Page 39 - Real estate: a guide for buyers and sellers
P. 39
Sale by auction
Vendor and co-owner bids BUYER’S TIP
Bids by the seller are permitted at auctions In order to bid successfully, you should:
in two circumstances:
• be clear about your bidding limit
• a ‘vendor bid’ can only be made by • bid confidently
the auctioneer on behalf of the seller • ask questions of the auctioneer,
because they are not satisfied with the
amount of the last bid including who made a bid.
• if the property is jointly owned, one Bidding at an auction
or more of the owners who genuinely
wishes to buy the property may bid Different auctioneers have different
from the crowd. This is known as a methods of conducting an auction; but
‘co-owner bid’ and can be made by a they usually try to encourage as many
co-owner or a representative, but not bidders as possible to compete, to get the
through the auctioneer. highest price.
These bids are legal, but only if they The auctioneer can set the dollar amount
are permitted by the auction rules. The of bid increases, which are called rises or
arrangements for such bids must be bidding advances. The bidder may bid
set out in the rules displayed before the at the amount stated by the auctioneer
auction starts, and announced by the or offer an alternative amount. The
auctioneer before the auction starts. auctioneer may accept or reject that bid.
Illegal bidding Generally, the amount the bidding
advances decreases as the auction draws
All other bids by or on behalf of the seller, to a close.
or any dummy bids, are illegal. A dummy
bid is either a false bid made up by the The auctioneer can refuse any bid, at any
auctioneer or accepted by the auctioneer time during the auction, including when
from a non-genuine bidder in the crowd. the auction hammer is falling. If there is a
disputed bid, the auctioneer may resume
SELLER’S TIP the auction at the last undisputed bid or
start the bidding again. They can also
You cannot make a bid to advance the refer a bid to the seller at any time before
price of a property at auction; neither the auction concludes and withdraw the
can anyone acting on your behalf, other property from sale at any time during the
than through the auctioneer. auction.
Substantial fines apply for dummy and
illegal vendor bidding.
39
