Member Article

Police station and water tower among lots sold at £14m Pugh auctions

Auctioneer Pugh generated strong results at its first property auctions of 2019 in Manchester and Leeds last week, with over £14m of sales and 73% of the listed properties sold.

Pugh’s February auctions included the grade II listed Victorian Everton water tower in Liverpool, which sold for £70,000 on nil reserve, and the former police station at Poulton le Fylde near Blackpool, which went for four times the guide price at £400,000.

Pugh’s managing director Paul Thompson said: “Despite the continuing uncertainty in the wider property market we were really pleased to see such strong demand for the lots going under the hammer in our packed February auction rooms.

“There were some particularly outstanding results for our local authority clients, including the sale of a former care home on behalf of Rotherham council, which generated double the guide price. We also had a record number of former banks in our catalogue and we achieved a 100% success rate with these properties.”

Of 13 former bank properties included in February’s auctions, a three-story 2,500 sq ft property on Stockport Road in Longsight, Manchester, sold for £250,000 above the guide price, at £650,000.

Mr Thompson added: “Against the continued economic uncertainty around Brexit and the downward pressure on the market, Pugh’s February auctions appear to be bucking the trend by generating impressive sales and attracting packed auction rooms.”

Pugh also launched an online auction capability last month, achieving a 100% success rate at its first sale. “It’s an additional disposal method for clients. The idea is to offer flexibility for clients whose schedules don’t suit the room auction or who need a bespoke solution, and it is proving popular,” said Mr Thompson

Established 26 years ago, Pugh is the largest auction house outside London and was acquired by property consultant Eddisons in 2016. The firm’s next property auctions will take place at the AJ Bell Stadium in Manchester on 9 April and at Leeds United’s Elland Road football ground on 11 April.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Emma Kilmurray .