HAMMER TIME

Frenzy as bidders clamour for small city home

THE price achieved and the interest shown in a two-bedroom house in Cairns has the city’s real estate sector abuzz.

The Lake St home (above right) built 23 years ago has fetched more than $250,000 over the city’s median house price at auction. The uniquely-designed property, which features a peaked roof and external spiral staircase, sold under the hammer at the weekend for $670,000.

Ray White Cairns Central principal Angela Capitanio said 70 people attended the on-site auction at 219 Lake St, with six out of the 12 registered bidders attempting to snap up the inner-city property.

The 500sq m block of land was first bought in 1976 for $25,000.

The recent auction campaign had been advertised in the Weekend Post’s real estate guide.

The result bodes well for the future popularity of auctions in Cairns with more vendors choosing the method to sell their properties, especially for unusual homes or those in untested markets.

REIQ data shows median 2017 house sales across Cairns came in at $410,000. Recent two-bedroom home sales at Cairns North fell far from the benchmark of the recent Lake St sale.

In December, 22 Cairns St sold for $425,000; in October, 33 O’Keefe St sold for $340,000; in August, 78 Cairns St sold for $370,000; and earlier in 2017, in February, 60-64 Cairns St sold for $510,000.

Real Estate Institute of Queensland Far North zone chairman Tom Quaid said while it was hard to gauge the number of homes now sold at auction in Cairns, it was becoming a popular approach.

“More vendors are now considering auction as a method of sale, particularly in cases where there has been little recent activity for properties of that type and they are looking to find a new benchmark in the market,” he said.

“Auction can be an excellent tool for properties that are different, or for bringing things to a head with a defined time frame, but they aren’t the right tool for every home. Sometimes a (auction) hammer is the right tool for the job, sometimes it’s just a bit too blunt. “

But Herron Todd White research director Rick Carr said while the individual sale of the home was positive, a pattern of growth and higher prices was yet to emerge.

Mr Carr said the Cairns property market was yet to take off, still being categorised as being in a ‘steady state’.