Demand good, fewer bidders

THERE was good demand for high-earning properties at AuctionInc’s sale yesterday, but bidding was generally subdued.

“The Jewish holidays had an effect as a number of our usual buyers weren’t present,” says auctioneer Eddie Winterstein. “Development land is difficult to sell, but there are buyers for the smaller stuff all the time,”

A 3,000m² warehouse with a 4,000m² yard that has mini-factory potential on Basalt Street, in Alrode, fetched R8.5m.

Fifteen fully let apartments in a three-storey building on Paul Kruger Road, Alberton, with basement parking, received a hammer price of R8.5m.

Eight shops in a retail centre with a gross lettable area of 1,653m² and a filling station tenant in Alberton received a top bid of R3.6m.

Of interest too were 10 sectional title two-bedroom apartments located on Henderson Street in Moffat View, Johannes- burg, offering a guaranteed unit rental of R54,000 a year.

The apartments fetched R3.65m.

Described as a great investment, a building in Roodepoort containing seven flats and five shops was knocked down for R2.3m. Rental income is R450,000 a year.

Development land of 8,565m² in Centurion was knocked down for R4.25m. The site is suitable for a hotel or offices.

More unusual was a function venue of three halls, a chapel, two guesthouses and an amphitheatre on 4.8ha on the old Vereeniging Road, Kibler Park. It received a hammer price of R9m.

A landmark building, known as the old SqueezeIn, on the corner of Van Riebeeck Avenue and Piet Retief Street in Alberton North got a bid of R2.6m. With double main road exposure, it has a gross lettable area of 990m² and a net income of R396,000 a year.