A first-home buyer swooped in at the last minute to beat investors circling a Marrickville home up for auction on Saturday.
The three-bedroom property at 62 Pile Street, was one of 783 Sydney homes scheduled to go under the hammer.
By Saturday evening Domain Group had collected 429 auction results and put the clearance rate at 58.2 per cent - the market's lowest result since December 2015.
It was a short but sweet auction for the deceased estate, on the market for the first time in about 50 years.
A young family kicked off the bidding at $1.2 million mere seconds after auctioneer Damien Cooley called for an opening offer.
An investor, who was also one of the beneficiaries of the estate, quickly hit back with an offer of $1.23 million and the bidding took off.
At $1.28 million a family, buying a first investment property for their daughter, joined in, and another owner occupier was hot on their heels.
The two parties took the bidding up to $1,351,000 - after which the first-home buyer jumped in with his first and final bid of $1.36 million, at which the home sold.
"I was always planning on coming in at the end," said first-home buyer Luke Hamilton. "I've missed out a few auctions, so I wanted to hold back."
The purchase end months of house hunting for the 31-year-old who is currently renting in Newtown.
"I was looking earlier this year but it was bedlam, people were just going crazy at auctions," he said. "As [the market] started to take a turn, I started looking again."
He plans to move into the home and possibly renovate down the track.
The 317-square-metre block sold for $10,000 above reserve, through Alex Mastoris and Anthony Ross of Cobden & Hayson.
Mr Mastoris said the result was on expectations and noted there had been a little resistance from several bidders to push the price higher due to the money they expected to spend giving it a refresh.
Auctioneer Damien Cooley was surprised by how quickly bidding for the Federation home got underway.
"At a lot of auctions where we've got four or five bidders, it's becoming really challenging to get that opening bid," Mr Cooley said. "It went for a fair price, it's not a huge price, but it's not a bargain."
It was one of three of his seven scheduled auctions that actually went ahead on Saturday, with the other four homes either being withdrawn or selling prior.
With almost half of the homes that went to auction in November passing in, according to Domain Group data, Mr Cooley said it was clear buyers were fatigued.
"I think the break over Christmas will be good and the market will come back refreshed," he said. "But I think [in terms of clearance rates] we'll see much of the same as what we're seeing now."
There was little sign of buyer fatigue at a West Ryde auction on Saturday, where 36 people registered to bid on another tightly-held deceased estate.
Bidding on the 809-square-metre block with duplex potential, opened at $1.55 million - $50,000 above the $1.5 million reserve.
While there was a mix of owner-occupiers and developers in the crowd, it came down to a race between two developers -the only bidders left standing after the price hit $2 million.
It was a developer from Eastwood that nabbed the three-bedroom home at 23 Reserve Street for $2.06 million - $560,000 above reserve.
"[The result] was well above expectations, especially in the current market," said selling agent Bruce Ignatiou of LJ Hooker West Pennant Hills/Cherrybrook.
"Often lately you only get one or a handful of bidders on a property, to have 36, I was a bit overwhelmed."
He said the result was made all the more special by the fact that the proceeds would go to numerous charities.
Another hot auction in Eastgardens, saw a four-bedroom home on a 531-square-metre block sell for $190,000 above reserve.
Five of nine registered bidders competed for the deceased estate at 21 Mathewson Street, which sold for $1.77 million through Natalie Vega of LJ Hooker Randwick.
The home was snapped up by a first-home buyer, with the help of her parents.
Elsewhere in Sydney:
37 Cliff Road, Northwood. Photo: Supplied.
SOLD $2.46 million
Northwood
37 Cliff Road
3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1 car space
It was a bittersweet moment for the family of late Australian artist Lloyd Rees, when their long-term family home sold on Saturday. Bidding on the Italianate villa-style house, designed by Rees, started at $2 million and went up at a slow and steady pace as two of six registered bidders made offers. The home was snapped up, $40,000 above reserve, by a couple from the inner west who are expecting their first child. It sold through Brent Courtney of McGrath Lane Cove. Rees bought the property for ??300 in 1934, and lived there with his wife Marjory until 1986.
31 Wharf Road Birchgrove. Photo: Supplied.
SOLD $7,225,000
Birchgrove
31 Wharf Road
4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 1 car space
Four bidders went head to head for this waterfront home on the market for the first time in more than 20 years. A buyer's agent kicked off the bidding at $6,175,000, which then jumped to $6.2 million and continue upwards at a steady pace. It was only towards the end of the auction that larger $50,000 bid increments were made, as the aspiring buyers tried to knock out the competition. The home sold through Lynsey Kemp of Belle Property Balmain, to a family from the north shore. Records show it last traded for $2,025,000 in 1997.
4 Woodstock Street Botany. Photo: Supplied.
SOLD $1,755,000
Botany
???4 Woodstock Street
6 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2 car spaces
Two families battled for this tightly-held home with a granny flat. The auction kicked off with a bid of $1.6 million, and went up in $20,000 jumps before slowing after the $1.7 million mark. The home sold for $20,000 above reserve to a young family from Mascot, who have parents coming to live with them. Selling agent Jamie Van Le of Century 21 Eastern Beaches Maroubra said the granny flat had been a big drawcard for multi-generational households. The home last sold for $195,000 in 1990.
