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A heartfelt letter and a final $10,000 bid helped a young Brisbane couple outmuscle a big organisation in a David versus Goliath showdown for one of Mount Crosby’s last privately held parcels within a council-controlled pocket.
After the fierce onsite auction stalled at $1.69 million on Saturday, the local pair made one final play - handing a letter to the agent asking that it be passed to the owner, outlining their plans to raise a family on the land and “love it as much as she did”.
Minutes later, with one last $10,000 bid, the slingshot landed and they secured the keys.
The emotional auction unfolded over a rare 10,000-square-metre holding at 4 Marstaeller Road, which is the final privately owned slice of a much larger family estate that was acquired by Brisbane City Council for conservation.
For selling agent Jonathan Tesese, of Place Nundah, it was one of the more memorable auctions he’d handled - not just for the competition but for what it represented.
“This family owned almost that entire peninsula on Mount Crosby. They were pioneers here,” he said.
“I believe the seller’s grandparents were one of the first settlers there and they used to live right next door to this property.
“She grew up there … and her uncle had lived there in recent years until passing away. It was really emotional for them to let go of the land.”
Records show much of the family’s property was snapped up by the Brisbane City Council back in 2017 following a notice to resume the land and consolidate it with existing conservation reserves.
Boasting pristine views of a lesser-known stretch of the Brisbane River, the property features a four-bedroom, two-bathroom ’90s brick home. Freshly painted, with updated cabinetry and a master suite overlooking the river, Tesese said the house itself did “99 per cent of the heavy lifting” during the campaign, drawing dozens of young families seeking a tree-framed lifestyle within an hour of the city.
Seven bidders registered for the auction however the fight came down to two after a neighbour threw down a cheeky opening offer of $600,000 before bowing out.
Bidding slowed at $1.55 million before stalling at $1.69 million, with both parties at their limit and the underbidder at a hard cap. It was then the couple handed over the letter, and moments later, the emotional owner relinquished the keys at $1.7 million – making it the suburb’s third-highest sale on record.
Tesese said the successful buyers were locals who had purchased nearby in 2015 and had been passively searching for their forever home. Torn between renovating or upgrading to a flatter parcel, they stumbled across the Marstaeller Road listing and quickly fell in love.
The Mount Crosby sale was one of 160 scheduled auctions across South East Queensland over the past week. By Saturday evening, Domain recorded a preliminary clearance rate of 32 per cent from 98 reported results, with 17 homes withdrawn. Withdrawn auctions are counted as unsold when calculating clearance rates.
In Wilston, a young couple paid $1.46 million for a renovated two-bedroom house at 2 Antill Street after three out of four active bidders battled it out.
Set on a 405-square-metre block close to cafes, the 1930s-character home was meticulously renovated by a previous owner and features two bathrooms, painted timber and a sprawling rear deck. It last sold three years ago for $1.22 million.
Selling agent Andy Flanagan, of Ray White Ascot, said about 45 groups inspected the property, with young couples dominating the buyer pool.
Bidding opened at $1.3 million, sparking a flurry of $25,000 and $10,000 bids before it sold under the hammer to the young couple, who are upgrading from a unit.
“All the buyers just loved the character and the open-plan layout,” Flanagan said.
“This result shows you that A-grade homes are still selling well in Brisbane. The clearance rates are lower and the sentiment we’re seeing from buyers is ‘let’s sit on our hands a bit’.
“But we still have a lot of people moving here amid the runway to the Olympics. Property prices aren’t going to go backwards.”
In Mount Gravatt East, fears of tightened tax rules and potential changes to negative gearing ahead of this week’s federal budget prompted an investor to offload a long-held rental, with an owner-occupier paying $1.368 million.
The three-bedroom cottage at 70 Badminton Street sits on a 668-square-metre block and had been rented out for the past decade.
Seven bidders registered, with four actively competing after a $1.1 million opening bid.
A mix of largely $5000, $10,000 and $15,000 bids followed until two remained - including a developer.
Matt Campbell, of Ray White Mount Gravatt, said the property’s location and development potential underpinned the result, even as the market showed signs of cooling.
“This area is excellent and it has this unique attribute of being as close as you can to the city without having to deal with character overlay. Once you cross Nursery Road it’s free game and this house is a good rentable and liveable option with some potential for development,” he said.
“It had a lot going for it.”
Campbell said the vendors chose to move their money elsewhere ahead of the budget.
“We have quite a lot of investors calling at the moment … and I have multiple vendors waiting to see what happens on Tuesday and (depending on what’s announced) their homes could be on the market as early as Thursday,” he said.
LJ Hooker head of research Matthew Tiller said Brisbane’s low clearance rate reflected swelling uncertainty amid a “perfect storm” of factors, including the recent interest rate hike, the looming budget and the ongoing global tensions.
“There’s just a lot going on at the moment and it’s weighing on confidence,” he said.
“In saying that we are still seeing transactions happen and those properties positioned and priced well are selling.
“There’s still pent-up demand and a good flow of new listings.”
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Sarah Webb is a freelance journalist.
