October 17, 2026 — 1:30pm
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A double-fronted three- bedroom heritage house in Seddon, which the agent described as “not livable”, sold for $1.01 million on Saturday – almost $200,000 over its listed reserve.
The property at 16 Browning Street had unpolished exposed floorboards, stained walls and ceilings, a bath half-filled with water and cobweb-covered windows, as well as a sewage connection in need of repair. It had an advertised reserve of $820,000.
The property was one of 553 scheduled to go to auction in Melbourne this week. By evening, Domain recorded a preliminary auction clearance rate of 53 per cent from 385 reported results throughout the week, while 59 auctions were withdrawn. Withdrawn auctions are counted as unsold properties when calculating the clearance rate.
Saturday marks the first weekend where all vendors were required to make their reserves public at least seven days before auction day.
Jas Stephens auctioneer Tate Moore told a crowd of about 40 that the period facade and structure, as well as the large rear yard, provided significant scope for improvement.
The property was in a state of disrepair, and “not livable”, according to the agent, but offered the opportunity for a complete redesign on one of Seddon’s “blue chip” streets.Simon Schluter
An $880,000 genuine bid opened the auction, immediately shooting the price $60,000 above the property’s $820,000 reserve. A second large bid followed, shooting the price up to $950,000 in under a minute.
From there the price climbed in $10,000 increments traded between three bidders, before selling to a local renovator.
Jas Stephens agent Elise Nemer said she hadn’t anticipated such fierce competition given soaring construction costs and the clear amount of work the building required.
Auctioneer Tate Moore tracks the crowd as bids shoot up in $60,000 and $70,000 increments within minutes of the auction opening.Simon Schluter
“There were no developers on this one,” she said, but noted that Browning Street was a “blue chip” inner-west street, known for its heritage looks and appeal to renovators.
Nemer thought the realistic listed reserve had helped the property sell.
“The market is still good if you listen to market feedback, and you run the campaign well from start to finish,” she said.
In Carlton North, a two-bedroom, top-floor 1970s apartment sold for $752,000 at auction, with three bidders pushing it almost $40,000 above its listed reserve.
With a classic design featuring windows on three-sides, the light-filled mid-century home at 15/109 Wilson Street had been owned by the vendors as an investment for more than 35 years, and was listed as Carlton North but sits in the smaller, sought-after pocket of Princes Hill.
As well as a separate bathroom, laundry and toilet, the property has two large bedrooms and an east-facing balcony off its long living room, and had a listed reserve of $715,000.
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Jellis Craig Fitzroy agent and auctioneer Charles Atkins said he thought the legislation had “brought more transparency to the marketplace” and was part of the reason the property had such a “solid campaign”, with competition between three active bidders on the day.
He said a young couple opened the bidding at the $715,000 reserve, with bids then going up in increments of $5000 and $1000 before it eventually sold to first home buyers.
The couple have a design background and were keen to make the home their own, Atkins said.
“People enjoy that ’70s style block,” he said. “It has great natural light, big bones, great proportions. Terrific scope to add some value.”
With windows on three sides, typical of the era but rare in modern apartments, the property is well-lit throughout.Jellis Craig Fitzroy
In Hampton, a contemporary four-bedroom townhouse sold for its listed $1.85 million reserve in post-auction negotiations, after passing in on a single genuine bid of $1.81 million. The property last sold in 2022 for $1.91 million.
The home at 14A Field Street features open-plan living and dining areas looking out to a large rear yard through floor-to-ceiling windows, and a choice of two main bedrooms across the two levels, and a study nook, upstairs retreat and butler’s pantry.
Buxton Sandringham agent and auctioneer Richard Slade said the size and scope to live on either level had made the home attractive to both upsizers and downsizers.
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“It was the north half of the two [townhouses], so from a natural light perspective, it was very well received,” he said.
Slade opened the auction with a $1.8 million vendor bid, which was followed by the sole $1.81 million bid on which it passed in.
He said two other parties had indicated they would be keen to negotiate post auction, but the high bidders, local downsizers, met the reserve and sealed the deal.
Slade said he thought the first weekend of listed reserves suggested vendors who had a realistic idea of what their property was worth would sell well.
“It will hopefully help encourage buyers to pursue a property and do their final due diligence in that final week to auction,” he said.
The vendors were selling as they have moved to Sydney.
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