Missing Queenstown man John Beckenridge's Lake Hayes Estate house was sold for $860,000 at auction on Wednesday.

Just over a year ago, John Beckenridge went missing. Today, his house was sold.

Beckenridge disappeared with his stepson Mike Zhao-Beckenridge, 11, in March 2015.

On Wednesday, the missing Queenstown man's house at Lake Hayes Estate was sold for $860,000 - with the funds likely to stay in a trust until he is declared dead or other legal action is taken.

SUPPLIED Mike Zhao-Beckenridge and his stepfather John Robert Beckenridge.

The 271-square metre, three-bedroom house on Crawford Pl, where Beckenridge lived with Mike and wife Fiona Lu before their spilt, was sold by real estate agents Hoamz and went to an unknown phone bidder.

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Mike was picked up from school James Hargest College in Invercargill, with Beckenridge breaking a Family Court parenting order, about lunchtime on March 13.

JOHN HAWKINS/FAIRFAX NZ A close up of the car linked to missing Invercargill boy Mike Zhao-Beckenridge, found near Curio Bay.

There is suspicion Beckenridge committed murder-suicide.

A spokesman for Lu said the house sale was another reminder of the ordeal.

It was hoped it was a step toward "closing a chapter".

"We need to shut some doors."

Lu took legal action last year to find if her son was a beneficiary of the house.

She sought a High Court order to appoint Public Trust as the trustee for the Ozprey Trust, which owned a Lake Hayes property, substituting Beckenridge.

A Public Trust spokeswoman said Beckenridge's friend Ulf Henricson was the second trustee but had since consented to the court appointing Public Trust as sole trustee.

The balance of the sale, after any outstanding home loans (if applicable) were repaid, would be held in trust.

The spokeswoman declined to say if there was a beneficiary, citing privacy reasons.

It was believed the funds would stay in the trust until a coroner's hearing was held, or other legal action was taken.

Lu's spokesman said there were "no future plans" for legal action at this stage.

A police spokesman said the investigation into the pair's disappearance was ongoing and "a number of inquiries were being made".

There was no timeline on when the investigation was likely to finish, he said.

"It will only be transferred to the coroner once all enquiries have been exhausted."

The property, positioned in a quiet cul-de-sac bordering reserve land and Walnut Grove, sold for $160,000 above its $700,000 capital value.

Auctioneer Brendan Quill, of Queenstown, said the sale price was a "fair price".

"It's a beautiful property."

Quill said he was aware of the media interest in the case.

"We are just representing the bricks and mortar."

The listing on the Hoamz website described the house as having plenty of living space, with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a huge patio and a generous amount of surrounding land.

Auctions were common for sellers in Lake Hayes Estate and neighbouring suburb Shotover Country as there were often several interested buyers and a shortage of stock, Quill said.

There had been only one confirmed sighting of the missing pair since March 13 last year, in the Catlins a few days later.

The car Beckenridge was travelling in was found in the ocean near Curio Bay, but there was no sign of the pair inside it.