Buying At Auction

So, having read our getting ready for a property auction page, you are now at the stage where you are seriously interested in a property in an auction catalogue. What next?

Well, you will need to make sure that you undertake the relevant property and land searches, as is always the case with a property you are interested in.

With auction properties, you need to make absolutely sure that you read all the conditions attached - if in any doubt then ask for professional advice. People who buy at auction sometimes don't read the small print and get caught out - for instance scarily high annual maintenance contracts in place on flats, or a tenure that is about to expire, or it may be that you have to pay the sellers fees and more besides can add significantly to the cost and make it not the bargain that you hoped for!

You will often need to provide a deposit of around 10% of the cost of the property on the day of the auction, so ensure that you have this in place - remember that you will need to have all the money available within about a month of the process and that this will need to be a lump sum of the balance.

Assuming that you will need some sort of mortgage to pay for the property then it can be a good idea, although time consuming, to set the ball in motion here before the auction, particularly because the process can all happen in about three weeks, getting a mortgage in principal sorted can minimise the chance of you losing your deposit by failing to complete the process in the accelerated time period that is the norm with auction sales and sets them apart from standard property purchases and sales.

Finally, it is not a whim and not for the faint-hearted: once you have agreed to buy at auction it is legally binding so you can't back out when the rush of blood to the head has gone away!

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Buying At Auction