But even he was pleasantly surprised when the "charming property" at 7 Beach Road sold for $2.42 million at auction on Saturday.

Though Mr Hastings wasn't surprised at the huge turnout to the auction for the "immaculately cared for 65-year-old cottage" that had never previously been offered for sale.

'It was a massive turnout. I'd say there were 300 to 350 people on hand and 31 registered bidders," he said.

"We knew it would be big.....but it was a bit of a highlight one for sure.

"It sold for $2.42 million. We don't mind admitting that figure was beyond our initial expectations.

"The sellers were really happy as you can imagine. But the buyers also were really happy.

"I think overall it was a really nice experience."

IN OTHER NEWS:

While a Sydney buyer ended up snapping up the sought after property near Bulli beach, there were plenty of local bidders showing interest.

"It was a Sydney buyer but I think it is important to note too that definitely the local bidders were pushing him up," Mr Hastings said.

He added that testing the market fully led to such an "exceptional result'.

"I think it says a lot about testing the market fully is important in order to ensure you don't die wondering and you get the best result, and sometimes an exceptional result does occur as well," Mr Hastings said.

"This was a really busy campaign. We had almost 900 registered enquiries on this property.

"But I don't mind doing the hard work because in the end it pays off. You tend to get the best result possible for your client.

"To be honest there has been a lot of sales off-market with a lot of agencies recently. Perhaps this [sale] is a good reason as to why sellers should consider not doing off-market as readily as they have.

"If you test the market with genuine competition, you can perhaps make sure that you are getting every dollar that you are entitled to."