It may have taken over an hour and a half, but selling agent Denis Bergin from Bergins Auctioneers, Baggot Street, Dublin, did eventually arrive at a successful conclusion at last week’s auction of a 258-acre residential farm at Camira, Ballymackey, Nenagh, Co Tipperary.

Once part of the 10,000-acre Bowen estate, the property came to the market with a 1940s bungalow residence, a range of traditional farm buildings and 258 acres of land set out in one block. Although guided at €2.85 million prior to auction, the property sold under the hammer for substantially less at €2,205,000, which works out at €8,500/acre.

Before a crowd of around 30 people, auctioneer Denis Bergin opened the bidding at €1 million. Following this, bids ranging from €100,000 to as low as €2,000 were taken from three interested parties, one of whom bowed out early in the race.

After a number of adjournments, the farm was eventually declared on the market at €2,205,000. Satisfied that all avenues had been exhausted and with no further offers forwarded, Bergin dropped the hammer at €2,205,000 to a solicitor in trust. It’s believed he was acting on behalf of a farmer from the vicinity. The other two bidders were also believed to be farmers from the region.

It’s understood the property generated over 40 viewings prior to auction. Interestingly, there was no Northern or UK interest.

Although anecdotal evidence suggests there is good demand for big farms, it’s clear that the number of customers and the capacity to bid rapidly de-escalates once the asking price moves beyond the €1 million mark, never mind the €2 million threshold. The appetite is certainly there but the purchasing power wanes significantly behind, unless supplemented by some other cash reserves.