Sydneysiders dig deep to outbid locals for $1.17 million Enoggera home

“It always seems to rain when I come to this house,” agent Matthew Jabs lamented while standing on the front step of 39 Stirling Street, Enoggera yesterday.

While rain can be enough to scare away bidders and spectators, the persistent drizzle didn’t stop the four-bedroom home from selling under the hammer.

Just two of the registered parties bid for the modern new build. Both bidders meant business from the get go, kicking the price up from $1 million to $1.15 million with very little time for auctioneer Peter Burgin to catch a breath.

“I like it when auctions like that are really efficient and people are here with purpose,” Mr Burgin said. “The other great thing is if you have competition to a certain level, everyone can be certain we found market value.”

After a short pause the trailing bidder, a family with one child from Sydney, lifted their offer to $1.16 million. After two more bids, it sold to the Sydneysiders for $1.17 million.

The home’s location on the edge of one of Brisbane’s blue-chip suburbs meant the buyers secured a similar calibre property to those found in Ashgrove, but for a much lower price.  

“Being on the cusp of those higher value suburbs, you can buy here at 90 per cent of the price,” Mr Jabs said. Enoggera was earning its status as a blue-chip suburb in its own right, he added.

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“There’s a lot of sales over a million when a few years ago there were very few,” he said. “This suburb is on the cusp of post-war era development … because this was all developed in the 1950s you can knock them all over and build new.”

Mr Burgin said the auctions he called in the area were showing signs of a suburb on the rise.

“There seems to be an increase in demand for homes exactly like this,” he said. “Low maintenance, contemporary homes. People want sharp finishes.”

Earlier in Hawthorne, a 400-square-metre block of land passed in at $795,000. Bidding was strong but most buyers were waiting for the land to go on the market before jumping in.

However, selling agent Frank Lombardi said he and co-agent Justin Marsden now had a strong price to work with buyers post-auction.

“I’d say it’s the best value for money, even in the early $800,000s,” he said. “If you want a brand new house, they’d want $1.7 million.”

The empty block already had DA approved plans, making it a rare and cost-efficient way to buy into Hawthorne, Mr Lombardi said.  

“There might be somewhere you’ve got to remove the house or renovate, but no blocks of land,” he said. “This has got all the approvals too, so all you have to do is sign a building contract and you can start.”

Mr Lombardi said it would be just as easy for a family to take on the project as it would be for a developer or builder.

“It’s cheaper for a mum and dad to buy this and build,” he said. “They’ll save themselves a couple of hundred thousand dollars rather than buying new.”