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A strategic approach to online auction sales for estate agents

Here is 6 strategic tips to help you create get the most from your online auction


Review the property to see if it's a good asset to bring to auction. As auctions attract bidders that are looking for a potential profit in a turnkey property. You can bring any property to an auction but the selling mechanisms will change the bidders' participation decisions.


On examination of the property, you find it suitable for an auction, set a 'Guide Price' to attract potential bidders. The guide price must be appropriate to the condition of the asset and will spark interest in bidders. Review the guide price for similar assets that went to auction and calculate the average to set you Guide Price. 


It's recommended that you set the 'Reserve Price' and the 'Guide Price' to the same amount. This means you need one bid to sell the property. If the reserve is set higher than the guide price and it fails to sell, it can have a negative impact on the property for future sales. 


Give yourself at least one month to prepare for the auction day. You will need to invite the solicitor to upload the legal documents straight away. The rest of the month can be focused on marketing the property and setting the final sale conditions based on the level of interest. On the day, deposits will be taken, bids place and contacts exchanged. 


As the momentum slows towards the end of the auction you can adjust the bid increments to encourage bidders to place on last bid. Depending on the asset, the bid increments might start at €5000 but in the last minute reduced to €1000. All bidders will be notified of such change. 


As the auction winds down into the last minutes a bid extension can be activated to allow bidders more time to place a bid. Generally, the bid extension would last for 1 minute but it could be set for 5, 10 or 20 minutes. 


It's advised you to stay in contact with your bidders during the auction as their feedback will help you adjust the sale conditions to make sure the property sells.