A near-new Box Hill townhouse stumped neighbours and the vendors by selling for $1.528 million under the hammer.

Eight groups produced a massive 262 bids at 1A Camelia St, but international buyers with deep pockets blew the local interest out of the water early as the townhouse soared $328,000 above price expectations.

A buyer from Hong Kong squared off against a mainland Chinese buyer after early local interest dropped off around the $1.3 million mark at the November 23 auction.

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The Hong Kong buyer was purchasing for family.

Buxton Box Hill director Jim Chen said the agency, as well as many neighbours, were “very surprised with the price.”

“We got two buyers from outside the market – one from Hong Kong, the other from another city in China – they were bidding very aggressively,” he said.

“It was on the market at $1.2 million, but the reserve wasn’t even $1.2 (million), we just didn’t have time to announce it (earlier).”

Mr Chen said the price was significantly above the $1.1 million that similar properties in the area were attracting as recently as four months ago.

“The local buyers that we’re bringing in are going to $1.3 million, so that’s still $200,000 more than buyers earlier in the year,” he said.

“I think buyers now are more looking at the location and quality of the building of the house – as long as the product is good we will attract lots of bidders.”

The vendors, young family with three kids, planned on remaining in the area, Mr Chen said.

Also in Box Hill, first-home buyers snaffled a two-bedroom unit at 3/10 Kangerong Rd for $626,000 under the hammer.

Three of the five groups to bid on the property only saw it for the first time on the November 23 auction day.

The property, which sold $6,000 above the upper limit of the price range, attracted buyers for its quiet location close to Box Hill Central, Philip Webb agent Declan Treacey said.

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