Allsop attributed an 80% success rate at its September residential sale last week to an increased number of “determined bidders” attending its auction.
The auctioneer sold 178 of the 225 lots offered, raising a total of £40.2m.
The success rate was an improvement on the auctioneer’s same sale last year, when it achieved a success rate of 78%, selling 134 of the 172 lots offered. However, last year the auctioneer raised a total of £50m.
Highlights of the sale included the Old Brewery (pictured) in Carlisle, Cumbria, an estate of six freehold buildings arranged as 28 self-contained units. The property, which was sold on behalf of a housing association for £400,000, was offered with planning permission to develop a mix of 36 affordable dwellings.
“There seem to be fewer tyre-kickers and more determined bidders out there than recently,” said Gary Murphy, auctioneer at Allsop. “From the rostrum the auction felt pretty robust. Reserve prices were often exceeded, and attendance was good. Although there was no particular sector from which discernible trends were identifiable, it was apparent that the quality of enquiries leading up to the day was high.”
The sale saw seven assets go under the hammer for £1m-plus, the highest of which sold for £3.9m. The vacant property of around 5,450 sq ft at Chelsea’s Redcliffe Gardens was arranged partly as a house in multiple occupation and was sold with planning permission for reconfiguration to form 15 self-contained flats.
Allsop’s next residential auction will be held on 31 October at The Event Suites at Great Cumberland Place (formerly the Cumberland Hotel), W1.
