SUTTON Kersh’s latest Liverpool property auction generated sales of more than £2.3m.

It was “standing room only” at the event at the Hilton Hotel, in Liverpool city centre.

High pre-auction activity resulted in 13 properties from the catalogue of 63 being sold prior to the sale.

A further 20 sold in the room and seven more sales completed afterwards, and the firm expects more deals to be brokered over coming weeks.

The best-performing lots of the day were the former Lambeth Hotel, in Smith Street, in Walton, which sold for three times its guide price, and a vacant residential property in Southport Road, in Bootle, that sold for £40,000 over guide price.

The former Lambeth Hotel made local headlines when it was set alight in an act of vandalism in 2008.

The three-storey property, still fire-damaged, was highlighted as a development opportunity and was guided at £25,000.

Following a “fierce” bidding war between an anonymous proxy bidder and a telephone bidder, the property eventually sold for £75,500.

A three-bedroom semi-detached vacant house in Southport Road, in Bootle, had previously been for sale on the high street for £74,950 prior to be auctioned.

Guided at £50-55,000 in the catalogue. a competitive bidding war in the room resulted in the property selling for £90,500 – over £40,000 above guide price and £15,000 over its high street value.

Wavertree Town Hall was also up for grabs. Offered as lot two, the historic building sold in the room for its guide price of £100,000.

Cathy Holt, auction manager at Sutton Kersh, said: “We are pleased with the result. The auction was well-attended and to sell 20 out of 50 properties in the room is a good result in current market conditions.

“Further sales are currently in negotiation, and we hope to push over the 65% success mark.”