i am not a laywer so please confirm the bellow.

I think you can put what ever clauses you like on an 'auction' property, the only catch is the 3 day cooling off period isn't avaliable within a certain number of days from auction to prevent someone putting a huge offer on friday then backing out monday.  Aside from that you can still submit an offer subject to xyz clause.

The problem of offering such a strong offer this early in the piece is that you are showing your hand, the agent will probably use this to try and drum up support on the auction trail.  By the same token unless they are desperate they are not going to accept a low offer just at the start of an advertising campaign.  I dont know the market but if its really cooling and this is just a 'standard' property i would probably let it go to auction, if it goes nuts there was probably a buyer out there the whole time that would have happily outbid you once he got a call from the agent with your offer if not you are in a much stronger position come monday after an auction.

i renovated the place i was in, sold it for significant profit (tax free as it was my PPOR), then purchased a house in the area i wanted that required a lot of work, i then renovated it on the weekend.

… then i split with my partner and sold it….

I have since then lived in a 3 story place in a good suburbs with 4 mates and now live in a top story apartment in southbank melbourne, both of which have been less hassle, cost A LOT LESS, and fit in perfectly with my life style. I rent and am investing my money (a large portion of which i am saving because i don’t have a PPOR and associated costs) where ever i can get a solid return and live the lifestyle i want much cheaper because i rent it.