A first-home buyer has paid $1.46 million for a two-bedroom apartment in Sydney’s Potts Point, securing the art deco property for $40,000 below the vendors’ reserve as the city’s spring auction market showed tentative signs of recovery.
Five parties registered to bid for the apartment at 27/7 Springfield Avenue, although only two took part when the auction began on Saturday. The opening bid was $1.4 million and the property changed hands after just three bids.
The winning bidder was a local first-home buyer supported by their parents, according to Ray White Touma Taylor selling agent Renee Cross.
The vendors, three beneficiaries of a deceased estate, had set a reserve of $1.5 million but were prepared to adjust their expectations on the day. The property had been guided at $1.4 million.
In an important distinction for buyers and sellers, an auction reserve does not have to match the advertised price guide. Ms Cross said the apartment had been appraised five months earlier at between $1.4 million and $1.5 million.
The home is in the Carinthia building, with high ceilings, preserved period features, a private balcony and access to a communal rooftop terrace. The 82-square-metre apartment has no allocated parking space.
Sydney auction market edges up from winter lows
The Potts Point result came as Sydney’s broader auction market moved away from the weak levels recorded in June. Domain’s latest weekly tally showed 709 auctions scheduled across the city, with 443 results reported, 250 properties sold and 125 auctions withdrawn.
The preliminary clearance rate was 56 per cent, compared with 47 per cent at the market’s recent low. Withdrawn auctions are counted as unsold when the clearance rate is calculated.
Ms Cross said the level of competition for the Potts Point apartment reflected the resilience of the local market. “Potts Point and Elizabeth Bay are resilient markets,” she said. “Five people wanting to buy it is definitely reflective of the area.”
She said her agency had held about eight open homes on Saturday and detected greater commitment among prospective buyers.
“We felt there was a stronger sense of genuine buyers in the market,” Ms Cross said.
More homes are expected to come on to the market as spring progresses, giving buyers greater choice, although listings are still likely to remain below the levels seen in a typical spring selling season.
Elsewhere, a heritage-listed sandstone house in Bardwell Valley sold for $3.315 million after a competitive auction. The property, known as Forsythe, dates from about 1867 and is listed as a locally significant heritage item.
The four-bedroom home at 57 Hannam Street had a guide of $3 million to $3.3 million and a reserve of $3.2 million. Bidding began at $3 million, with a family from Sydney’s inner west competing against a couple from the eastern suburbs.
The eastern suburbs couple secured the property after bids rose in increments including $25,000 and $10,000. Selling agent Alexandra Stamatiou-Buda said some buyers were returning to the market after deciding conditions had stabilised.
In Wareemba, a local couple paid $1.07 million for a two-bedroom apartment at 1/169-175 Hampden Road, above its $950,000 reserve and $900,000 guide.
Three of the five registered bidders took part, with the winning buyers understood to live nearby. The apartment had been owned by the same owner-occupier for 38 years, having been bought for $118,500.
The Agency Drummoyne agent Joe Kanaan said younger buyers were increasingly attending inspections because apartments offered a comparatively affordable route into the inner west.
“There is still plenty of transactions happening, just not at the rapid rate it was in 2025, but there is still plenty of people willing to commit to properties,” he said. “It seems like there is a bit of a bounce.”
