Going once, going twice, sold!

54 Elkhorn Street, Kuluin
Sold by Rowan Woodbine for $627,000 on 15 Feb 2021

The benefits of taking a property to auction were demonstrated yet again after a three-bedroom home in Kuluin reached almost $30,000 above what it would have been listed at for sale.

Tightly held by the vendors, who built the home over 30 years ago, the family initially intended to list the home for $590,000 until Ray White agent Rowan Woodbine explained why an auction was likely to deliver much better results.

“I remember standing in the kitchen with the owner and her children and son-in-law when I suggested an auction and all three of them said no at the same time,” says Rowan.

“However, I explained to them that taking the property to auction would allow the market to determine it’s worth and not put a ceiling on the price and within 15 minutes we had a campaign and a plan to take the property to auction,” says Rowan.

Just as well they heeded Rowan’s advice, with the property selling under the hammer for $627,000.

“We probably would have listed it at around $590,000, knowing we had added 10 to 15 percent above other three-bedroom properties that had recently sold in the area,” says Rowan.

“If they had gone down the straight sale path we would have sold in a couple of days and the result would have been $590,000 but by allowing me the time to run the campaign and take it to auction we ended up with 12 registered bidders and sold it for $627,000.

“It was a huge result from what they were originally expecting so it allowed the owner to move on with her life and retire in a much healthier position that what she would have, so everyone was really happy.”

Given the huge amount of interest in the property as soon as it was listed, Rowan says the auction drew between 80 and 100 people.

“Bidding started at $420,000 so Dan put a stop to that pretty quickly and lifted it to $520,000. From there we had seven active bidders who fought it out to the very end,” says Rowan.

“It came down to $500 bids but the lady who bought it put $2,500 on top of the highest bid taking it from $623,500 to $627,000 to knock out the other buyers and take it off the market. She wanted it and her final bid, ensured it was hers.”

Having moved from Sydney two years ago, the new owners plan to add a pool and a granny flat to the property, and will no doubt reap the rewards down the track.

“They will either rent it out once they have renovated depending on what happens with the market place or flip it. Either way it’s pretty good value when you look at what homes have been selling for over the past few months, so they are delighted,” says Rowan.

With larger blocks becoming few and far between, Rowan says Kuluin is the suburb to watch while they last.

“The average size block in Kuluin is at least 650sq m to 1000sq metres, you can’t find that this close to the city centre any more, but it won’t last long, so act now.”

Written by Ingrid Nelson