TWO side-by-side early 1900s-era worker's cottages were among the properties that sold at auctions across Newcastle and Lake Macquarie last week.
The semi-detached cottages at 21 at 23 Bishopsgate Street, on 278 and 279 square metres respectively, listed with Spillane Property drew a collective result of almost $2 million for the seller who owned both properties.
The three-bedroom cottage at number 21 was listed with a guide of $900,000 to $960,000 and sold for $950,000 after an opening bid of $810,000.
The two-bedroom home next door at number 23 was listed with a guide of $700,000 to $770,000.
After an opening bid of $770,000, the property went on to sell for $850,000.
CoreLogic records show the median house value in Wickham is $966,000.
The sales come two months after the auction of a dilapidated 100-year-old cottage on at 58 Bishopsgate Street drew 20 registered bidders.
The property, which had no bathroom or kitchen, sold for $593,000.
There were 32 auctions scheduled across Newcastle and Lake Macquarie in the week ending December 17.
According to CoreLogic's preliminary results, the region's auctions recorded a clearance rate of 70 per cent.
Earlier in the week, a newly renovated three-bedroom cottage at 23 Watson Street in Islington went to auction with Wilton Lemke Stewart.
Listed with a guide of $950,000, the auction drew three registered bidders from Sydney, the Central West and Newcastle.
The bidding commenced at $900,000 and sold under the hammer for $1.1 million to the buyer from Sydney who plans to use it as an investment before eventually relocating to Newcastle.
Wilton Lemke Stewart listing agent Jesse Wilton said properties in fringe suburbs such as Islington continued to draw demand.
"It is very in demand because that's where all of the money is being spent on the state government level from Wickham all the way through to Islington," Mr Wilton said.
"The school zones are also popular so to be in the pocket of Tighes Hill Public School is very highly regarded."
The popularity of Maryville continues to bring in $1 million-plus sales.
Mavis Property Co's listing of a two-bedroom period cottage on 304 square metres at 73 Northumberland Street in Maryville went to auction on Friday.
"We had four buyers bidding and a stand out purchaser at the eventual sale price of $1.125 million," Mavis Property Co listing agent Mathew Iuliano said.
The sale marked the ninth $1 million-plus sale on the street since the first in 2018.
It was one of two strong results for the agency which also took a four-bedroom, two-bathroom home at 14 Ewing Street in Garden Suburb to auction.
Set on 601 square metres in a cul-de-sac, the auction drew strong interest from buyers with 12 registered bidders.
The property sold under the hammer for $1.104 million.
Garden Suburb has experienced value growth of 5.5 per cent in the past 12 months to hold a median house value of $979,000.
It marked the last big week of auction activity for the year, with only 13 auctions scheduled across the region this week in the lead up to Christmas.
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