Garage on Downing Street with guide price of just £1 sells for eye-watering sum

15 October 2023 , 21:07

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A garage on Downing Street in Newport, Wales, has been sold for £14,250 (Image: Paul Fosh Auctions)

A small piece of real estate on Downing Street which had a guide price of just £1 has sold at auction for a massive £14,000.

The garage stirred up interest when it went on the market and attracted 60 bids from eight different people, said Sean Roper of Paul Fosh Auction. He said he thinks more and more people are now selling garages as a long-term investment, potentially to rent them out in the future.

The expert said some people also buy garages as storage spaces, where people hold their belongings. But while sharing its name with one of the most famous roads in the country, this particular Downing Street is not the famous London place where the Prime Minister lives - as it is actually located in Newport, Wales.

The garage had a guide price of £1 (Paul Fosh Auctions)

The garage, at the rear of a home, is flanked by a row of terrace houses on either side of the quiet, dead-end road with the last three sales in the last two years ranging from £52,000 to £132,000, reports Wales Online. Mr Roper said: "There was red hot interest in the garage from the very start of the auction. Eventually, the lot sold for £14,250 after attracting 60 bids from eight different bidders.

"The garage was listed with a £1 guide price which effectively meant that anyone offering £100 could snap up this garage. Garages always seem to sell well in Newport and this one was no exception. These domestic garages are proving popular for several reasons with secure storage for vehicles being one reason of course.

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"There are also many people with hobbies that love their own space away from their home. I have also seen an increase in demand for people wanting a space for general storage use. The fact the garage had a nil reserve and a £1 guide certainly whipped up more interest than it normally would."

Eight bidders were interested in the garage, said the auction house (Paul Fosh Auctions)

And it is not the only time that a garage in Wales has been on the market for an eyebrow-raising price, after one in Rhiwbina was put on the market for a breath-taking £40,000. Agent Nick Tatham, who was dealing with the sale, said the building has a very unique selling price that pushed its price up.

He explained: "Initially people might be surprised at the price of the building but it is a totally unique garage because of its specialist size. It is unusually high, which means you can fit a VW camper van inside. It is almost purpose-built for this popular vehicle, the older style, and it's also long enough for the new, super-sized versions."

Joanne Ridout