Reserve price hiding should be banned. Zero risk for a seller and a waste of everyone's time and energy. I recently was the highest bidder on a property in the GC, we didn't hit reserve and went back and forth ending up hitting our hard cap, they passed in and reposted the property online asking an additional $150k our cap. It's infuriating as a buyer to be dicked around like this as we where well within suburb medium range. Later that week we secured a much better property for $80k less than our cap avoiding a 5th auction.
Firstly congratulations on your purchase and thanks for sharing your experience! Buying and selling real estate isn't something that the average person does more than a handful of times in their lives. I had the same experience purchasing my first home right before I started to work as an auctioneer so I can empathise with the buyer's perspective. Being privy to both sides of the transaction, I'm almost certain that there's a seller who's emotionally attached to the property and can't accept letting it go for less than what it's worth to them - not what the market price is. This isn't to say the agent has done the right thing, but to highlight that human nature (of the seller) that influences their decisions. The owners holding onto their price expectations after seeing the best the market has to offer at auction means they probably won't get their ideal selling price. You've done the right thing in that situation by moving onto another home and purchase off a more genuine seller. A powerful tool as a buyer you may consider for your next purchase is to make an unconditional offer prior to auction with a clear offer expiration date. I often see this unfolding with my auctions where the owners are presented with objectively attractive offers prior to auction, but the owners have not accepted the reality of the market, these kinds of buyers will often purchase elsewhere very soon afterwards.
Different people have different needs. You'll be hard pressed to find 1000sqm in Sunshine at that price point. At the end of the day, it's only worth what someone's willing to pay. If someone sees value at $800k+, then that's what it's worth to them.
Agreed, there are lots of copy and paste houses in the West - nice houses, but the broader area lacks character. This part of Manors Lakes was quite nice, though with unlimited land supply, it's quite hard to achieve strong capital growth. Hopefully I can get an update on how well this one sells and share back with you in a future vlog.
