A brick and tile period home in its original condition has sold at auction in Merewether after being held by the same owner for more than 40 years.
Auction draws strong interest
The auction of the four-bedroom, one-bathroom house at 97 City Road attracted five registered bidders. It had been listed with a guide of $950,000 with Simon Wall of Simon Wall Property.
Cotality records show the property was last sold in 1983 for $58,000.
The listing described the home as a 'blank-canvas opportunity' with the potential to renovate, knockdown-rebuild, or add a granny flat on the 647-square-metre block. Inside, the floor plan features two living areas, an original timber kitchen at the rear, and a retro purple bathroom.
The auction was brought forward a week after drawing 52 groups to open house inspections during the first two weeks of the campaign.
'We had multiple families who were ready and willing and keen after the first two Saturdays, so there was no point in making the buyers wait,' Mr Wall said.
'The home owner purchased it in 1983 and she was really motivated to sell, and that is the market we are working in now.
'Owners that have got good motivations to sell are still getting good results.'
The strong interest follows recently announced federal budget reforms to negative gearing and the capital gains tax discount.
First home buyers and investors compete
Of the five registered parties, three were first home buyers.
'We also had two parties looking at it to renovate and rent out, and then decide what they want to do in five years' time,' Mr Wall said.
'The buyer ended up being a builder from Sydney who will make minor changes and then see whether they want to move to Newcastle for a change of life.
'It's a five-year plan.'
Bidding opened significantly under the guide at $600,000 but quickly climbed in increments of $50,000 to reach $850,000.
Four of the five parties actively engaged in the auction, which slowed to $25,000 increments before selling under the hammer after 31 bids for $1.15 million.
Mr Wall said the entry-level price point in a suburb where the median house value sits at $2.07 million was the ultimate drawcard.
'Hovering around that million-dollar mark in Merewether is quite rare and that's why it was popular,' he said.
'Even though it was on a main road, people could see this was their chance to live in Merewether and not have to be in a townhouse at this price point.'
It was one of 15 homes scheduled for auction across Newcastle and Lake Macquarie in the week ending May 17.
According to Cotality's preliminary results, the region recorded an auction clearance rate of 73.3 per cent.
