Neighbours flock to sale as palatial home fetches R6.5m

A MASSIVE nine-bedroom palatial residence in Kloof fetched R6.5 million at an auction conducted recently by Ian Wyles Auctioneers.

The mansion at 74 Haygarth Road changed hands at a well-attended auction on site with lots of neighbours present. The successful buyer also lives in Haygarth Road. He had reacted more to Sunday Tribune publicity than the “For Sale” board which had almost become a permanent fixture at the gate.

Andrew Giddy, property manager at Ian Wyles, says: “The publicity and our advertising led him to believe that the seller would now accept a price more in line with his personal valuation. There’s a lesson here: estate agents may accept inflated selling prices just to gain stock, and then the property remains unsold for months, even years.”

Giddy says sellers also tend to forget the buyer’s renovation expenses. “The Haygarth Road house needed extensive refurbishing – the buyer believes this will be in the region of R1m. His bid factored in these costs, plus transfer costs and compliance certification expenses, which means he probably spent about R8m in total to acquire the house. The major benefit of auction sales is that we do not have to set a price as the auction determines the sales value.”

On July 4, Ian Wyles will sell an even bigger home in Athlone.

Giddy expects much stronger interest in this sale as Durban North property is sought after. Bidding is likely to open at R4m. – Auctions Writer