Posted by mrwi on December 11, 2005 at 18:04:06:
have you ever tried the 5-day method??? It works!!!
Auction - Posted by Larry S.
Posted by Larry S. on December 07, 2005 at 17:16:47:
Hello! Would anybody be able to give me a brief overview of your experience in auctioning a home- i.e. what to look for in an auctioneer, how the process works, fees involved, timeframes, etc. There is a luxury home near me which has been on the market for many months, price reduced $400K, owner MOTIVATED. Any input from somebody who has signed an option to purchase at below market value and staged a successful, profitable auction would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance for your comments.
Sincerely, Larry S.
Tampa, FL
P.S. Do you recommend any particular form re. the Option Agreement and where would I get it? Thanks again!
Re: Auction - Posted by Chris (WI)
Posted by Chris (WI) on December 07, 2005 at 18:43:35:
Larry,
I recently tried (unsuccessfully) to auction a house we had. Much to the auctioneer’s credit, he tried to discourage us from doing an auction because he felt the house was too expensive. Never being one to learn from another’s experience, we insisted he go ahead. We paid $2,750 for advertising and his “no sale” fee. He said he spent $2,500 on advertising and the “no sale” fee would have been credited back had we been successful. He also was charging a 7.5% buyers fee to be added on to the top bid which would have been his fee for a successful sale. He usually charges 10% but since this was a more expensive house he came down a little on the buyers fee. Our house was 8 years old, 4bd, 3 ba, clean as a whistle and should retail for $290,000. Not a single bidder showed up at the auction. Luckily for us we then put it on the MLS and sold it two weeks later for $279K. So after this I now believe the auctioneer who told me that auctions are great for bread and butter / first time home buyer houses in the $100K - $150K range. In that range you have dads buying for kids, optimistic handymen, ambitious young couples, and eager investors. But in the higher end homes you have patient, discriminating, experienced home buyers who have a lot of other things to choose from in that price range, including new construction where they can get exactly what they want. I have been to several auctions for lower end properties and they seem to sell very close to retail prices. I don’t think it is a good strategy for something in the price range you are talking about. If you would like an interesting and entertaining read on auctions get Chuches, Jails and Goldmines by Sheldon Good.