Investors being more cautious with half of the apartments on offer passed in at the latest auction

There was a 50% clearance rate at the latest Ray White City Apartments' auction, with three of the six units on offer selling under the hammer and the remaining three being passed in for sale by negotiation.

Investors appear to have an air of caution about them these days and that is generally being reflected in the prices they are prepared to offer, although they are still prepared to open their wallets when they see an opportunity.

There was competitive bidding on a shoebox apartment in a leaky building that needs remediation work and it sold under the hammer for $175,000, which was only just above its 2004 purchase price of $172,000.

And a unit in the Unilodge managed student accommodation complex on Anzac Ave (pictured) sold for $55,000 compared to its 2001 purchase price of $76,780.

Also on offer among the investment apartments were an apartment in the Federal Building and a home unit in Howick, both of which would have appealed to owner-occupier as well as investors.

But in both cases there was only one person prepared to bid on them and they were both passed in for sale by negotiation.

The full auction results are listed below:

• 4D/4 St Paul St. St Pauls building. A 34 square metre, one bedroom, furnished unit with balcony in a building with weathertightness issues that are yet to be rectified. Rented at $340 a week. Sold for $175,000. According to QV.co.nz the unit had been purchased in 2004 for $172,500. Rates were $681 and the body corporate levy $5332.The agent was Dominic Worthington.
• 11H/32 Eden Cres. Eden Apartments. A 36 square metre, one bedroom unit with a balcony. Vacant. Sold for $325,000. According to QV.co.nz the unit had been purchased for $265,000 in 2004. Rates were $1298 and the body corporate levy $2653. The agents were Daniel Horrobin and Damian Piggin.
• 1507/207 Federal St. Federal City Apartments. A 61 square metre, two bedroom, furnished apartment with a car park.The apartment rented for $530 a week and the car park rented separately for $65 a week.The opening bid on the property was $500,000 and when there were no further bids it was passed in for sale by negotiation. According to QV.co.nz the unit had been purchased for $385,000 in 2013. The agent was Sam Huang.
• 1/12 Abercrombie St, Howick. A traditional 60 square metre, two bedroom home unit on a cross leased site. Vacant. There was only one bidder for the property, who made an opening bid of $500,000 which was increased to $550,000 after the auctioneer sought instructions from the vendor. When the bidding went no higher the auctioneer made a vendor bid of $600,000, but when no further bids were received it was passed in for sale by negotiation. According to QV.co.nz the unit had been purchased for $322,000 in 2007. The agent was Safeer Khan.
• 802/10 Waterloo Quadrant. The Quadrant hotel. A 22 square metre, furnished studio with a management agreement in place. The auctioneer made a vendor bid of $200,000 for the unit and when there were no further bids it was passed in. No sales history available. The agents were Daniel Horrobin and Damian Piggin.
• 803/138 Anzac Ave. Unilodge building. A 13 square metre furnished studio in a managed student complex. Sold for $55,000. According to QV.co.nz the unit had been purchased for $76,680 in 2001. The agents were May Ma and Mark Li.