First-Time Bidder Pays $760k for Sydney Elizabeth Bay Flat
A first home buyer who opened the bidding paid $760,000 for a one-bedroom apartment in Elizabeth Bay on Saturday. Domain recorded a preliminary 45 per cent clearance rate across Sydney this week, with 233 auctions withdrawn.
A first-time bidder pays $760k for a one-bedroom apartment in Elizabeth Bay, in Sydney's eastern suburbs, after a first home buyer raising her paddle for the first time won the auction on Saturday.
About 40 people gathered on the footpath outside the art deco building at 6/39 Roslyn Gardens. Bidding opened at $620,000. A further $20,000 bid followed, then offers moved in steady increments of $5000 and $10,000.
Sydney auction results this week
The apartment was one of 1013 properties scheduled for auction in Sydney this week. By evening, Domain recorded a preliminary clearance rate of 45 per cent from 598 reported results.
A clearance rate is the share of auctions that end in a sale. Withdrawn auctions count as unsold, and 233 were withdrawn this week.
How the bidding played out
The property carried a guide of $700,000 and a reserve of $745,000. The reserve is the vendor's minimum price, and it was adjusted to $735,000 during the auction. No legal rule requires a reserve to match the price guide.
When bidding hit $735,000, auctioneer Dave McMahon declared the property on the market, meaning it would sell. Five more bids of $5000 followed before the hammer fell at $760,000.
The winner was also the opening bidder. She had been renting and had recently moved in with family to prepare for buying. Six parties registered and five bid, most of the underbidders also first home buyers.
Melinda Antella, sales agent for BresicWhitney East, said the market had opened a door for newcomers. "There are some opportunities for first home buyers because they are not competing with investors," she said.
McMahon said he expected little change in the market into 2027. He tied buyer sentiment to stability. "People are looking for more stability [in terms of] interest rate movement, but once we have clarity, it will give them confidence to enter the market," he said.
Other results
At Mount Kuring-gai, a six-bedroom home at 5 High Street passed in. The sole bidder did not attend, citing delays tied to Friday's Microsoft outage, which hit Australia early that day and affected Copilot, Teams and Outlook.
The strongest bidder was not confident bidding without seeing requested contract changes. "It all fell apart because the solicitors couldn't talk to each other," said Dean Finch of Stone Real Estate. The home had a guide of $1.95 million and a reserve of $2.3 million.
Finch hopes to sell within a fortnight. If not, he said the vendors, who want to downsize, will rent it out.
In Enmore, a two-bedroom apartment at 7/159 Enmore Road sold for $1.34 million, $10,000 below the reserve. Five groups registered and four bid, starting at $1.25 million.
