Was it overpriced? This is the second campaign. We had expectations it might have been in that $12 million to $13 million range. We brought the price down when we repositioned it for another EOI campaign. Initially, when we went to market, given that we didn’t receive clear-cut contract at the original price point, it would probably be yes. It was slightly overpitched.

If there were people seeing extraordinary value at the upper end, it would have sold three-four months ago.

There was a greater-than-expected degree of hesitation among buyers, and the conditions they asked for, at a higher price range.

What did you think it would go for? In that $10 million-plus bracket. 550 sq m is a reasonably small block for a house to be built on. There were properties behind and the side which potentially put some people off.

What was surprising about it?

There has been more caution shown over last six-12 months and that is a result of what you have happening with the banks, APRA and a general slowdown. I was a little bit surprised, I would have thought the $10-million-to-$15 million properties were largely protected, as buyers are not having to rely so heavily on bank finance and funding.

It’s the first time I’ve seen that in quite a long period. Even though the upper end is largely protected, obviously there are people that still need to borrow funds to make purchases at this sort of level.

One offer was conditional on finance. Others were on very long extended settlements. One was conditional on the sale of another property, which hasn’t sold. There were conditions put in which we previously hadn’t seen before. The owners were clear they wanted a straightforward cash transaction.


Wasn't it just the case that the vendor pitched it too high?

It could have been a position that the agents and developer - their optimism was a bit over the market.

Cutting the price guide widened the pool of buyers.

When the vendor adjusted the quoted price down, it brought a whole spectrum of other buyers back into the market. A lot of buyers, when they see it advertised in the $12 million-to-$13 million-range, don’t even bother to come and inspect. When we had readjusted to $10.5-million-to-$11.5 million, it brought a whole raft of new buyers to the property.

Do you reckon we’ll see another result like this: a) next week b) next year c) next cycle d) never?

b) Next year. I think we’re going to see a lot more results in this $10-million-to-$15-million range over the next 6-12 months. We’re starting to see more people coming through.

There have been, and still appear to be, other properties in Toorak in that $10-million-to-$15-million range [that] have been there for quite a period of time.

It’s either a function of something’s wrong with the homes or it’s a function of price and not attracting the right buyer.