Allsop Residential’s final auction of 2016, held at the Cumberland Hotel on 15 December, had a success rate of 71% and raised a total of £46 million. This brought the annual total to over £425 million, ensuring the company’s position as the number one residential auction team in the UK for the 22nd year in a row.   The biggest selling lot was a freehold five storey corner office building in Southwark. With potential for conversion to residential under permitted development rights, it sold for £1.6 million.  

Partner and Auctioneer Gary Murphy commented: “This was a respectable result in what is clearly an adjusting market. We had seen modest success rates in other residential sales this December and were, therefore, expecting to see a softening in demand. Confidence in the residential market has been knocked this year by aggressive taxation and the Brexit vote, but trying to identify particular weak spots is difficult. Higher value central London stock has definitely been hit and so it seems have poorer quality lots in the North and North East. Despite this, the sale was well attended.   “Curiously, some of the more speculative opportunities attracted the strongest competition. For example, we offered 13 sites without planning permission and 11 sold (85%). And as always during a period of readjustment, ground rents stood out as a safe bet. 19 investments were offered with 16 sold (85%) showing 25.8YP (3.87%) for 80+ years’ income.”  

Other notable sales included an end of terrace building in West Norwood, SE27, which sold for £930,000 from a guide price of £690,000 and a house in Streatham, which raised £935,000 against a guide of £700,000 to £750,000. Meanwhile, a plot of land in Warwick with planning permission for residential development sold for £280,000, almost twice its £150,000 guide price.   Entries are now being taken for Allsop Residential’s first auction of 2017, which will take place at the Cumberland Hotel, Great Cumberland Place, London W1 on 16 February.