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A few local bidders have fought it out for a Thirroul property that sold for above the reserve price.
A backyard full of people were present to watch the auction proceedings unfold.
For this week’s Under the Hammer, selling agent, Martin Merritt from One Agency Property Division filled us in on the sale.
Read more: Homes in Thirroul, Helensburgh and Barrack Heights going under the hammer
The property: The listing at 233 Lawrence Hargrave Drive, Thirroul. Located close to Thirroul Beach, the property is on a level corner block of 605 square metres.
The front unit has two bedrooms, and the other has three bedrooms. There’s an estimated combined rental return of $1300 per week.
The result: The home sold for $2,550,000 under the hammer on Saturday. It sold for above the reserve price.
What made the property special?: The location – it’s a great location. It’s on a corner block, across the road is reserve, and behind it is car park and beach. You could potentially build yourself a large two-storey house overlooking the beach [subject to council approval], or build a nice duplex.
Setting the scene at the auction: There was a backyard full of people watching, and there were people standing outside the block and peering over the fence, through the gaps in the fence.
There was really good energy. Some auctions are really slow and it’s like pulling teeth in between bids, but this was a pretty fast auction. It was very energetic.
There were six registered bidders, three of which were active. There were three going for it, and then two bidders at the end. Those two bidders were both locals, from Austinmer and Bulli.
All of the bidders were local – which was surprising – except for one who was a Sydney couple, and they didn’t place a bid. In the [COVID] boom times, we were basically 80 per cent Sydney [buyers] and 20 per cent local [in Thirroul].
But I think Thirroul is a niche area, and once people live in Thirroul, they don’t leave. They upgrade or invest in their own suburb. Now that the dust has settled with the pricing and the boom, Sydney people are less inclined [to buy there] because they’re almost paying Sydney prices once they get in those northern suburbs of the Illawarra. It seems like the tide has turned a little, and it’s more valuable to a local than to Sydney people.
Read more: ‘Didn’t want to do anything reckless’: Bidders take their time at tense Figtree auction
How did the bidding unfold?: The opening bid was $2.1 million. It started off in $50,000 bids, went to $25,000 bids, back to $50,000s, then down to $25,000s, before going in $5000s, $2000s and $1000 increments. There were 21 bids placed in total.
Because it opened quite high with the first bid… The other three bidders had a limit, and their limit was probably blown out of the water with the opening bid. It knocked a few bidders out straight away.
What are the buyer’s plans?: They’re from Bulli, and they plan to do a a basic renovation, and rent it out for a period. They’re undecided whether to build a house or duplex on it, but they will definitely redevelop the site at some point.
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I'm a member of ACM's national property team, covering the Illawarra and South Coast. Based in Albion Park, NSW, I write about exciting, interesting or just downright quirky properties that have been listed for sale, major sales, market trends, auctions and more. One of my favourite aspects of being a journalist is I believe everyone has a story to tell. What's yours?
I'm a member of ACM's national property team, covering the Illawarra and South Coast. Based in Albion Park, NSW, I write about exciting, interesting or just downright quirky properties that have been listed for sale, major sales, market trends, auctions and more. One of my favourite aspects of being a journalist is I believe everyone has a story to tell. What's yours?
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