Auction & Sale Report

Melbourne October 11th Weekend 2008

James Covered Auctions Clearance rate: 54% from 13 properties to auction

CLEARANCE RATES IN PERCENT

WEEKEND AUCTIONS AT A GLANCE

72a Wilson Street
BRIGHTON

PASSED IN

12 Billson Street
BRIGHTON EAST

PASSED IN

19 Coromandel Place
MELBOURNE

BOUGHT

200 Drummond Street
CARLTON

PASSED IN

860 Brunswick Street
FITZROY NORTH

BOUGHT AFTER

51 Mary Street
HAWTHORN

PASSED IN

47 George Street
FITZROY

BOUGHT AFTER

27 A'Beckett Street
PRAHRAN

PASSED IN

37 Codrington Street
SANDRINGHAM

BOUGHT

4 Bryson Avenue
BRIGHTON

BOUGHT AFTER

88 Prospect Hill Road
CAMBERWELL

BOUGHT AFTER

6 Kimber Street
RICHMOND

BOUGHT

4 Bowlers Way
MALVERN EAST

PASSED IN

Market Insight

Mal James

Million Dollar Melbourne

Mal James 0408 107 988
Principal Buyer Agent

It's 5.00 pm Saturday and the auction clearance rates are very, very average for Million Dollar Melbourne.

But let's leave the analysts and doomsayers to themselves; let's remember we own or are buying quality property and that has not dropped like a Nikkei or a Dow or an All Ords and unless people stop coming to live in Melbourne then it won't. Please no more calls about should I sell, should I panic, should I move my family to a lesser home. Take it easy - yes watch your debt, yes we are in for some tough times, but hold your bottle. If you own or are about to buy quality property (not a cheap price)then things recover. If you have sold out then you will have nothing to recover with.

So - Something to cheer us all up! Go and have a look at 25 Cosham St Brighton. Sure it's going to probably cost you over $5m if you believe the agent's quote but it simply is a stunning home. It will make you feel better by just being there.

It will give you ideas even if you don't have that much.

Our rating will be over 900 out of 1000 - one of the highest ratings we can give (check it out at using our search function - will be up on Monday).

Why so good? Well Cosham is a great street and it’s on a large 11,000 sq ft north facing rear block. So good start.

But it's the home that will really do it for you. Built by McKimm's – builders/developers who really know their business. It is a home of beautiful proportions; of incredible light and equally important it's a home of thought.

The floorplan and flow - from inside to out; from down to upstairs from bedroom to bathroom and from eating to living really works and without exception the buyers that will live here will in fact be happier, healthier and more balanced a year after moving in.

I haven't mentioned the pool, the yard, the air flow from the bi-fold doors when open. I haven't mentioned the quality of the timbers, the exquisite yet not overpowering wall paper and the garage the size of men's dreams - because if I do you will think I have the rose coloured glasses on. You'll think I'm over the top.

No, this is not a paid ad and no I really don't have any ulterior motive for saying these things other than the world would be a happier place if everybody lived in a home of this thought and space and quality.

So even if you can't afford it; go dreaming and turn up to a 25 Cosham St Brighton open for inspection and ponder what might be.

Yes the world can be a positive place.

We purchased four homes this last week or so - Hampton, Glen Iris, Blackburn and Richmond. Some part of the world is still alive and moving upwards.

Mal

SUNDAY FOOTNOTE: A number of million dollar homes have sold after or overnight lifting our reported clearance rate to over 50%. The REIV clearance rate which covers a larger number of auctions but weighted towards under $1m auctions is still over 60%. Properties are still selling. We will not really know the effect of recent financial turbulence for some time.

Don't want to sound too much of a lecturer but my personal phone has been running hot with panicky home buyers and sellers. We survived 1987, we survived 9/11, we are still surviving greenhouse gases.

Share market players and analysts are a breed unto themselves; they see their profits and good times as theirs only and their bad times as everybody else's worry. They involve as many people as they can to share their pain. On the surface it seems wrong to bail them out in America; it seems

wrong if we go overboard here – but I am not an expert and we have to accept the actions of those we have elected. Improved regulation of the markets, not hand outs seems the long term answer. People do need to take responsibility and accept the consequences for their own decisions and investment risks. I'm not sure this is a good time to ask some advisors for a detailed analysis of why shares is always so much better than property or why you must always have an investment portfolio weighted towards shares and not property however ......

Having indulged myself and I apologise for that; it cannot be said that property is in for a bump free ride - the big ones over $1m have in many cases already dropped considerably this year (5%-25%) and banks may drop their lending ratios making money tighter (thus resulting in further drops); however the current situation is not time to abandon all logic and/or your homes because you are carrying some debt or because the share market is in free fall.

If you have a solid income, reasonable debt levels (and rates look like dropping not increasing), are prepared to stay a course then now could be a good time to invest or trade up, the gap between rich and poor is a lot lower than last year.

Properties may drop even further but they will improve in the longer term as more people move from shares to property; more people move to Melbourne and because investing in property is not like investing in shares.

Property is a simple investment – prices go up long term for homes that are in demand and have a restricted supply as people will always need to live somewhere. Good properties generally don’t go into freefall because there is always going to be an underpinning from other families wanting to live there. This is why well positioned residential homes are such a solid and safe investment.

1200 people per week are coming to live here (Census), we have a well regulated financial system, we have already seen a significant correction in real estate prices and Melbourne is the best place in the world.

An extraordinary week. Next week our normal market news returns and no lectures, but please stop ringing me in a panicked state – it makes no sense.

Stay cool, monitor your situation and make careful, logical, long term decisions even if you have a bit of short term pain.

There are long term opportunities out there for those that are sensible and unclouded by fear.

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Auctions We Attended

613/1000

BRIGHTON, 72a Wilson Street

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Ask Mal James a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
72a Wilson Street	Medium Houses	1,650,000
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
1,550,000VB	1,625,000
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
Campbell Cooney	Hodges	Quiet
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
40		PASSED IN

OUR COMMENTS

"Auctioneer Campbell Cooney could not excite the crowd to make a bid despite his repertoire of pithy comments. It is believed a prior auction offer was made and knocked back so if that interest is still there then a result may happen in the next few days."

Mal James
0408 107 988
Principal Buyer Agent

567/1000

BRIGHTON, 4 Bryson Avenue

View More Information

Ask Melissa Ryan a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
4 Bryson Avenue	Large Houses	1,800,000
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
1,700,000		1,840,000
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
Bert Stewart	Buxton	Average
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
30	2	BOUGHT AFTER

OUR COMMENTS

"Genuine bidding opened this auction at 1.7mil and another bidder joined in with 1.750. The bidding slowly (and I mean at a snail's pace)crept to 1.840mil. The property was passed-in at this level and as of 3pm Saturday remains unsold. It is a fantastic family home and is extremely well priced."

Melissa Ryan
0409 409 357
Principal Buyer Agent

553/1000

BRIGHTON EAST, 12 Billson Street

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Ask Mal James a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
12 Billson Street	Medium Houses	1,300,000
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
1,000,000VB	1,150,000
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
Kim Shannon	Hocking Stuart	Quiet
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
30	0	PASSED IN

OUR COMMENTS

"Auctioneer Kim Shannon auctions are becoming very interactive with questions being asked and children responding - all good fun. Unfortunately no interaction between real bidders and auctioneer and the property remains unsold at time of publishing."

Mal James
0408 107 988
Principal Buyer Agent

525/1000

CAMBERWELL, 88 Prospect Hill Road

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Ask Adam Woledge a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
88 Prospect Hill Road	Medium Houses	900000
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
875000 VB		975000
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
Brad Cooper	Jellis Craig	expected
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
80	3	BOUGHT AFTER

OUR COMMENTS

"Good crowd here in warm conditions, this property was contested by a few buyers with $5K increment bidding that was steady. Although passed in would expect this to sell today around the $1m mark. A very livable house, yet the busy road location, small land size and south facing rear aspects would be the concerns for many. The pricetag however would provide opportunity for a young couple/family or empty nesters to live in Camberwell in a charming period style home. "

Adam Woledge
0413 318 079
Registered Architect & Principal Buyer Agent

583/1000

CARLTON, 200 Drummond Street

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Ask Mal James a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
200 Drummond Street	Large Houses	1,550,000+
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
1,600,000VB	Undisclosed	1,600,000VB
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
Andrew Macmillan	Bennison Mackinnon	Dead
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
50	0	PASSED IN

OUR COMMENTS

"No response from a fair sized crowd."

Mal James
0408 107 988
Principal Buyer Agent

722/1000

FITZROY, 47 George Street

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Ask Mal James a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
47 George Street	Large Houses	1,500,000+
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
1,500,000VB		1,510,000
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
Arch Staver	Nelson Alexander	Quiet
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
30	1	BOUGHT AFTER

OUR COMMENTS

"A full performance from auctioneer Arch Staver failed to elicit a strong result - however there was one bidder and all things being equal should sell."

Mal James
0408 107 988
Principal Buyer Agent

653/1000

FITZROY NORTH, 860 Brunswick Street

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Ask Mal James a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
860 Brunswick Street	Large Houses	1,050,000+
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
1,050,000VB		1,075,000
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
Tom Roberts	Nelson Alexander	Expected
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
90	1	BOUGHT AFTER

OUR COMMENTS

"Very good presentation by auctioneer Tom Roberts to a large crowd produced one bid. Should sell afterwards."

Mal James
0408 107 988
Principal Buyer Agent

762/1000

HAWTHORN, 51 Mary Street

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Ask Mal James a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
51 Mary Street	Large Houses	2.000,000+
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
2,000,000VB	2,250,000	2,000,000VB
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
Peter Mitchell	Collins Simms	Dead
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
50	0	PASSED IN

OUR COMMENTS

"Good property, great position, no result. "

Mal James
0408 107 988
Principal Buyer Agent

724/1000

MALVERN EAST, 4 Bowlers Way

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Ask Grant Atkinson a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
4 Bowlers Way	Medium Houses	1,400,000
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
1,100,000VB	1,300,000	1,135,000VB
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
John Bongiorno	Marshall White	Expected
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
50	2	PASSED IN

OUR COMMENTS

"Opened at a much lower quote than earlier in the campaign - bids came slowly for this good family home. If vendor expectation is realistic should sell soon."

Grant Atkinson
0412 545 334
Licensed Buyer Agent

479/1000

MELBOURNE, 19 Coromandel Place

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Ask Mal James a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
19 Coromandel Place	Apartments
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
550,000
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
Duncan McKenzie	Nelson Alexander	Expected
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
	2	BOUGHT

OUR COMMENTS

"Auctioneer Duncan McKenzie of Nelson Alexander had two bidders at this auction and it sold as expected."

Mal James
0408 107 988
Principal Buyer Agent

644/1000

PRAHRAN, 27 A'Beckett Street

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Ask Peter Sinclair a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
27 A'Beckett Street	Medium Houses	1,750,000
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
1,600,000 VB		1,605,000
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
Warwick Anderson	RT Edgar	Quiet
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
60	1	PASSED IN

OUR COMMENTS

"A well attended auction and the weather couldn't have been better. Not so for the bidding, one lone bidder placed a bid just above the vendor bid and the property was passed into him - quite a long way off the agent's quote during the campaign."

Peter Sinclair
0423 778 774
Principal Buyer Agent

577/1000

RICHMOND, 6 Kimber Street

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Ask Adam Woledge a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
6 Kimber Street	Small Houses	625000
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
570000 VB	660000	605000
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
Clayton Smith	Jellis Craig	expected
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
40	2	BOUGHT

OUR COMMENTS

"A tidy property in a quiet, pretty street that could just as easily be in Hawthorn. Clayton Smith opened this on a vendor bid at $570,000 which was followed strongly by telephone bidder with $590,000. Referred in at half time, with a further vendor bid of $600,000 being submitted. This was followed by another bidder at $605,000 and was formally passed in at that amount. Property ultimately sold under reserve for $635,000."

Adam Woledge
0413 318 079
Registered Architect & Principal Buyer Agent

773/1000

SANDRINGHAM, 37 Codrington Street

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Ask Melissa Ryan a Question

POSITION	PROPERTY	PRICE/QUOTE
37 Codrington Street	Large Houses	1,550,000
OPENING BID	RESERVE	LAST BID
1,400,000		1,460,000
AUCTIONEER	AGENCY	AUCTION VIBE
Bert Geraerts	Buxton	Quiet
CROWD	BIDDERS	RESULT
50	1	BOUGHT

OUR COMMENTS

"Auctioneer Mark Earle conducted a non-referral auction. "Borrowing money this week is cheaper than last week" commented Earle. A lone bidder opened the auction with 1.4mil, Earle then made a vendor bid of 1.450mil and the bidder came back at 1.460mil. Note to self; when I'm the only bidder do not increase bids if a vendor bid is taken. I am allowed to match a vendor bid. The property was passed-in to this bidder and sold later for 1.550mil."

Melissa Ryan
0409 409 357
Principal Buyer Agent

Million Dollar Sales

All results can be found at REIV

Balwyn
PI 5 Bernborough Av BV 9rm 666sqm $1,775,000 lo $1,800,000 res undisc Hocking Stuart/Marshall White and Co

Bentleigh
S 27 Rose St B 10rm 1004sqm $1,220,000 Hocking Stuart

Brighton
S 4 Bryson Av B 9rm 593sqm $1,856,000 Buxton
PI 72A Wilson St B 6rm s/div $1,575,000 VB res $1,625,000 Hodges

Brighton East
PI 12 Billson St WB 7rm 725sqm $1,020,000 VB res $1,150,000 Hocking Stuart
PI 234 South Rd BV 8rm s/div $920,000 VB res $1,050,000 R T Edgar

Camberwell
PI 34 St Johns Av BV 6rm 480sqm $1,000,000 VB res $1,075,000 Marshall White and Co

Carlton
PI 200 Drummond St B 6rm 266sqm $1,600,000 VB res undisc Bennison Mackinnon

Carnegie
PI 92 Mimosa Rd BV 7rm 600sqm $1,020,000 lo $1,070,000 res $1,120,000 Hocking Stuart

Edithvale
PI 2 Wallum Rd Rend 7rm 577sqm $1,550,000 VB res undisc Hocking Stuart

Glen Iris
PI 9 Wandeen Rd B 10rm 700sqm $1,410,000 res undisc Noel Jones

Hampton
PI 2 Olive St BV 8rm s/div $950,000 VB res $1,050,000 R T Edgar

Hawthorn
PI 17 Oak St B 5rm 518sqm $1,225,000 lo $1,300,000 res undisc Collins Simms
PI 51 Mary St B 10rm 800sqm $2,000,000 VB res $2,250,000 Collins Simms

Hawthorn East
S 4 Myrniong Gr B 5rm 564sqm $1,073,000 Marshall White and Co

Ivanhoe
PI 19 Athelstane Gr BV 8rm 903sqm $1,010,000 VB res $1,060,000 Miles RE
PI 90 Locksley Rd 6rm 1026sqm $1,200,000 VB res undisc Christou and Co Eaglemont

Ivanhoe East
PI 41 Mcarthur Rd BV 8rm 926sqm $1,120,000 VB res $1,140,000 Miles RE
PI 52 Mcarthur Rd BV 7rm $950,000 VB res $1,030,000 Morrison Kleeman

Kew
PI 20 Victor Av B 8rm 783sqm $1,960,000 lo $2,000,000 res $2,300,000 Hocking Stuart

Kew East
PI 21 Violet Gr B 10rm 588sqm $1,750,000 VB lo $1,780,000 res $1,850,000 Jellis Craig

Kooyong
PI 5A Monaro Rd B 5rm 532sqm $1,380,000 VB res $1,450,000 Bennison Mackinnon

Lower Plenty
S 33 View Rd BV 10rm $1,086,000 Morrison Kleeman

Malvern
S 2/324 Glenferrie Rd BV 6rm strata $1,102,500 Marshall White and Co
S 70B Milton Pde BV 6rm $1,025,000 Noel Jones

Malvern East
PI 4 Bowlers Way BV 9rm 530sqm $1,135,000 lo $1,150,000 res $1,300,000 Marshall White and Co
PI 16 Bates St BV 9rm 1011sqm $2,000,000 VB res undisc Marshall White and Co

Ormond
PI 273 Grange Rd B 6rm 1168sqm $1,060,000 res $1,100,000 Hodges

Sandringham
S 37 Codrington St WB 8rm 768sqm $1,550,000 Buxton
PI 25 Bamfield St WB 8rm 600sqm $1,200,000 res $1,390,000 Buxton

South Melbourne
PI 203 Montague St B 6rm 180sqm $1,000,000 VB res $1,125,000 Hocking Stuart

St Kilda
S 28 Charnwood Rd B 8rm 292sqm $1,450,000 Hocking Stuart
PI 15A Charnwood Rd B 8rm 715sqm $1,920,000 res $2,200,000 Wentworth

Templestowe
PI 36 Smiths Rd BV 11rm 2840sqm $1,730,000 lo $1,746,000 res $1,780,000 Barry Plant

Head Office
36 Wilson Street
Brighton 3186
Ph: 03 9591 0199

James Home Ratings
313 Glenferrie Road
Malvern 3144
Ph: 03 9804 3133

Hawthorn office opening late '08.