Ways to Bid
Once you have found a Property which is listed on our website that you wish to purchase, in order to bid for the Property, you must first Register to Bid. You should navigate to the homepage, where you will find the members registration box at the bottom left hand side of the home page.
Once you have registered to bid, you will be provided with your login details by e-mail. Alternatively, if you prefer you can telephone the alotsold auction team who will register your details and bid on your behalf.
As auctioneers we would strongly advise you to carry out due diligence on any property that you wish to bid on, which includes, reviewing the legal pack, which can be downloaded from the pdf icon on the property details page for each of the lots.
We would also advise any bidder to inspect the Property internally and externally and arrangements can be made for a Surveyor to have access to the Property to carry out a Survey in order to ensure that you are happy with what you are bidding on.
Our full terms and conditions are set out at the bottom of the home page and we would highly recommend that you familiarise yourself with our terms and conditions for each lot before placing a bid, as some lots are subject to a Conditional Contract which require payment of a non-refundable Reservation Fee whilst others require payment of a non-refundable Buyer’s Premium.
The Unconditional Contracts require the payment of a 10% deposit on the fall of the hammer, with the Vendor paying a fee for the sale of the Property.
Traditional Auction
The traditional method of auction requires the Buyer on the fall of the gavel to pay a 10% deposit (subject to a minimum of £4,000) and a 2% Buyers premium or alternatively an entry fee is paid by the Seller and no premium is payable and this is the point of exchange of contracts and payable within two hours, which means that the Buyer is legally committed to purchase the Property and the Seller is also legally committed to sell, with the completion date being inserted into the Contract for 28 days on the fall of the gavel.
Modern Method of Auction
The modern method of auction is aimed at the residential market and those Buyers that require time to source completion funds such as a mortgage from a Bank, Lender or Building Society. With this option on the fall of the gavel, a non-refundable reservation fee of 3.0% subject to a minimum of £5,000 plus VAT is payable to the alotsold team and the Buyer agrees to exchange contracts within 28 days at which point the 10% deposit must also be paid, with a further 28 days allowed for completion to take place, providing ample breathing space to get the right financial package in place.
Four Ways to Bid at Auction
In Person
On arrival at the auction venue, if you wish to bid for a lot then you must register to bid by providing your name, address and two forms of ID.
On registration you will be provided with a bidding card, with your registration number, which you will be required to raise if you wish to bid, ensuring it is prominent for the auctioneer to see on every bid.
By Proxy
If you are unable to attend the auction, you can use the Proxy bidding method where you submit a bid in writing by completing the ‘non-attending bidder’ form, which is available to download on our website and authorise the alotsold team to act as a proxy for you. You authorise the alotsold team to act on your behalf in the auction room up to a maximum amount.
By Telephone
Again, if you are unable to attend the auction you can bid on the Property whilst the auction is taking place on the telephone. Again, you can register by completing the ‘non-attending bidder’ form and submit this to the alotsold team within a reasonable period of time before the auction commences, together with any ID documentation required at registration.
Bid on-line
You can bid on-line in the comfort of your own home 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. You will need to register on our website before being able to submit a bid. You will also need to provide your ID by e-mailing the same to the alotsold team before any bid can be accepted.
Starting Bids
The starting bid is for guidance only and is the recommended starting level at which the bidding should open and it is no way an indication of a valuation of the Property and in most cases the Reserve Price is above this level. Please note that the Reserve Price and Starting Bid are subject to change.
Reserve Price
The Reserve Price is the minimum price that the Seller will accept for his Property and this figure is kept confidential between the Auctioneer and the Seller. However, industry wide practice the dictates that the Reserve Price is generally no more than 10% in excess of the Starting Bid.
Bidding Process
Once you have submitted a bid, and you have been successful a member of the alotsold team will contact you to ensure that the relevant documentation can be completed and for our team to answer any questions that you may have including taking payment.
Reservation Fees
If the Seller has chosen the Reservation Fee method of sale, the Property will be subject to a Reservation Fee being payable. The Reservation Fee is in addition to the final negotiated selling price, and is received on a non-refundable basis. The Reservation Fee is reserved against the subject Property until exchange of contracts takes place. If the Sale falls through due to the Seller breaching the terms of the Agreement, the Reservation Fee or deposit becomes repayable to the Buyer, without deduction.
Unconditional Contract – Part-Payment Deposit (vendor paid)
If the Seller offers the Property on an Unconditional basis (traditional auction), the winning bidder will be required to exchange contracts on the fall of the gavel and payment of the deposit and agreeing to a completion date which is 28 days from exchange of Contracts.
Completion
The completion date is inserted into the Contract on exchange of contracts, providing certainty and a date to aim for both parties. It is on completion that the Buyer must make full payment for the Property. On completion the Property is transferred to the Buyer and the Seller must hand over the keys and vacate the Property.
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