Three sales over the past fortnight have hit success rates well in excess of 80%, with one selling all bar one of the properties offered.
On 28 February, Barnett Ross achieved a 98% success rate from 39 lots, raising £14.7m.
Two lots sold prior to the auction at the Radisson Blu Portman Hotel, W1, and 35 on the day.
Auctioneer John Barnett said: “There is an obvious trend for many investors to focus in on commercial investments, which have a lower stamp duty and show a generally higher net return.
“Our results and the packed auction room showed a frenzied appetite for sensibly reserved commercial stock” (see panel).
The largest lot was residential, however. A five-bedroom flat in Hampstead, NW3, sold for nearly £3.4m off a reserve below £3.5m.
North London residential also sold well at McHugh & Co’s auction a few days earlier. It raised £22.3m after selling 57 of 66 lots, an 87% success rate.
The highest price achieved on the day was for a three-floor terraced house in West Hampstead, NW6, which sold for £1.4m
off a guide of £1.1m. A plot of land in Muswell Hill, N10,
without planning consent, was knocked down for £359,000 off a guide price of £100,000.
James McHugh of McHugh & Co said: “It was one of the busiest rooms we have seen for some time. There was active bidding on the majority of lots with properties selling for well over guide prices.”
The sale was held at the Montcalm Hotel, W1, on 23 February.
Proving that appetite is also strong in the regions, Midlands auctioneer SDL Bigwood achieved an 84% success rate, also on 23 February. It raised £14.7m from 104 lots. All lots offered on behalf of Birmingham City council sold, as did ground rents and garages.
A former community centre in Weoley Castle, with a guide price of £150,000, sold for £282,000. A plot of land in Ward End sold for £75,000 off a guide of £10,000.
Partner Gurpreet Bassi said staff had to operate a “one in, one out” policy on the doors at Aston Villa Football Club on health and safety grounds.
Barnett Ross sale highlights
● A ground-floor shop with flat above in Slough, Berkshire, producing £13,900 pa attracted competitive bidding in the room and sold for £490,000 off a reserve of less than £160,000, reflecting a yield of 2.8%.
● A property in Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, comprising four ground-floor shops each with flats above, plus a motor workshop and a petrol station with car wash, sold for £1.7m off a reserve of less than £1.2m, producing a yield of 6.5%.
