Paul Castran - CEO - Castran Gilbert

MELBOURNE’s auction market had its highest clearance rate over the weekend since the end of the property boom in December 2007.

Of 452 properties up for auction, 83 per cent sold and 77 properties passed in!

However, the number of properties for auction was 126 fewer than at the same time last year!

The CEO of Real Estate Institute of Victoria attributed the high clearance rate to the extension of the first-home buyer’s grant announced in last week’s federal Budget, combined with low interest rates and an increase in investor numbers.

“It’s off a low base. There were not a lot of auctions,” Mr Raimondo said.

The part of the market performing really well is priced at or below the medium of about $410,000.

The next two weeks we expect to see just under 1300 auctions, which is a very high number of auctions at this time of the year.

“I expect the clearance rate to remain high until the September 30 when the full first-home owner’s boost will be phased out.”

Flat and apartment clearances were also very strong: 90 per cent of 136 properties at auction sold.

The latest residential land report from the Housing Industry Association revealed Melbourne’s median land price grew 0.7 per cent in the December quarter to a record $152,000.

The HIA-RP Data residential land report showed the price of land in Melbourne was up 4.8 per cent over the year.

The median land price in regional Victoria fell 2.8%in the December quarter to $97,250, the lowest price since mid-2007!

MELBOURNE’S last big auction day of 2008 ended with a mad scramble from buyers and sellers hoping to get contracts signed before Christmas.

The weekend clearance rate of 57 per cent from more than 600 auctions was still low, but up on the previous week.

Industry experts said the scramble, fuelled by interest rate cuts, showed that the property downturn might be easing.

Read the full article here:

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,24799115-5013926,00.html

Paul Castran

Melbourne is, with some justification, known as the auction capital of the world. But that doesn’t mean that an auction is our automatic recommendation.

We would be inclined to recommend a PRIVATE SALE, if:

• You can’t face large numbers of people inspecting your property.
• You are in no hurry.
• You have a desire to keep the sale relatively low-key.

In the absence of these factors, we recommend an AUCTION, for several powerful reasons:

• The selling period has a fixed time span, which precipitates a definite result.
• The publicity and timing of an auction frequently stimulate PRIOR OFFERS. The pressure is on the prospective purchaser, not you.
• The successful bidder at an auction enters into a binding unconditional contract on the spot, with the terms and conditions previously approved by you. There is no opportunity to “cool off” without forfeiting a substantial deposit to you.
• A property such as yours will attract genuine buyers and is in a desirable location therefore it is the competition between them that so often drives the price up. This is the main reason for the popularity of auctions in inner suburban Melbourne.

Paul Castran