Investor-developers join family buyers to add to demand in Monash market
Monash properties still command strong prices as investors and developers spur demand even as listings rise
A fierce seven-buyer contest has sent a vacant property with a knockdown house soaring more than $300,000 above expectations in Wheelers Hill in the city’s east.
The 1970s-built 5 Kooringa Crescent with a leaking roof and in need of a makeover, had a six-figure reserve price but sold for $1.307 million.
The May 8 auction eventually came down to a bidding war between an investor and an owner-occupier who wanted to move close to his parents.
“The homebuyer put in a bid of $1.2 million that knocked out all interested parties except the investor but the investor stayed the course and won the day,” Barry Plant Monash agent Lindsay Xu said.
“Everybody, including the sellers and the neighbours, were shocked at the result that was beyond all our expectations.”
The 687sq m property with a four-bedroom house and no garage, was described as an “old home ready for a complete renovation or alternatively detonate and rebuild.”
“But it has a good location and is a flat block on the high side of the road,” Ms Xu said.
Barry Plant Monash sold six from eight auctions, achieving a 75 per cent clearance rate on May 8. The Barry Plant Group as a whole reported an 80 per cent clearance from 98 auctions.
The return of investors and developers in Monash is giving owners of older homes and those in less popular locations solid auction results.
The development potential and rental returns of these properties have seen this type of buyers active in Glen Waverley and Wheelers Hill in recent weeks, local Barry Plant agents said.
Two Glen Waverley properties each had three bidders on May 8, with 9 Glen Court, Glen Waverley, selling above its $1.6-$1.76 million price guide.
“All three bidders were investors or developers attracted to the property which is an older home but with development potential and in a good location,” Barry Plant Glen Waverley auctioneer Tony Ievoli said.
He noted people who were looking for a home to live in preferred to purchase quality, renovated properties but “unrenovated homes with good rental” attracted investors.
A property close to power lines at 21 Windella Crescent, Glen Waverley, also sold well above expectations for $984,000.
The Monash market has seen a rise in listing numbers in recent weeks which means more choice for buyers, Mr Ievoli said.