- A neglected house in Waitara sold for $130,000 after going to auction with a $1 reserve.
- The auction attracted about six bidders, with over 40 bids placed.
- The leasehold property, described as a “diamond in the rough”, requires significant work.
A neglected house whose owner was prepared to let go for $1 fetched $130,000 at a packed auction yesterday.
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The run-down three-bedroom leasehold property in Waitara, on the outskirts of New Plymouth, had been billed as the worst house on the street.
Buyers weren’t worried. They squeezed into Collective First National’s auction room yesterday, lured by the ultra-low reserve - a rarity in the region.
One of the bedroom doors was bolted shut and there was graffiti on the walls and ceiling. Photo / Supplied
Collective First National manager Devon Cameron said both the vendor and purchaser who planned to renovate it to a liveable state were extremely happy with the outcome.
He told OneRoof last week that his daughters had even commented on the reserve. They were surprised that you could buy an entire house for less than the price of a McFlurry.
However, the opening bid of $11,000 punctured dreams of a “McBargain”. There appeared to be about six buyers fighting to secure the property, but by the time the price reached six figures, most had dropped out of the contest.
The hammer came down after more than 40 bids, with the new owner paying less than half the property’s RV (but still 25,999 times more than the cost of a McFlurry).
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The leasehold is owned by Waitara District Council, with ground rent costing $5000 a year. However, the new owner may be able to buy the 613sqm section off the council for a price determined by a registered valuer.
Cameron told OneRoof last week that the vendor had inherited the leasehold property from her mother several years ago and had decided to cut her losses and sell.
When the listing agents inspected the three-bedroom home on Mould Street, they found the front yard littered with junk, graffiti on the walls and ceiling, broken windows taped with plastic, and a bedroom that had been bolted shut.
The house was pitched at "buyers with a tool belt". Photo / Supplied
“I just said to her, ‘Look, even if you tidy the whole place up, I don’t think you are going to get your money back. Let’s just put it on as a $1 reserve’.”
Listing agents Kathy Roach and Mylinda Miller had pitched the property to buyers with “a vision and a tool belt to bring it back to life”.
Their listing on OneRoof described the property as a “diamond in the rough” that was “packed with quirks and curiosities”.
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