Major Capitals Survive Super Saturday
The pre-Easter auction rush didn’t dampen clearance rates.
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The pre-Easter super Saturday of auctions has provided sellers with generally positive results this year, despite a deluge of listings.
The national auction market reported a clearance rate of 76.0% at the weekend — similar to the previous weekend’s 74.9% yet lower than the 86.2% recorded over the same weekend last year.
National auction numbers week higher at the weekend reflecting — as expected due to the pre-Easter holiday surge — with 3157 reported compared to the previous weekend’s 2551 and the 1909 reported over the same weekend last year.
Despite the market passing the most difficult test of the year so far, Economist Dr Andrew Wilson expects things to slow down.
“Markets will be relatively subdued over the remainder of April due to lengthy holiday distractions and the possibility of the commencement of a lengthy federal election campaign,” said Dr Wilson in his latest auction report.
Sydney reported a clearance rate of 69.4% at the weekend — almost the same as the previous weekend’s 69.7% but well below the 82.4% recorded over the same weekend last year.
The weekend saw a year-to-date high of 1214 auctions — well ahead of the previous weekend’s 958 and the previous year’s 765 auctions recorded.
The NSW capital recorded a median price of $1,815,000 for houses sold at auction at the weekend — higher than the $1,800,000 reported over the previous weekend and the same weekend last year’s $1,550,000.
The Melbourne market survived one of the biggest auction days of the year, reporting a clearance rate of 69.8% on Saturday — just below the previous weekend’s 71.7% and lower than the 79.1% recorded over the same weekend last year.
The Victorian capital saw 1505 homes reported for auction over the weekend — significantly above the previous weekend’s 1259 and the 785 listed over the same weekend last year.
Melbourne recorded a median price of $1,105,500 for houses sold at auction at the weekend which was lower than last weekend’s $1,134,000 – but 16.9% % higher than the $945,750 reported over the same weekend last year.
Data powered by Dr Andrew Wilson, My Housing Market.
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Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt is selling his Northern California estate, which was listed Monday for $24.5 million.
Located in Atherton, an extremely affluent town northwest of Palo Alto and about 30 miles south of San Francisco, the 3.36-acre property is made up of three parcels that Schmidt acquired over the years, according to public records and Compass, who has the listing.
Schmidt, 69, and his wife, businesswoman Wendy Schmidt, purchased the main home in 1990 for $2 million, according to public records accessed via PropertyShark. They remodelled the 1969 home in 2007, and at that time, bought a neighbouring parcel of land, allowing an expansion of the main house and the addition of a guest house, according to Compass, who holds the listing. A third parcel was later acquired, on which the Schmidts added an English garden house and landscaped grounds overlooking the Eastern Hills.
“Finding three contiguous parcels in Atherton is rare. Even rarer are those with views of the Eastern hills,” said listing agent Katharine Carroll of the reSolve Group at Compass. “The location of this residence is ultra private, at the back of a cul-de-sac with the main house built into a hillside that provides privacy and very good security.”
Across the estate, there are five bedrooms, five full bathrooms and six half bathrooms.
The 5,265-square-foot main house also offers a number of private outdoor spaces on its upper level, including a large terrace off the primary suite, another large terrace off a secondary bedroom, plus a third smaller terrace and two balconies.
Behind the main house is a patio with a pool and spa. For even more outdoor space, there’s an entertaining pavilion, an open lawn and an outdoor fireplace area near the guest quarters.
The grounds themselves are also a standout feature, with an array of mature plants and specimen trees. The upper portion of the property’s landscaping is designed around an Amdega-designed conservatory, which was imported from the U.K. Around the greenhouse, there is a garden of raised beds and fruit trees, Carroll said.
“From the moment you step onto the grounds, it feels as if you’ve been transported to a private botanical sanctuary,” she said.
Schmidt served as Google’s CEO from 2001 to 2011, and then became the company’s executive chairman until 2015. He could not be reached for comment.
This article first appeared on Mansion Global
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