Is An Auction a Good Way For Selling A House?

If I want to know for sure that one of my homes will sell quickly, even on a certain date, I may consider a home auction. One thing I've learned about auctions is that the skill and marketing ability of the auctioneer is all-important, it can make all the difference in the size of the crowd and the amount of the bids. Skilled property auctioneers are a rare breed.

So, one thing I've done in the past is attend property auctions in order to see the crowd and watch the auctioneer in action. This has been a good investment of my time because then I know what to expect if he or she is hired to auction my home. Then I schedule an appointment and ask a lot of questions as well. Here are some of my typical questions:

1. Are you licensed to sell real estate and to conduct auctions in this state?

2. What do you charge to market in advance and to hold the auction?

3. What marketing activities can I expect in advance of the auction date?

4. How can I guarantee a minimum price on the home?

5. What happens if the winning buyer doesn't close the transaction?

Real estate laws in the various states control the requirements for a person to auction real estate commercially. Normally a person needs to be a licensed real estate broker when selling a house as well a licensed auctioneer, so it's a combination of training, licensure and experience at work for you.

But personality and references should be considered as well, so that you can work smoothly together in the time leading up the auction and on auction day itself. Make sure that you get specific answers to question number three above, meaning get promises in writing. Examples of pre-auction activities are newspaper ads, flyers, online classified ads, and most importantly, open houses. Buyers normally put a lot of thought into the purchase of a home.

Buying at auction doesn't leave much time for the thinking process, unless of course the buyers have seen the house beforehand. That's the reason open houses are even more important for homes sold at auction than homes sold in the traditional method with individual agent showings.

The traditional showing method doesn't have the pressure of a deadline when the home will be sold at a particular time on a particular date, which means your auctioneer needs to publicize and hold at least one open house prior to the auction. With good advance planning and a good auctioneer, selling at auction has worked out well for me. It has been the perfect way to sell my home quickly.


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