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31 MARCH, 2021
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(Damjan Janevski) 231835_01
Don’t miss a bead Making jewellery from beads or painting with skateboard wheels are two workshops in the Hobsons Bay school holiday program. Hobsons Bay council’s youth services team, known as Hobsons Bay UP, runs the free program for people aged 12-25 who live, work or study in the area. Glass, crystal, wood, metal and acrylic beads will be provided at a DIY Beads workshop at Newport Community Hub on April 7. A skate art workshop where people can create art with items such as skateboard wheels will be held at Woods Street Arts Space on April 9. A First Aid course to obtain level 2 certification will be provided at Newport Community Hub on April 12. Moviegoers can watch Raya and the Last Dragon at Shore Cinema Williamstown on April 14. Game of skate, similar to basketball’s elimination game of H-O-R-S-E, will be held at Newport Skate Park on April 15. Sports fans can kick goals with Spotswood Football Club on April 15 and shoot hoops with the Altona Pirates Basketball Club on April 18. Details and bookings: www.hobsonsbay. vic.gov.au/Holidayprogram
JADE NOLAN
Seddon’s top auction rate By Goya Dmytryshchak Seddon recorded a 100 per cent auction clearance rate last month as records were smashed across the state. Real Estate Institute of Victoria (REIV) data shows last month recorded the highest ever auction clearance rate for the month of February in the state. The clearance rate was 84.8 per cent out of 3000 auctions. Seddon was one of 17 Melbourne suburbs to sell all properties at or before auction. It had 10 properties for auction in February. REIV president Leah Calnan said Seddon had cleared all auction listings this year to date. “Fourteen properties have been sold under the hammer so far this year, led by a house at 46
Hobbs Street, which sold for $2.37 million in February,” she said. “This year’s performance has been boosted by incentives for first home buyers, mortgage-repayment holidays and low interest rates. Rounding out the top five auction sales in Seddon were 7 Chapman Street at $1.67 million, 3a Lawrence Street at $1.47 million, 66 Pilgrim Street at $1.375 million and 61 Station Street at $1,237,500. There have been six private sales in Seddon this year. This time last year, Seddon had 12 properties sold at auction and a clearance rate of 75 per cent. Sweeney Estate Agents Yarraville manager Niels Geraerts said the market was strong as buyers emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This is what we all needed after last year,” he said. “This time last year we were all in lockdown. Nobody probably expected that a year after that we would be having such a strong market and it’s fantastic. “But it’s also a result of probably 12 months where 60 per cent of the buyers didn’t get a chance to buy. “Then, when you add that with the new buyers this year, that’s why the market’s strong.“ Mr Geraerts said Seddon was gaining in popularity because it was so close and very similar to Yarraville and had a village atmosphere “It’s all period houses and period homes,” he said. “Most of them are in the heritage overlay so they can’t be pulled down.
“And it’s got a train station, it’s four stops to the CBD, there’s a little group of shops there, there’s about a dozen really good cafes and restaurants all within 100 metres of each other. “It is a beautiful little pocket.” The other 16 suburbs with a 100 per cent auction clearance rate in February were Hawthorn East, Fitzroy North, Ferntree Gully, Rowville, Brunswick East, Sandringham, Seaford, Collingwood, Ashburton, Blackburn South, Fawkner, Wantirna, Boronia, Fairfield, Hillside and St Kilda West. Changes to the Residential Tenancy Act come into effect today and could impact the market, the REIV said. ■ Report:
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