- An elderly vendor’s Christchurch home sold for $507,000 despite having floor issues.
- Eight bidders competed, with most planning to fix and flip the property.
- The strong result was attributed to the scarcity of “as is, where is” properties in Christchurch.
An elderly vendor was “gobsmacked” after her home sold under the hammer for $507,000, even though she was forced to sell it in “as is, where is” condition.
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The vendor had been preparing to list her 1990s brick townhouse on Farquhars Road, in Redwood, Christchurch, last year when a building report found the floor levels were outside the recommended tolerance.
Harcourts Gold listing agent Belinda Dunster said the house had been damaged in the Christchurch earthquakes, but the flooring issues had gone unnoticed when repairs were carried out.
The three-bedroom, one-bathroom townhouse has an RV of $600,000 and was marketed as a “must sell”. Photo / Supplied
The vendor had no idea the floor levels were out until they received the building report, Dunster said.
The damage meant she had to sell the property “as is, where is”. However, the issues didn’t put off buyers.
Eight people turned up to bid on Thursday, with the majority planning to fix the house and flip it if they won the auction.
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The bidding kicked off at $200,000 and quickly escalated. The property was announced on the market at $480,000, before eventually selling for $507,000.
“It was so quick. And then at the end, probably the last $50,000, it was down to $10,000, $5000s and $1000s.”
Dunster said the strong result – just $93,000 under RV – was down to the scarcity of “as is, where is” properties in the Christchurch market, adding that people texted after the auction asking if she had any more for sale.
“I think it went for such big money because those sorts of properties are hard to find now.”
Dunster said the auction had exceeded the vendor’s expectations. “That extra few thousand dollars, it’s a Lotto win. It’s pretty special.”
- Click here to find more properties for sale in Christchurch
