Pugh & Co's final auctions of the year took place earlier this month and resulted in sales of over £14m on behalf of clients and joint agents. Below, their experts give us a few of their highlights from the Pugh & Co December Property Auctions.

Paul Thompson, Managing Director and Auctioneer

"Our December auctions delivered a very strong ending to our year with over £14m sold and many outstanding results for our clients. With guide prices ranging from Nil Reserve to over £1m, this auction provided an excellent selection of investment opportunities for our investors. The packed room and very competitive bidding also showed the market's appetite in a time of economic uncertainty centered around Brexit negotiations. 

"A stand out sale for me was a vacant former bank in Levenshulme. Guided at £200k we saw very high enquiry levels from the off and that interest transferred into the auction room where we achieved a sale of £490k. We had a similar outcome with a bank in Middleton which again was guided at £105k and achieved £231K in the room.

"We end the year with an exceptional day on the rostrum and look forward to the February sale; we already have stock coming in which will prove popular in the room and February is always our largest auction of the year."

David Hodgkinson, Director

"It was a very successful North West auction across the whole of the Greater Manchester region with a high number of sales achieved and we look forward to continuing this success into our first auction of 2019. Some notable sales for me included a two bedroom detached house sold on behalf of Wigan Council which attracted huge demand in the auction room and sold for over double the guide price. 

"Other highlights included a row of houses in Longsight, sold on behalf of receivers, which received excellent competitive bidding and achieved a sale price over £50k above the original guide price. Another highlight was a three storey retail investment in Rochdale which achieved a fantastic sale price over £50k above the guide price."

Rob Limbert, Director and Auctioneer

"Our final Yorkshire & North East property auction of the year was a huge success. We sold over 70% of lots on the day and achieved sales of £4.3m on behalf of our clients and joint agents. There were some excellent sales, however a stand out for me had to be the sale of River View Farm, in Otley, sold on behalf of North Yorkshire County Council. The vacant farm stead received some strong and competitive bidding on the day, selling for £715k - a staggering £315k above the guide price. 

"Other highlights included the sale of the former Elland Road Police Station, which sold for £60k above the guide price and a vacant former Council Office in Scarborough, which achieved a sale price almost £100k above the guide price."

Edward Feather, Associate Director and Auctioneer

"Our final auction of the calendar year was a really good success story, especially in the face of some economic uncertainty. To sell in excess of 70% of our lots on the day and with more sales likely over the coming days not only surpasses a lot of the industry currently, but it also demonstrates that buyers are still definitely in the market. This gives us renewed optimism looking ahead to next year.

"Whilst we achieved some very strong sale prices for a lot of our local authority and receiver clients, the stand out result for me was the sale of a bungalow and some adjoining land in Anglesey which we sold on behalf of a private client who had inherited the property from her late mother. It had been in the same family ownership for many years and she was extremely nervous given the emotional attachment. The bungalow and land had a combined guide price of £120,000 and ended up selling for £180,000 to a local buyer after some very competitive bidding. Both our vendor and buyer client were thrilled and it was a great feeling to surpass her expectations and draw a line under a very difficult and anxious time for her.

"Commercially, one of our stand out results was the sale of The Tom Toya public house in Newport which sold in excess of £550,000 with a rental income of £110,000. We had offered the property previously in our October sale without finding a buyer so a sale this time around was crucial and we duly delivered with both a happy buyer and vendor present in our auction room."

Paul Parker, Property Auction Surveyor

"There were numerous sales highlights for me in both auctions. However, a particular highlight was a detached three bedroom property in Cumbria, sold on behalf of North Yorkshire County Council in our Yorkshire & North East Auction. The property generated strong interest in the run up to auction and despite having a local occupancy restriction, it sold for £55k above the guide price.

"In our North West auction, a couple of highlights included a town centre commercial investment in Chorley, let to Barclays which sold for £230k and a vacant three bedroom dwelling in Winstanley which received excellent competitve bidding and sold for almost £50k over the guide price."