The cut in stamp duty appeared to encourage buyers at the latest Strettons sale, which raised £11.3m.
The live-streamed sale on 14 July saw 36 of 40 lots find buyers, a 90% success rate. However, 20 lots were withdrawn prior.
The star turn was a vacant house in Stamford Hill, N16, which sold for £1.36m against a guide of £1.1m-£1.2m. The freehold at 39 Darenth Road (lot 2) was on the market for the first time since the Second World War.
Other vacant residential properties also performed well. In Walthamstow, a freehold vacant house for improvement on Lyne Crescent, E17 (lot 1), sold for £450,000 against a guide of £375,000-plus. In Ilford, Essex, two freehold properties, one on Betchworth Road (lot 3) and an end of terrace property on Baron Gardens (lot 5) sold for £390,000 and £462,000 respectively, both above guide.
Commercial sales included a freehold mixed commercial and residential investment on High Road, Leytonstone, E11. Currently producing £67,000 per annum, the property sold for £830,000, a 7.7% net yield. It was guided at £700,000-plus.
A vacant freehold industrial premises in Rainham, Essex, (lot 29) sold for £428,000 against a guide of £345,000-plus.
Nine former advertising billboard sites offered on behalf of advertising agency JC Decaux all sold. They included one location featuring a section of Roman wall in Colchester (lot 50), which sold prior for an undisclosed sum. A site at 2-6 Mornington Street in Leicester (lot 44) sold for £380,000, £180,000 above its guide price.
Auctions director Andrew Brown said: “It is clear that buyers are returning to the market and the cut in stamp duty announced by the chancellor has certainly meant that more investors have decided that now is the right time to buy. The adage of ‘well priced stock always finds favour’ is certainly holding true at the moment and we have achieved excellent prices for our clients.”
To date, the firm has raised £25m during lockdown with an average success rate of 90%.
Strettons’ next sale will take place on 16 September.
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