TYPES OF AUCTION

Large composite – Tend to have over 100 lots. Expect well over 300 people to attend and the venue to be held in a large hotel or conference centre. Large composite auctions are likely to be run by a single auction house. The type of property may be restricted to just one (e.g.vacant possession houses, factories, warehouses etc) or may be a mixture of different types.

Medium composite – Have between 5 to 100 lots and will typically attract between 200 to 500 people, most likely in a hotel or conference centre. It’s similar to a large composite, only on a smaller scale.

Small composite – Offer between 2 to 5 lots and will attract upto 5 bidders. The likely venue is likely to be somewhere like a pub, restaurant, church or small hotel. Small auctions will generally follow a theme – for example the properties involved may have been part of a bigger group (such as a portfolio of properties owned by one company) who believe the best returns will be obtained by offering the properties for sale individually.

Single lot – usually for a property that is in great demand.

IDENTIFYING AUCTIONS

Auctions aren’t as easy to find as you might expect. Traditionally auctioneers get more than enough interest from in-the-know regulars so they don’t need to spend much money on costly advertising to the public.

Here’s where the list of auction houses that comes with this guide becomes invaluable. There are details on each auction house including which area the auction house covers. Go through the list and identify ones, which cover the areas you are interested in. Then:

Phone the auction house and ask them when their next auction is likely to be held. Ask them to put you on a mailing list, which details forthcoming auctions. Some may charge a small fee for this, others offer the service for free.

Prepare a list of questions for each auction house you contact. These should include:

Do you have a mailing list?

How long do you keep people on your mailing lists and can you let me
know if I am about to be removed?

What type of properties do you auction?

It may also be worth subscribing to certain pedigree property magazines. These include Property Auction News, Under The Hammer and Property Week. Local newsagents usually carry these.

THE INFORMATION AN AUCTIONEER WILL PROVIDE

Obviously they will provide the details of the properties going under the hammer at their auctions. These tend to be more detailed than the snippets given by estate agents (there are laws such as the Property Misdescriptions Act 1991 which make it illegal for auctioneers to give false information about a property). On the whole, for any given lot they will provide:

Location

Construction details

Tenure (e.g. freehold)

Accommodation details (e.g. 3 bedrooms etc)

Notes (e.g. refurbishment required)

Viewing details

Solicitor details

Auctioneers usually publish a catalogue with the lot details – this is a book detailing the various properties available at auction. These will usually be available a month or less prior to the auction date.

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