Investors won the keys to a South Melbourne terrace at auction on Saturday, beating two other bidders to pay $1,372,500 for the house.
The two-bedroom home at 96 Cobden Street featured exposed wood accents and a European style.
Cayzer auctioneer and listing agent Simon Carruthers said the style and the upstairs study had appealed to the three bidders. He listed the property with a quoted price range of $1.25 million to $1.35 million.
“There’s a lot of character here. A lot of people were saying it felt English,” he said. “I had someone say it felt like it was from Amsterdam. So there was a European old-style feel about the home.”
First home buyers made the first genuine bid at the bottom of the range after a slow start to the auction. Bidding stalled at $1,337,500, and after conferring with the vendors Carruthers announced the home was on the market.
A drawn-out fight for the home then took place. The underbidders and investors, bidding through The Agency’s Michael Paproth, placed dozens of $500 bids. The investors paid $35,000 more than the vendors were willing to take.
The vendors also offered to sell the bookcases to the buyers for $500. Credit: Cayzer
“It was long, very slow in between bids, it’s people thinking about getting into the area and they take their time,” Carruthers said. “It’s a good home, so they don’t want to lose it and both parties probably went above their limits. But that’s what good real estate does.”
It was one of 974 auctions scheduled for Saturday.