Buying A House At Auction

Buy Real Estate                                                           

Auction does not mean foreclosure or a distressed home. The auction method makes it easy to buy real estate property. Like any large purchase, you need to do your research and be informed. 

First, every auction has terms and conditions that will serve as the contract for the purchase of the real estate. Review the document, understand the terms and if you have questions call the auction specialist. The auction specialist will guide you through the process for better understanding. 

Alderfer Auction will have available times for the buyers to view the property. You will receive a property information packet which will include professional photography, room measurements, seller’s disclosure, title search and any inspections that were elected to be done for the property. The buyer is allowed to bring a contractor and/or inspector during the showing times.

Many people who are not familiar with buying real estate through auction say, “auctions are cash only sales”. This is false. The majority of our properties go through the typical mortgage lending process. If you need to obtain financing, you will need to apply for pre-approval for a conventional loan. This will give you the amount you are able to bid on the property, without going over the allowable loan amount.  Knowing your finances before you bid is very important. The nice part is that auctions do not have mortgage or appraisal contingencies. Depending on the terms of the auction, certified funds will need to be shown to the auction company in order to register and bid on the real estate. This shows the auction house that the buyer is eligible to purchase and bid on the home.

It is auction day! The crowd is humming and the auction goers are going through a final home walk-through preview. People are registering and asking their last-minute questions. Some of our properties are sold live and online, where as some are live on location only. If the property is being sold online also, a staff member will be executing bids from a computer online. The online bidders have to make the same preparations as live bidders to prove they have certified funds to make the purchase. Everyone has the same opportunity to buy the property. 

The auction starts! The auction only takes 20 minutes, so don’t be late! There will be a quick overview of the auction’s terms and conditions, which are provided at the beginning of the property listing. The auctioneer starts her/his chant and off we go! The auctioneer will take a moment to pause to walk around the crowd and see if anyone has anymore questions. Once, all final questions are answered, the auctioneer re-opens the bidding so the buyers have one more opportunity to put place their last bid on the property. The highest and best bid wins! 

The auction is over! The winning bidder and seller will sign all of the paperwork and transfer the predetermined deposit with certified funds. The certified funds will be held by the auction company in a non-bearing interest bank account. The winning bidder will receive a copy of the paperwork so that they can start the mortgage process. Depending on the terms and condition a settlement date will be set. This time frame will be an ample amount of time to receive a mortgage. The buyer is allowed to choose his/her own closing company for settlement day. The auction specialist is also available to help the buyer with any questions as well. 

Settlement day is here!  The buyer and seller will come together to sign-over the deed of the property along with all pertinent paperwork. The auction company will bring the deposit money that was placed day of the auction. The deposit check is made out to the closing company to go towards the closing costs. Keys are exchanged and the property is officially yours! Congratulations!