Selling my property via auction

PETERPOOS

I'm looking for some advice regarding selling my property via auction. I have had an offer on a retirement flat accepted on the basis that I had an offer from a cash buying company on my house. Since the offer was accepted, the cash buying company have significantly reduced their offer. Therefore I am now looking to sell quickly via auction - but my situation has changed and I don't want the sellers of the retirement property to put it back on the market.

I am swaying between selling with Savills or First For Auctions. Savills sell a lot more properties per month than First For Auctions (around 200 per month compared to 40), but First for Auctions is the same company that I am buying my retirement property from - so the estate agent has suggested using them to keep it all in house. I have my heart set on this retirement flat so I do not want jeopardize that, and I want the estate agent to be on my side so that the sale runs smoothly, however I also want to pick the company that will get me the best price for my home. Does anyone have any advice around what route I should take, or experience of using either auction house? Thank you for your advice. 

eddddy

PETERPOOS said:

I have had an offer on a retirement flat accepted on the basis that I had an offer from a cash buying company on my house. Since the offer was accepted, the cash buying company have significantly reduced their offer. 

Just to double check on this - some house buying companies require sellers to sign an 'Option to Purchase' document, which might be valid for 6 months.

If you've signed a document like that, you couldn't sell your house to anyone else until the 6 months is up.

(Then, after signing, they ask you to accept a reduced offer, because they know you can't sell to anyone else except them.)


And/or have you signed any other type of contract with the house buying company?

RHemmings

Looking through the results of past auctions should give you quite a bit of information. In terms of sale prices, what proportion of properties sold, and if you keep track, how many sold properties reappear in a later auction.

You can also research individual properties to see how sale prices compare to similar properties sold through 'standard' private treaty techniques. Remember that auction properties often have something a bit 'wrong' with them, and that may depress typical prices over and above the fact of selling by auction. Look through the auction pack for clues. 

I presume you will be selling through traditional auction, not 'Modern Method of Auction'. 

Sorry to hear about your issues with the 'we buy any home' style company. Exactly what has happened to you is being discussed in other threads. 

youth_leader

I didn't enjoy selling at traditional auction at all, it was an expensive mistake, I should have held out with the EA for a better buyer.   I sold through a big EA and paid £795 to be in the catalogue, £1200 to my solicitor for the Legal pack, and at the end of the auction the commission was £6,600 for my sale of £275K. Young people came to do the viewings and allowed far too many people at once, I think there were 12 people there one day, muddying my carpets. 

It was March 2020 and the auction was on line as lockdown had just been announced.  I had two very very low bids, nowhere near the reserve.  The actual buyer didn't bid during the auction, he had viewed and was approached the next day.  He had a mortgage, and asked for eight weeks to completion.  As it was April/May which is still cold up here, I had to order more oil.  He refused to pay for it.  

Buckaroo0

Auctions do not sell properties at market value, notoriously under price, sometimes lucky and people bid over if its a rare property in an high demand area, but usually not.
I would say use a broker like together finance to get a loan for the purchase of your flat, and then secure it on the house, my mother did this, and there is then a charge on the property to pay back the loan plus interest upon the sale of the house, you don't pay anything like interest until the end, so usually a monthy interested added on until you sell. 
That way you will be able to sell your house at market value rather than make a loss.