Allowing Viewings When Selling at Auction

When you sell your house at auction the person who buys it will normally have viewed it before making a bid. Despite the excitement in the auction room during the un up to the auction the process of buying and selling the property is pretty much the same as it would be were you selling it the conventional way through an estate agent.

Just like when you sell conventionally, the people interested in buying the property want to view it before they make an offer. It is possible to buy a property at auction without seeing it but this is not advisable. How can you really be sure the property is right for you if you have not even gone to see it for yourself.

Arranging The Viewings

When you register your house to sell at auction you will agree to pay the auction house a certain amount of commission on the sale. This is usually between one and three percent of the price the house sells for. However you may also be asked to pay a fee for marketing. The auction house decides on this fee so it can vary a lot. This fee is used to pay for all the necessary marketing to get potential property buyers interested in your house. Your house will be included in a catalogue of the properties on offer and potential property buyers will be able to arrange a viewing of the house.

Preparing Your House For The Viewings

When potential buyers view your home you want them to fall in love with it. Therefore you need to make a bit of an effort to get the property up to its best standard. The obvious thing to do is tidy up. If your house is untidy it will not look its best and this may put potential buyers off. Remember the buyers will want to look around so don’t just tidy the sitting room and leave the bedrooms a mess!

When people look at houses to buyer they want to see themselves living there. They want it to be a property that they can imagine living in and making their home. Therefore it is advisable that you make your property as much of a blank canvas as possible. Don’t have too many photos of your family around, remember they want this to be there house, they don’t want to feel like they’d be moving in to someone elses.

Smell is also important. If you have pets make sure your house doesn’t smell of cat or dog on the day of the viewing. Open the windows and let some fresh air in and invest in a good air freshner!

When potential buyers view your property first impressions are everything. Make sure your house is in perfect condition and looking neat and tidy. Do not make it look too much like ‘your’ home but rather let it be a place the new owners could make their own. And if you’re at home make sure you are polite and friendly – first impressions of the owners count too!