North shore share house sells for $200,000 below its reserve

A group of seven vendors sold a property they jointly owned in Naremburn for $2.7 million, $200,000 less than its reserve, on Saturday.

Five of the vendors have been living in the five-bedroom property at 22 Park Road, with two others living in Dubbo and Japan, respectively. All were present, in person or on the phone, for the auction.

Three parties registered to bid for the two-storey, five-bedroom home, with two taking part.

Bidding opened at $2.5 million and rose in increments of $50,000 and $25,000 before a series of $10,000 bids. The property had a guide of $2.75 million and a reserve of $2.9 million.

There is no legal requirement for a vendor’s reserve to be in line with their property’s price guide.

Both the successful bidders and the underbidders were families planning to renovate to make the place suitable for their multi-generational needs.

Forsyth Real Estate sales agent Joe Campisi said that it was challenging to manage so many vendors, especially when the bidding stalled.

“I was surprised they all agreed to the same price,” he said. “I told them during the week that this would happen [with the lower bid] and then it actually happened, which helped them accept the decision.”

Campisi said that, in general, vendors are now more aligned with buyer expectations.

“Owners are becoming more aware of what the market is doing,” he said, “and they are more open to accepting the bid on the day rather than waiting to see what will happen afterwards.”

The property was one of 479 scheduled to go to auction in Sydney this week.

In Kensington, a young family were the only bidders to register for a three-bedroom apartment, paying $30,000 less than the reserve.

Cooley auctioneer Briannan Davis knocked back their bid of $1.1 million to buy 7/22 Villiers Street before entering a bid of $1.25 million on behalf of the vendor.

After 40 minutes of negotiating, the bidders raised their offer to $1.29 million and the property sold under auction conditions. It had a guide of $1.2 million and a reserve of $1.32 million.

The vendors are moving out of the area and want to upsize.

Belle Property Bondi Junction sales agent Edward Brown described market conditions at present as “normal”.

“We don’t have that manic flow of people with FOMO. They are a lot more considered in their buying, but they are still looking for good quality,” he said.