.1 million in February 2007, showing the market’s pre-existing weakness.

Emdur's agent, Daniel Baran, of BHR Estate Agents, had advised $4 million-plus hopes to prospective buyers of the Weonga Road property.

It is set on 417 square metres, whereas the Emdurs’ new home is on 1,062 square metres of cliff-top land.

At weekend auctions, Sydney agents secured a 54.9% clearance rate compared with 53.9% on the weekend prior and 53.2% the same weekend last year.

At weekend auctions, Melbourne agents secured a 60% success rate compared with 57% on the weekend prior and 56% the same weekend last year.