When one of two expected bidders withdrew the night before auction, John Moustacas of McGrath convinced his vendors to proceed — and negotiated a single buyer from $870,000 to $940,000 for a two-bedroom unit at 9/31 Bruce Street, Brighton-Le-Sands.
When one of two expected bidders withdrew at 5pm Friday, the vendors of 9/31 Bruce Street questioned whether Saturday’s auction should go ahead at all.
John Moustacas of McGrath told them pulling the property could send the wrong signal.
“I told the vendors if we did pull the property, it may give a negative perception and the buyer that was coming on Saturday might question if they were going to pay too much or why the property didn’t have as much interest,” John said.
“We should still run the auction process with the one buyer just to avoid giving their property any negative perspective to the rest of the market.”
How the private negotiation unfolded
On Saturday morning, John cleared neighbours from the property five minutes before the scheduled start and spoke directly with the remaining buyer.
He told them they were the only party in a position to purchase under auction conditions that day — but mentioned there was interest from another group who couldn’t attend Saturday and wanted to inspect Monday.
That gentle urgency worked. The buyer, who had made a strong offer during the four-week campaign that was knocked back, opened the private negotiation at $870,000.
“I felt they had a little bit more in the tank,” John said.
“The owners were wanting that $940,000 to $950,000 range. I’m happy the buyers came up to that $940,000 and we were able to get an increased offer out of them on the auction day.”
The vendors accepted immediately — hitting their target price despite the Friday complication.
What the buyer already knew
The buyer knew they’d previously put forward a strong offer that wasn’t accepted. They knew another party was circling. And they knew Saturday was their cleanest path to securing the property.
John’s decision to proceed with the auction framework — even without a crowd — maintained the psychological pressure that drives auction-day decisions.
The two-bedroom, one-bathroom unit with one car space had been on the market for 28 days under a planned four-week auction campaign.
Brighton-Le-Sands units have a current median of $907,500, according to local market data — placing the $940,000 result comfortably above the benchmark.
Trusting the process in a tougher market
John’s advice to future vendors in the area is straightforward: trust the process, even when the market feels challenging.
“If you run a great strategy and you have a good agent that’s going to negotiate the best results and give your property the most exposure to the market, I feel even though it’s a bit of a tougher market, you can still achieve a premium result,” he said.
The property went under contract on 30 May 2025.
About the agent
John Moustacas is a sales agent with McGrath Sans Souci and a long-term St George resident. Working as part of Liam Tsaprazis’s team, he is known for his professional approach and strong client relationships. John combines clear communication with local market knowledge and access to an established buyer network, supporting well-managed campaigns and considered outcomes across the St George area. Visit John’s website for more information or call John on 0416 335 256.