COMMERCIAL PROPERTY AUCTIONS
Buying: Introduction
Once you have found a property in the auction catalogue that you wish to purchase there are a number of steps which you will have to take in order to make a successful purchase.
Buying at auction is a relatively quick process if successful you will be required to sign the memorandum of sale on the day of the auction and pay a 10% deposit. Completion will take place 28 days later therefore it is important that the necessary finance is in place prior to bidding.
Legal & Surveying
Each lot will normally have its own legal pack containing Land Registry details, legal searches, special conditions of sale, fixtures and fittings, Planning Permissions and Energy Performance Certificates.
It may be prudent to take legal advice on the contents of the legal pack from your own solicitor prior to bidding at the auction
If you wish to undertake an independent survey of the property for your own peace of mind or for lending purposes this can be arranged but will be at your own cost.
Marketing
It is recommended that you keep in regular contact with the agent responsible for the property you are interested in as there may be changes to the property description and guide prices. It is often the case that offers are received prior to the auction and if we know of your interest in a particular lot then we can keep you in the picture.
Telephone / Proxy Bidding
If you are unable to attend the auction and wish to leave a proxy bid to be effected on your behalf or alternatively you wish to make a telephone bid please contact the auctioneers well in advance of the auction date.
The Auction
On the day of the auction make sure that you arrive in plenty of time as the final legal pack containing any amended special conditions of sale and amended sales details will be available for inspection. (This is your last chance to familiarise yourself with any changes). There is time before the auction for you to ask further questions of the selling agent and the vendors solicitor.
Once the bidding has stopped the auctioneer will identify the bidder and call the bidding before the hammer is brought down. At the fall of the hammer a legal binding contract between the buyer and the seller is formed.
The buyer will then be required to sign the memorandum of sale and pay the deposit. Formal photographic identification will be required at this stage.
The successful purchaser will be responsible for insuring the property at the fall of the hammer.
Selling: Introduction
We are able to sell most types of property at auction and have recently dealt with property from small parcels of amenity land to substantial commercial properties. It is an efficient and transparent way of achieving market value in a relatively short timescale.
Starting the Process
We are happy to come and visit your property and discuss the merits of selling by auction, please contact your nearest Durrants office to arrange a meeting with one of our specialist team.
We will prepare draft details and send these to you together with our contract of engagement and fees structure. The details are compiled into a glossy catalogue which contains all the properties entered into the current auction.
We are required to have signed instructions and confirmation of the content of our sales details from vendors prior to commencing marketing.
The marketing period for auction properties is relatively short compared to normal private treaty sales. Normally the process is condensed into four or five weeks of concentrated marketing. The marketing combines local and regional advertising within the East Anglian Daily Times, Eastern Daily Press, Diss Express, Beccles & Bungay Journal as well as specialist journals such as Farmers Weekly, dependent upon the lots entered into the auction.
Individual lots are advertised on our website alongside properties which are for sale by private treaty and the whole catalogue is available as a pdf download within our property auction section.
Legal / Solicitors
It is essential that you contact your solicitor early in the process so that they can prepare a legal pack. This pack includes Land Registry details, legal searches, special conditions of sale, fixtures and fittings, Planning Permissions and Energy Performance Certificates.
This information will be used by buyers to verify the legal ownership and associated matters prior to bidding at the auction. The legal pack should ideally be available to potential purchasers two weeks prior to the auction.
Viewings
We normally arrange block viewings of auction properties whereby a member of our staff is available at the property during specified times to show potential purchasers round and answer any queries that may arise.
Reserve Price
The vendor is able to agree a reserve price with the auctioneers prior to the property being sold. We would discuss with you the level at which the reserve should be set immediately prior to the auction. At this stage we will have ascertained a good deal of feedback from potential purchasers and therefore can advise on the likely sale price. The amount is not normally disclosed to potential purchasers. It should be noted that the level of reserve should not be higher than the top end of the guide price.
On the day of the auction
If on the day of the auction bidding reaches the reserve price the property will be sold and at the fall of the hammer, contracts will be deemed to have been exchanged. The purchaser will be required to sign the memorandum of sale and pay the deposit. Completion will normally take place 28 days thereafter.
If the bidding fails to reach the reserve and the property is unsold we will discuss the reason why the property has not sold with you and decide upon a suitable course of action.
