Melbourne auctions have closed out the year with a bang, with 68.6 per cent of homes scheduled for auction selling under the hammer.
It was the highest preliminary clearance rate seen in the city since October 20 when 69.2 per cent of properties sold at auction, per CoreLogic data, and a notable increase on this time last year which saw an early clearance rate of just 56.4 per cent.
Among the strong results was the sale of a three-bedroom 1980s brick home in Beaumaris, just metres from Black Rock Village in the city's southeast bayside area.
Four buyers competed for the 427 Balcombe Road pad at its Saturday auction, which kicked off with an offer of $1.5m before quickly climbing up to $1.7m - at which point Ray White Cheltenham auctioneer Kevin Chokshi called the property on the market.
It eventually sold for $1.894m - a whopping $194,000 over reserve - to a young local family.
"They came through the property during the first week and loved the spot and the big block of land, it's exactly what they're after," Mr Chokshi said. "The sellers had been there for about 30 years, they're now planning on downsizing."
Despite many buyers and sellers preparing for the annual shutdown over Christmas, Mr Chokshi said the market was "definitely not winding down yet".
"Everyone today wanted to buy something before Christmas," he added.
Ray White Victoria chief auctioneer Jeremy Tyrrell also noted that the agency's Victorian network had seen a record-breaking year with close to 10,000 auctions scheduled in a year-on-year increase of 20.83 per cent.
"Despite a more challenging year with economic pressures impacting the state and forcing tougher government regulations around taxes and rental reforms, auctions held up much better than private sales with an overall clearance rate at 60 days on market of 73 per cent versus 47 per cent," Mr Tyrrell said.
The firm is also targeting 500 auctions in January.
It comes after 1003 properties were scheduled to go under the hammer across Melbourne this week - down on last week's auction volume of 1236 and the same week last year which saw 1398 auctions scheduled.
Also among the city's Saturday sales was that of a four-bedroom Edwardian house in Caulfield East, which sold for $1.76m under the hammer.
Four bidders, all young families, vied for the keys to the 16 Leamington Cres property, which was called on the market at $1.7m.
Woodards Carnegie director and senior auctioneer Ruth Roberts helmed the sale of the renovated home, which offered period features such as an ornate living room fireplace and stained glass detailing on the front door.
Castle Hill home scores tidy $202k Christmas bonus
Over in Sydney's northwest, a mid-century house in Castle Hill flew $202,000 over reserve to sell for $2.202m under the hammer.
The 5 Moutrie Place pad was one of 814 properties scheduled for auction across Sydney this week, a drop in last week's auction volume of 927 and the 934 scheduled in the same week last year.
Six buyers registered to bid for the four-bedroom property, including five families looking for a home to live in, and one buyer who was in the market for something to renovate and flip.
DiJones Castle Hill agent Karen D'Angola said the vendor was the original owner who had lived there for 40 years.
It eventually sold to a family of four looking to continue its legacy as a family home.
The 1057sq m property was among the 63 per cent of homes scheduled for auction in Sydney that sold under the hammer - an increase on last week's preliminary clearance rate of 57.5 per cent.
In the same week last year, only 55.6 per cent of homes sold at auction.
This week was expected to be the quietest auction week across the nation since early November when auction activity dropped to just 1972 scheduled auctions leading up to the Melbourne Cup Spring Carnival.
2215 homes were expected to go under the hammer this week in a considerable drop from last week's volume of 2617 and the same week last year when 2884 auctions were scheduled.
However lower auction numbers saw more homes sell under the hammer, with the combined capital cities recording an early clearance rate of 64.6 per cent, according to CoreLogic, in comparison to 62.4 per cent last week and just 56.6 this time last year.
Only 850 auctions are on the cards across the combined capitals next week, and just a handful the following week leading up to Christmas.
