The Venmore Partnership held its September auction at a new location, Liverpool’s Marriott Hotel, where many bidders in the 250-seat room had to stand.
Proceeds for the sale topped £4.5m. But, auctioneer Phil Cassidy said, the 50% result on the day was “not that good”.
He remained confident that a number of properties would sell in the coming days. “I’m pretty sure we could be looking at 60% to 65% by the end of next week. Selling a lot afterwards seems to be the trend this year,” he said.
Some higher-value lots failed to sell. One of them was a property in Aigburth Drive in the Sefton Park district of Liverpool, which had been guided at £1.25m.
“It was 50/50 as to whether it would sell or not,” he explained. “The area became hugely popular for developers – with Victorian mansions being bought up and converted. Now, perhaps, people are less eager to take on a project there.”
Cassidy said there was post-auction interest in the property, which comprises nine flats in need of refurbishment and an adjoining coach house with conversion potential.
“Buyers are becoming more cautious and more choosy,” said Cassidy, who also said that vendors’ expectations were quite high – reflecting what was the North West’s boom time.
“Then, reserves were being smashed every time. Quite a few properties we had were priced at ‘top dollar’, with reserves set at what the property is worth. I have always thought that the reserve should be a minimum. If it is set a bit less you can then expect to get a bit more.”
Despite the overall sales rate, Cassidy said he remained confident about the market. And he found bidding to be “quite good” on what did sell – particularly for residential property, which performed better than commercial on the day.
A property in Elmbank Road, Liverpool, sold for £170,000 against a guide of £150,000. And another in Waterloo Road, New Brighton, sold for £111,000, beating its guide of £85,000.
Cassidy said: “Elmbank Road is an up-and-coming area. With everything that is happening in Liverpool, that spreads out. And the New Brighton area overlooks Liverpool.”
