DEVELOPERS flocked to the auction of a dilapidated property in Mayfield that was formerly the site of one of the city's first gyms.
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The two-bedroom, one-bathroom weatherboard home on a 662 square metre corner block at 40 Sunderland Street drew seven registered bidders at auction.
However, the extent of the damage to the run-down property deterred first-home buyers and renovators, according to listing agent Brett Bailey of Ray White Newcastle.
All of the registered parties comprised developers from Newcastle and Sydney.
"We had a lot of enquiry on the property but the campaign was targeted towards developers and tradies," Mr Bailey said.
"We established very early on that people thought that the existing dwelling was too far gone to do anything with."
Each of the registered parties engaged in competitive bidding which opened at $700,000 before the property went on to sell under the hammer for $920,000.
"Every single one of the bidders were developers who were interested in the property and they fought it out to get that nice big corner site," the agent said.
"It was a good outcome for the owner as a result of the competition around the property."
A shed at the rear of the property previously operated as a gym from 1944 and was used as a training centre, later known as the Mayfield Weightlifting Club, by Olympic weightlifters.
The successful buyer plans to build a three townhouse development or a large luxury duplex on the site.
There were 35 auctions scheduled across Newcastle and Lake Macquarie in the week ending March 10.
CoreLogic recorded a clearance rate of 65.2 per cent from from 23 preliminary results, with 15 cleared auctions and 8 uncleared.
Mr Bailey also took a renovated three-bedroom cottage at 28 Victoria Street in Carrington to auction which drew three registered bidders.
The bidding commenced at $1.2 million and the property sold for $1.32 million.
It earned the sellers significant gains having previously sold in 2010 for $320,000, according to CoreLogic.
Mr Bailey said the property drew higher than average numbers to the open house inspections, with 83 groups through during the campaign.
"Carrington is a more specialised area than, say, a suburb such as Charlestown, so you can get 10 people to an open house in Carrington and that's a good turn out because you only come over the bridge if you want to buy," he said.
"It was a very stylish renovation and it just captured people's eye."
The 347 square metre block was also a drawcard.
"Around 70 per cent of the suburb is on block sizes of either 165 square metre or 250 square metres, so it was on a bigger than normal block size and provided very rare off-street parking," he said.
One of the biggest auction results of the week was the sale of a 1930s five-bedroom home at 138 Gordon Avenue in Hamilton South listed with Donna Spillane from Spillane Property.
Listed with a guide of $1.95 million to $2.1 million, the bidding started at $1.9 million and the property was sold after negotiations for $2.226 million.
It previously sold in 2011 for $970,000.
There was significant interest in the auction of a renovated 1960s three-bedroom home at 40 Morton Parade in Rankin Park.
Listed with a guide of $850,000 with Luke Wilson at Harcourts Newcastle, the auction drew 24 bidders including families, first-home buyers and downsizers.
The bidding started at $870,000 and the property went on to sell for an undisclosed sum understood to be just under $1 million.
"It was really well received and out of the 24 bidders, around eight or nine took part," Mr Wilson said.
"It was spirited bidding back and forth before a buyer from Sydney secured the home.
"We had young families, first-home buyers and downsizers looking at it, so it really appealed to a lot of buyers.
"It had amazing renovations and it was zoned for Lambton High which is a big drawcard."
In Mayfield, an investment opportunity with a two-bedroom house and a granny flat at 3 and 3a Avon Street listed with Century 21 Novocastrian also attracted strong interest with 23 registered bidders.
The dual income stream property was estimated to return around $995 per week in rental value.
The auction started with an opening bid of $830,000 and the property sold for $1.110 million.
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