Librarian splashes $4.9 million on luxurious Sydney house

A determined librarian shelled out $4.9 million for a brand-new five-bedroom house in Burwood at auction on Saturday, paying $500,000 above its $4.4 million reserve to secure the keys.

The sleek inner west property at 21 Belgrave Street had also captured the heart of a neighbour from the same street who had watched the development from beginning to end, but just missed out by $50,000.

SOLD - $4,900,000

21 Belgrave Street, Burwood NSW 2134

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Bidding took a few minutes to start, then $3.8 million opened the action. Once it got started it was rapid fire in mostly $100,000 increments until $50,000 bids towards the end. Only two out of the six registered made offers on the home, which had a $4 million guide.

There is no legal requirement for a vendor’s reserve to be in line with their property’s price guide.

Belle Property’s Norman So said the pace of bidding was very fast, “the other four wanted to bid, however, they didn’t get a chance to.”

The home had a hotel-style blend of optimum luxury and convenience with an en suite and built-in desk in each bedroom.

“Every bedroom had access to its own private bathroom. People expect that these days because they want to feel like it’s a hotel,” So said. He added that the master bedroom on the ground level met the buyer’s main requirement of no stairs for his 98-year-old mother.

The buyer is from Burwood and had missed out on several properties over the past few months. The vendor spent 12 months developing the project.

The property was one of 1534 scheduled auctions in Sydney last week. By Saturday evening, Domain Group recorded a preliminary auction clearance rate of 68.4 per cent from 904 reported results, while 206 auctions were withdrawn. Withdrawn auctions are counted as unsold properties when calculating the clearance rate.

In Rose Bay, a two-bedroom apartment with a parking space sold for $625,000 above its $1.6 million reserve for $2,225,000. The high result will benefit members of the Indigenous community in Gilgandra.

SOLD - $2,225,000

4/744 New South Head Road, Rose Bay NSW 2029

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The eastern suburbs unit at 4/744 New South Head Road was in the back of an apartment building with a communal grassy yard with direct access to a sandy beach and views of Sydney Harbour.

Seven out of 12 registered buyers actively bid on the home which had a $1.6 million guide.

Bidding opened bang on the guide and jumped in $200,000 and $100,000 bids before slowing to smaller increments where it sold for $2,225,000 to a couple from the city who viewed it for the first time on the day of the auction.

Ray White’s Angus Gorrie said it was an incredible result. “It was good to push the price for a good cause.”

“The previous owner was a priest. He passed away. He did a lot of work with the Aboriginals in country NSW, and he passed it on to the Aboriginal community in Gilgandra,” Gorrie said.

The buyers were purchasing for their teenage children, and will lease it out initially.

In Sydney’s upper north shore, three local families fought over a four-bedroom house with a swimming pool. The home at 54 Addison Avenue, Roseville was guided at $4.2 million and drew a huge crowd to the backyard.

Bidding opened at $4 million with all three registered bidding in $100,000 lots then $50,000 increments before it sold for $350,000 above its $4.5 million reserve at $4.85 million.

SOLD - $4,850,000

54 Addison Avenue, Roseville NSW 2069

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Ray White’s Jessica Cao said, “I think it’s a big price. It’s not a huge house.”

Cao said, “everyone’s super excited about the price because [the] reserve’s $4.5 [million]. We didn’t expect it to go so high. But then, yes, the families just love it.” The home had a “very warm, family feel.”

The buyer is upsizing from an apartment in Chatswood. The vendors renovated about 10 years ago.

AMP’s chief economist Dr Shane Oliver said Domain’s clearance rate of 68.4 per cent is “still solid” but is “slowing down”.

“It looks like some of the heat is coming out of the market,” Oliver said.

“It’s still above average for this time of year, which is around 65 [per cent] or thereabouts. So it’s still okay. But it does look as if all the talk about less interest rate cuts or maybe that we’re at the bottom of interest rates, is acting as a bit of a drag on demand. And at the same time, we’ve seen a bit of a pick-up in supply,” he said.