Buyers are snapping up skeleton properties. Rundown Dascombe Cottage in Redfern sold this month for $2.7m. Picture: BresicWhitney

Julia Corderoynews.com.au

A MELBOURNE home gutted by a fire, and which has no roof, has just been sold for almost $3 million at auction.

This former Victorian residence at 65 Lisson Grove, Hawthorn, sold under the hammer for a whopping $2.815 million. The median house price in Hawthorn, according to realestate.com.au, is $2.032 million.

Following a fire in 2014, as a result of squatters, it was partially demolished in compliance with its Heritage Overlay, leaving just a skeleton.

Historic Hawthorn home with no roof sold for $2.815m at auction. Picture: Marshall White

Historic Hawthorn home with no roof sold for $2.815m at auction. Picture: Marshall WhiteSource:Supplied

Selling agent Stuart Evans of Marshall White told news.com.au that the vendors inherited the property, but they had no intention of ever moving in.

But the above-average sale result wasn’t so surprising to Mr Evans considering the property’s size and history.

The home sits on a 1083sqm block on the historically significant Lisson Grove. According to the local council, The City of Boroondara, Lisson Grove represents the development of middle-class suburbs in Hawthorn in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century. It is also significant for its Victorian homes set in large gardens, demonstrating the style of housing built by the upper-middle classes in Hawthorn at that time.

The former Victorian home was destroyed by a fire in 2014 but that didn’t keep buyers away. Picture: Marshall White

The former Victorian home was destroyed by a fire in 2014 but that didn’t keep buyers away. Picture: Marshall WhiteSource:Supplied

Mr Evans told news.com.au it presents “a unique opportunity” for the new owners to purchase a home in one of the area’s earliest and most prestigious streets.

However, he guessed that they would have to spend close to $1m to restore the Victorian home to its former glory.

GROWING DEMAND

There seems to be a growing demand for skeleton properties from luxury buyers who want to buy in prestigious areas and put their own stamp on a property.

In illustrious Sydney beachside suburb, Tamarama, a north-facing site complete with DA approval for a designer five-bedroom home is on the market with an asking price of $15m.

The plans for 21 Thompson Street were designed by internationally renowned architect Wallace E. Cunningham. It includes multiple living spaces, a home theatre, gymnasium and a lift to all levels.

Elsewhere in Sydney, the crumbling remains of this heritage listed cottage in Redfern sold for $2.7m this month. The property, known as Dascombe Cottage, is part of the original estate of William Redfern — the English surgeon transported to New South Wales as a convict in 1801 who became the suburb’s namesake.