Brunswick: Ramshackle house where squatters once lived scores a seven-figure sale

A dilapidated Brunswick house where squatters had formerly lived for about a decade unexpectedly sold for more than $1m on Saturday.

Owned by the same family for a 115 years, the two-bedroom home at 28 Barry St went under the hammer with a $760,000-$835,000 asking range.

About six bidders competed for the keys to the circa-1910 abode, named Beatrice, that had been graffitied and fallen into disrepair.

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Ray White Brunswick’s Trish Di Vito said despite this, the house featuring a heritage-listed facade had attracted plenty of interest from buyers thanks to its character and renovation potential.

The online listing racked up more than 12,500 online views including at realestate.com.au before the auction.

Ms Di Vito said she believed that squatters had previously lived at Beatrice for between 10 to 15 years.

“Squatters had been living there for years and it was boarded up to keep them out,” she said.

“It needs rewiring, re-plumbing, the lot, that’s why we priced it where it is.”

The house, named Beatrice, was originally constructed by the prolific local builder Victor Heiberg.

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The home is set on a 351sq m block of land.

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Inside the home, where squatters previously lived. Picture: Trish Di Vito, Ray White Brunswick.

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The owners spent two days clearing rubbish from the residence before it was put up for sale.

At the auction, Ray White auctioneer Hassan Allouche described Beatrice as the perfect property for anyone who has “DIY is in your DNA”.

Mr Allouche said urged the first bidder who put forward a $685,000 offer to raise it to $750,000, which they did.

A Hills hoist clothesline in the back yard. Picture: Trish Di Vito, Ray White Brunswick.

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Graffiti on some of the windows. Picture: Trish Di Vito, Ray White Brunswick.

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Soon after the house was placed on the market at $900,000, a cheeky driver going past jokingly yelled “$1m” out their window before driving away – causing laughter among the crowd watching the auction.

But it wasn’t long after this that bidding surpassed $1m before reaching $1,005,500.

A knockout $1.01m bid secured the house, an impressive $110,000 above its $900k on the market figure.

Ms De Vito said the brothers who purchased the home had previously renovated other properties in the local area, and were planning to do the same with Beatrice.

Private inspections were held in the lead-up to the auction. Picture: Trish Di Vito, Ray White Brunswick.

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Inside the home which had been vacant for some time, apart from squatters. Picture: Trish Di Vito, Ray White Brunswick.

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About 100 people attended the auction, she added.

“A lot of people were super keen to see how it would go because it has been sitting vacant for quite some time and they wanted to find out what happened to it,” she said.

“They wanted Beatrice to find a new owner.”

Historic documents show the house was last transferred for £89 and five shillings in 1889, a figure which the Reserve Bank of Australia’s online inflation calculator puts at an equivalent $15,951 today.

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