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A house buyer is complaining after she found a house she thought would sell for around $690,000 could not be bought for anywhere near that amount.
Meadowbank resident Rachael Wettach says she found the reserve was in fact $900,000, although the agent handling the deal could not say what it was because it must remain secret.
She was keen on the Orakei house, enticed by a $690,000 valuation and being told by Bayleys' agent Jonathan Sissons that buyers were interested in the house at that price and that it would appeal to first home buyers.
But the house was passed in at $715,000. The experience has left her bitter and she said the house could not be bought for the amount indicated and she was complaining to the Real Estate Institute and Commerce Commission.
"First home buyer indeed! So much heart and time and thoughts wasted," Rachael Wettach said.
But Mr Sissons said he did not mislead anyone.
The house was on the market in a price range he had indicated - $700,000 to $800,000 - and after the auction it went on the market for $795,000.
But Rachael Wettach got an email before the auction from Mr Sissons which she said gave the opposite impression. "We would expect the property to sell within your price range ... buyers have indicated that they would like to buy the property close to the CV [current valuation]."
Murray Cleland, Real Estate Institute president, said even at the lower price, the house would hardly attract first home buyers.
