Bargain prices at 'fire sale' house auction
A house went for as little as €30,000 in a fire sale auction widely touted to set a new floor for Ireland’s plummeting property market.
The semi-detached three-bedroom home in the Midlands was snapped up in an auction where investors forked out some €15m on 80 properties.
The sale of distressed properties in the Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin – the first of its kind in the country – had to be suspended for more than 10 minutes as 200 people trying to get in blocked the road outside.
Another 1,000 were crammed in the auction hall, overflow room and bar, with some 300 punters watching it live on screens in Doheny and Nesbitts pub nearby.
“This is as good as being at a play, it’s as good as the Abbey Theatre,” said one keen buyer.
The sale, by UK auction house Allsop and its Dublin affiliate Space, was expected to signal a benchmark for Irish house prices – which have dropped by about 50% from a 2007 peak.
Despite the frenzy and excitement, bidding started slowly until experienced auctioneer Gary Murphy began coaxing buyers to part with their cash from his favourite rostrum, which also travelled from the UK.
Competition was also tight from ex-pats and people calling from as far away as Israel, Japan and Australia.
Declan O’Connor, an investor and dealer from Sligo, also bought lot 60 – an apartment in Galway city centre – for just 1,000 euro under the reserve price of €70,000.
“Some people are saying we are absolutely daft,” he said.
“We’re fed up with the recession. It’s four years now. I’m a dealer and I want to deal, I get my kicks this way.”
Among the hundreds of onlookers were dozens of budding buyers armed with cheque books and ID after one of the commercial and residential properties on offer, most of which are in receivership.
One organiser said the vast majority of buyers appeared to be investors with “mattress money” looking for an opportunity to make a return.
Two buyers watching the sale on a big screen erected outside purchased properties through a second auctioneer calling their bids through.
About half of those packed into the room were believed to be estate agents and auctioneers eagerly watching just how low the already collapsed market was about to collapse.
Mr Murphy revealed 80 out of 82 lots sold on the day – most well over the reserve and fetching some €15m in the day.
“This has been a great day and it’s an important turning point in the Irish property market,” he said.
“We hope most people will go away and realise there is a market for Irish property. It just has to be at a particular price.”
One of the most sought after properties, a four-bedroom house in Dublin’s affluent Ballsbridge district, fetched €550,000 – below its €600,000 reserve.
A block of six apartments in Wexford, in the south east of the country, made just €10,000 more, while a pub in Arklow, Co Wicklow – with a Recession Buster banner over it – was bought for €400,000.
Florida-based auctioneer William Burke and a friend watched the sale over a pint in Doheny and Nesbitts after being turned away from a packed Shelbourne.
“This has taken property prices down another 10% overnight,” said the 42-year-old, who is back home for a visit.
