The Real Estate Institute of Victoria is calling on the state government to provide clarity about the upcoming changes to reserve disclosure laws. Right picture: NewsWire/David Crosling.
A leading Melbourne auctioneer has reported a massive bookings surge for the weeks before the Victorian government’s controversial reserve price disclosure laws are introduced.
Industry figures are also calling for clarity on the legislation’s finer points, before its due to come into effect on October 1 with a two-week grace period.
The changes will require homeowners to reveal a reserve price seven days ahead of a residential sale date, however it remains unclear if vendors who choose to lower their reserve will need to re-set their auction date for a further seven days.
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Apollo Auctions general manager Greg Brydon, winner of the 2026 Australasian Auctioneering Championships, said there had been a big influx of bookings for September and early October with agents and owners hoping to get in “before the uncertainty of these new rules”.
“Obviously, there’s a bit of a difficulty with grand final day on the last Saturday in September too, and just on the brink of a spring market when the uncertainty from the marketplace and consumer confidence is down,” Mr Brydon said.
“It’s really looking like it might be a pretty diabolic time for auctions across Victoria.”
Apollo Auctions’ Greg Brydon has seen an influx of auction bookings for September and early October.
9 Plowman Court, Epping, sold for $925,000 on Saturday.
The Real Estate Institute of Victoria’s chief executive Toby Balazs said the organisation had contacted Premier Ben Carroll’s government seeking answers about the upcoming laws, such what would happen when an owner wanted to lower their reserve.
Mr Balazs said a parliament question time conversation had indicated this would not be the case – but the bill’s actual draft did not define whether this would reset the clock on the seven day rule or not.
The REIV is also keen to find out what would happen when an agent received an offer to buy a residence prior to an auction, then called other interested buyers to find out if they wanted to put an offer.
“What happens then, does that mean that by calling other vendors and asking them to put in an offer at a certain time, does that reset the seven days or is that still okay?” Mr Balazs said.
REIV chief executive Toby Balazs says the Victorian government needs to provide guidance on the auction reserve legislation, which is less than five weeks away from being introduced.
The REIV has proposed an alternative to the government’s laws, in which sellers would confirm their reserve sits within a property’s advertised 10 per cent range, three days before auction.
Mr Balazs noted that while some agents appeared to keen to auction more homes before mid-October, others were feeling less urgency about timing for new listings.
Jellis Craig chief executive Andrew McCann said his agency group was trying to catch up with what the government’s final legislation would look like, and what it would involve for clients.
“We think the government have knee-jerked on rushing the bill through without good industry consultation first,” Mr McCann said.
He’s also concerned that the legislation could cause some home sellers to set higher reserves, leading to less transparency about prices.
Ray White Victoria chief auctioneer’s Luke Banitsiotis says depth remains in the market when a home is presented exceptionally well and accurately priced, from day one.
Ray White Victoria chief auctioneer Luke Banitsiotis said he had not observed a rush of auction bookings for September.
“Everybody’s got the same rules so I think the smart agents will just get on with it and they’ll probably reap the benefits of it,” he said.
According to realestate.com.au, Victoria recorded a preliminary 56.3 per cent clearance rate from 462 early auction results this week.
Mr Banitsiotis said some auctions saw up to six bidders although the agency’s figures for the week reflected an average 2.1 registered bidders an auction and 1.7 active bidders an auction.
14 Fenton St, Ascot Vale, fetched $1.325m under the hammer.
In Ascot Vale, a Federation-era house in need of an extensive renovation changed hands for $1.325m on Saturday.
Nelson Alexander’s Lachlan Sutton said the 14 Fenton St home sold to a family planning to renovate and live there.
He also had the listing for an Art Deco three-bedroom house at 54 Scotia St, Moonee Ponds, which fetched $1.16m.
Two bidders drove the three-bedroom pad to sell $190,000 above the $970,000 reserve, with a couple claiming the keys.
Mr Sutton said the result was “pretty strong” and that he had not seen anything similar for a while.
He attributed the price to two strong bidders, the home’s character and dual street frontage.
The Ascot Vale house had been in the same family for decades.
In Melbourne’s outer north, young couple Melissa and Andrew Furlanetto bought a house at 9 Plowman Court, Epping, for $925,000.
Ms Furlanetto said they loved the home’s renovation, meaning they could move straight in with their two-year-old.
Ray White South Morang’s Nick Petrovski said the owners were moving to regional Victoria to be closer to family.
“They bought it as their first home and renovated it with long term plans to stay, but their circumstances changed,” he added.
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