Harry Styles-Signed Guitar Sells for $19,200 Right Before the Grammy Awards

A Harry Styles-signed electric guitar sold for US$19,200 on Sunday in Los Angeles, hours before his surprise album of the year win at the Grammy Awards.

The 2022 black Fender Player Series Stratocaster electric guitar was inscribed by Styles with the words “Always love” beside a doodle of heart in a gold marker. Styles’ album Harry’s House defeated Beyoncé’s Renaissance and eight other nominees to win the album of the year at music’s most prestigious awards show on Sunday night.

The guitar was valued between US$2,000 and US$4,000, prior to the auction.

The instrument was among 50 items owned or signed by the music’s biggest stars that were auctioned by Julien’s Auctions over the weekend to raise funds for MusiCares, which supports the health and welfare of members of the music community.

The auction house, which was expecting to raise between US$200,000 and US$400,000 from this sale, said the sale realised more than US$500,000. Many items sold multiple times their pre-sale estimates.

“This year’s edition was one of our best and most successful auctions to date,” according to Martin Nolan, executive director of Julien’s Auctions.

A pair of white Nike Air Max sneakers owned, worn, and signed by Eminem sold for US$40,625. Julien’s Auctions

The top-selling lot was a pair of white Nike Air Max sneakers owned, worn, and signed by Eminem, which sold for US$40,625, which was 20 times its presale estimate. The sneakers were sold to Margaritavillain, an anonymous rapper who’s often compared to Banksy of the contemporary art world. His fans raised money through a GoFundMe page to help him successfully bid and win the shoes, according to Julien’s.

An ensemble worn by J-Hope of South Korean boy band BTS, including a black utility-style jumpsuit, a buckle belt, a black cotton T-shirt, and a black ribbed bunny ear beanie, attracted 22 bids and sold for US$21,875, more than 10 times its original estimate of US$2,000.

Additionally, a 2020 Epiphone DR-100EB acoustic guitar signed by Taylor Swift fetched US$25,000, five times its original estimate. The guitar features custom graphics from Swift’s Grammy-nominated album evenmore.

Requiring more than 30 percent of household income to service a home loan has long been considered the benchmark for ‘housing stress’. Yet research shows it is becoming the new normal. The 2024 ANZ CoreLogic Housing Affordability Report reveals home loans on only 17 percent of homes are ‘serviceable’ if serviceability is limited to 30 percent of the median national household income.

Based on 40 percent of household income, just 37 percent of properties would be serviceable on a mortgage covering 80 percent of the purchase price. ANZ CoreLogic suggest 40 may be the new 30 when it comes to home loan serviceability. “Looking ahead, there is little prospect for the mortgage serviceability indicator to move back into the 30 percent range any time soon,” says the report.

“This is because the cash rate is not expected to be cut until late 2024, and home values have continued to rise, even amid relatively high interest rate settings.” ANZ CoreLogic estimate that home loan rates would have to fall to about 4.7 percent to bring serviceability under 40 percent.

CoreLogic has broken down the actual household income required to service a home loan on a 6.27 percent interest rate for an 80 percent loan based on current median house and unit values in each capital city. As expected, affordability is worst in the most expensive property market, Sydney.

Sydney

Sydney’s median house price is $1,414,229 and the median unit price is $839,344.

Based on 40 percent serviceability, households need a total income of $211,456 to afford a home loan for a house and $125,499 for a unit. The city’s actual median household income is $120,554.

Melbourne

Melbourne’s median house price is $935,049 and the median apartment price is $612,906.

Based on 40 percent serviceability, households need a total income of $139,809 to afford a home loan for a house and $91,642 for a unit. The city’s actual median household income is $110,324.

Brisbane

Brisbane’s median house price is $909,988 and the median unit price is $587,793.

Based on 40 percent serviceability, households need a total income of $136,062 to afford a home loan for a house and $87,887 for a unit. The city’s actual median household income is $107,243.

Adelaide

Adelaide’s median house price is $785,971 and the median apartment price is $504,799.

Based on 40 percent serviceability, households need a total income of $117,519 to afford a home loan for a house and $75,478 for a unit. The city’s actual median household income is $89,806.

Perth

Perth’s median house price is $735,276 and the median unit price is $495,360.

Based on 40 percent serviceability, households need a total income of $109,939 to afford a home loan for a house and $74,066 for a unit. The city’s actual median household income is $108,057.

Hobart

Hobart’s median house price is $692,951 and the median apartment price is $522,258.

Based on 40 percent serviceability, households need a total income of $103,610 to afford a home loan for a house and $78,088 for a unit. The city’s actual median household income is $89,515.

Darwin

Darwin’s median house price is $573,498 and the median unit price is $367,716.

Based on 40 percent serviceability, households need a total income of $85,750 to afford a home loan for a house and $54,981 for a unit. The city’s actual median household income is $126,193.

Canberra

Canberra’s median house price is $964,136 and the median apartment price is $585,057.

Based on 40 percent serviceability, households need a total income of $144,158 to afford a home loan for a house and $87,478 for a unit. The city’s actual median household income is $137,760.

Harry Styles-Signed Guitar Sells for $19,200 Right Before the Grammy Awards

New research suggests spending 40 percent of household income on loan repayments is the new normal