In a sale that took him back to the boom years of 2006 and 2007, Joe Coogan of Castlecomer recently sold a 61ac residential working dairy farm prior to public auction.
According to Mr Coogan the price paid far exceeded the guide of €1.1m.
Located at Ballydonnell, Co Kilkenny, near Thomastown the farm is 460m from Mount Juliet and adjoins Ballylinch Stud.
In the days leading up to the sale Mr Coogan was approached by a buyer offering far more than the pre-auction price tag.
“I was confident the figure would not be beaten on the day,” Mr Coogan said, “and so, the evening before the sale, we signed the contracts.
“I then phoned the remaining customers registered for the auction, all of whom were very disappointed at not having a chance to bid.
“It was like phoning members of a hurling panel the night before a final and telling them they wouldn’t be playing.”
In a sign of the times, and perhaps a salutary one, Mr Coogan said he had not sold a property prior to auction since the heady days of 2006 and 2007.
This 31ac residential farm at Gernonstown, Slane, was sold before auction
/
This 31ac residential farm at Gernonstown, Slane, was sold before auction
Meath equestrian holding
In another pre-auction closure, Thomas Potterton of Trim sold a compact 31ac residential farm with substantial equestrian facilities at Gernonstown near Slane in Co Meath.
The land extends to almost 30ac in four undulating divisions of permanent pasture.
Guided between €500,000 and €550,000 the holding made substantially more when it sold before a finger was lifted or a gavel raised.
The house and yard on 1ac at the Borness between Mountmellick and Portarlington in Co Laois, which sold prior to auction
/
The house and yard on 1ac at the Borness between Mountmellick and Portarlington in Co Laois, which sold prior to auction
Midlands sale
On the Laois/Offaly border, auctioneer Matt Dunne held a hybrid auction to sell a dispersed 40ac residential farm at The Borness, Hammer Lane between Mountmellick and Portarlington.
Reflecting the experience of Messrs Coogan and Potterton the sale began early when the first lot, a bungalow on 1ac with a range of outbuildings, sold prior to auction for an undisclosed sum.
Mr Dunne sold the major part of the remaining property in lots at a combined in-person and online event.
A 4ac plot of ground adjoining an established dwelling house and bounding a local farmer caused the farmer and the house owner to go toe-to-toe in a bidding war that opened at €18,000.
The place went on the market at €24,000 and sold to the farmer for €37,000, or over €9,000/ac.
A 17ac parcel of commonage with wintering facilities for 40 cattle on 0.5ac was withdrawn and is now making €80,000.
The fourth lot, a 3.5ac parcel with road frontage, made €35,000 when it was bought by a local man.
A 2ac piece of ground with site potential was sold under the hammer to another local buyer for €19,000.
Combining three lots, Mr Dunne offered a 10.4ac parcel as a unit and it was bought after auction for a price believed to be in the region of €75,000.
The most surprising sale of the day saw a 1ac turf bank make €8,000, while a 1ac parcel of ground with site potential was withdrawn at €16,000.
All in all, Mr Dunne was delighted with the transaction, saying it attracted a wide range of customers and achieved very healthy prices of between €8,000 and €9,000/ac.
This well equipped 94ac dairy farm at Ballintue, Ballynacargy, Co Westmeath, was bid to €600,000 before it was withdrawn from auction
/
This well equipped 94ac dairy farm at Ballintue, Ballynacargy, Co Westmeath, was bid to €600,000 before it was withdrawn from auction
Ballynacargy, Co Westmeath
In another midlands auction, Padraic Murtagh of James L Murtagh auctioneers was not as fortunate when he brought a 94ac dairy farm at Ballintue, Ballynacargy, Co Westmeath to a hybrid sales event.
It opened at €500,000 and was bid to €600,000 where it held. Negotiations are continuing with the highest bidder.
