Forget the mould and leaking roof: Logan hoarder house sparks bidding frenzy

It once had mould creeping up the walls, maggots in the garage and a leaky roof. To top it off, it came with an aroma so eye-watering that even the holes in the walls struggled to ventilate it.

But the since-cleaned hoarder house in Logan sparked a bidding frenzy – selling under the hammer for $770,000 after 10 bidders battled for the keys on Saturday.

Set on a 623-square-metre block at 26 Fifth Avenue in Berrinba, the three-bedroom home had been held by the same family for 40 years, falling into neglect over the past decade.

But its location in a booming pocket of Brisbane – where house prices have topped national five-year growth charts, led by neighbouring Woodridge at 203.8 per cent – lured a crowd of buyers and multiple offers.

On the day, 16 punters turned up for a crack and 10 raised their hands when bidding opened at $680,000.

The price jumped to $700,000 before a flurry of $10,000 and $15,000 rises, with an investor who planned to gut the property and rebuild eventually nabbing the keys.

“After the auction he told me it was the worst house on the best street and it really clearly was,” said selling agent Jas Singh, of Ray White Springwood.

“I mean, it’s essentially a frame and a block. But while he was unsure whether he was happy or not to win the auction, he honestly can’t go wrong.

“It’s surrounded by a lot of family homes, and they’re quite tightly held here. And investors really see it as an up-and-coming pocket.”

Singh admitted it was one of the most dilapidated homes he had ever sold.

“The first time I inspected it the smell was shocking. But we chose to market it as is, so buyers knew what they were walking in to,” he said.

Singh said the sale price spoke volumes about the strength of Logan’s market.

“This is basically the bottom end of the house market now,” he said.

“If you want to buy anything decent here, you now need to spend closer to $1 million.”

The house was among 114 scheduled auctions across South East Queensland. By Saturday evening, Domain recorded a preliminary clearance rate of 49 per cent from 75 reported results, with 11 homes withdrawn.

On the other side of the city, a sprawling character home in one of Brisbane’s most tightly held suburbs smashed its street record after selling for $2.105 million at a fairytale auction.

Set on a subdividable 1113-square-metre block at 42 Seventh Avenue, Sandgate, the five-bedroom character home came with an approved development application and a north-facing aspect – sparking a battle between a developer and a passionate local who had been searching for his dream house.

Bidding opened at $1.8 million, with a handful of the six registered bidders pushing the price higher in mostly $50,000 rises to $1.95 million.

The contest then narrowed to the developer and the local buyer, until the developer reached his limit.

“The buyer lived just a few streets over and he’d been searching for the perfect property for 10 years,” said selling agent Caleb Mayberry, of Ray White Ascot.

It’s just the sixth home in the street to hit the market in a decade. The previous street record was $1.26 million, achieved by 5 Seventh Avenue last year.

“The vendor had this for 12 years and already had the DA for subdivision in place, which made this a bit different. Properties like this don’t came up often at all,” Mayberry said.

“When the buyer got it he shook my hand and when he signed the contract he had tears in his eyes.

“He’s going to execute the DA and sell one half of the block and use the proceeds to build his dream home.”

Closer to the city in Spring Hill, one of Brisbane’s oldest cottages sold for just the second time in its history after a young couple splashed $2.285 million.

Featuring a largely original circa-1870 facade, 16 Victoria Street brims with heritage features that offer a glimpse into working-class housing of a bygone era, while also including a self-contained flat at the rear built in 2012.

Only one bidder vied for the keys, resulting in a private negotiation.

Selling agent Zac Tully, of SPACE Property Paddington, said with just 412 houses in Spring Hill and an incredibly small annual turnover, the cottage was one of the city’s most rare.

“It was put on the state heritage register in the ’90s so the whole front of this home is original … and yet it’s still in good nick,” he said.

LJ Hooker chief of research and economics Matthew Tiller said despite Brisbane’s relatively low clearance rate, the city’s auction market was continuing to perform strongly.

“That lower-to-mid end of the market is particularly doing very well. There’s a lot of investor and interstate interest as well … but stock levels are still pretty tight,” he said.

“And while they have risen a little the total number of listings remain below the average number.”