An expat banker returning to Australia from New York bought a five-bedroom home in Curl Curl for $6,663,000 at auction on Saturday, breaking records for the suburb for a house without water views.
The architecturally designed family home at 6 Adina Road is 85 metres from an off-leash dog beach.
Five people registered to bid and three bid actively. Bidding opened at $6 million by a buyer’s agent who interrupted the auctioneer’s introductory spiel.
Three bids of $100,000 took it to $6.3 million, then the stride shortened and a final three $1000 bids took it to the final sale price.
The property had a price guide of between $6 million and $6.6 million. The reserve was $6.4 million.
It was one of 589 homes scheduled to go under the hammer in Sydney on the weekend. By evening, Domain Group recorded a preliminary auction clearance rate of 70.4 per cent from 392 reported results, while 74 auctions were withdrawn. Withdrawn auctions are counted as unsold properties when calculating the clearance rate.
The vendor sold as the children had all grown up. The buyer is returning to Australia after 20 years in New York and flew in for the auction.
Selling agent James Smyth from SEA-Smyth Estate Agents said Curl Curl is a tightly held area.
“There’s a very nice casual air about [Curl Curl]. It’s a very wealthy area and the wealth is very well disguised,” he said.
“It does tick a lot of boxes. Plenty of backyard, in-ground heated swimming pool, north facing, double garage and just literally walk at the end of the street you’re on the beach.”
Elsewhere, a two-bedroom unit in Manly exceeded expectations, selling for $4,700,000. The apartment, number 20, is located in the iconic Sierra building at 132 Bower Street.
Three people registered and three bid actively on the unit that has sweeping views but a single carport. The price guide was between $4 million and $4.4 million.
A jovial character tried to make an opening bid of $1 million to which the auctioneer politely responded that the car space would be available at that price. Bidding officially opened on the starting guide of $4 million, then bids of $50,000 and $25,000 were placed between two serious parties.
Selling agent Michael Clarke from Clarke & Humel Property declined to reveal the reserve but said buyer and seller were ecstatic.
“It [has] breathtaking views of Manly Beach and that particular location is sought after all over the world. If you want a Manly Beach view, it doesn’t get better than that,” he said.
“What Manly has done with this sale is show the absolute resilience of it as a suburb that attracts broad appeal, whether it’s locals, out-of-area or overseas buyers. It always outperforms other suburbs because it’s got the lifestyle that everybody dreams of.”
The unit last traded for $1.4 million in 2014, records show.
PRD’s chief economist Dr Diaswati Mardiasmo said the clearance rate of 70.4 per cent was up from this time last year.
Mardiasmo said the clearance rate climb over the past three weeks was due to the cash rate being held steady.
“Auctions means that you have to be financially ready. So when the cash rate is stable, it means that your borrowing power is going to stay the same and your mortgage payment is also going to be the same. It gives the auction buyers more confidence in the market,” she said.
In Chatswood, a small three bedroom freestanding house at 21A Chatswood Avenue sold for $2,615,000.
The 278-square-metre property had a price guide of $2.4 million and attracted investors, with 12 registering and five bidding.
Selling agent Nick Separovich from McGrath Willoughby said the 90 internal square metres meant it was like a townhouse without levies. The buyer plans to rent it out.
In Blacktown, a three-bedroom unlivable property that had rusted cars and a boat on the premises was sold for land value. The 873-square-metre block at 3 Virginia Street sold for $1,066,000.
Eight people registered and four bid actively on the abandoned property where nobody had lived for 23 years. It was sold by Billy Markovski from RE/MAX Xtra.
In Killara, a five-bedroom house at 9 The Crest sold for $3,520,000.
Selling agent James Marshman from Forsyth Real Estate said the family home was available to the market for the first time in 40 years. The children were grown so the vendor, who lived in a regional area, decided to let go of the property that was within walking distance of school and the train station.
In Tempe, a three-bedroom home at 25 Hart Street sold for $1,470,000 at auction.
Selling agent Nick Playfair from BresicWhitney Inner West said the inner-west buyer was attracted to the character of the cottage and charm of the street.
“A lot of buyers [to Tempe] are coming from inner parts of the city or further out. There’s still value there. This size block just a few suburbs across in Newtown is a lot more expensive,” he said.