Going Once…Going Twice… Sold – I Hope

This week I am about to tackle something in my Real Estate endeavorers that I have yet to accomplish during my eleven year career. A seller of mine has asked me to put his home up for auction. Not through an auction company, but rather for me to navigate the process on my own. Now I have sold nearly a thousand homes in my career but this will be my first sale by auction.

I plan to do it up big and pray that I will be successful. I spent a little time today surfing the web for tips on conducting a home auction. I was surprised at the limited information that was out there.  One of the few  posts I found was on eHow titled How To Encourage Participation At A House Auction They suggest the following;                               

Hold one or two open houses that last no longer than 2 hours. Hold the
open house close to the auction day, to maintain interest in the house
to be auctioned. Make

sure the house is in the best showing condition
for the open
house. The 2-hour
time limit also helps to raise interest
and create a sense of urgency among buyers.                                       

Print flyers and

brochures with the house auction information on the
front. "Auction" should be the first word to catch a buyer’s attention.
Have clear color photos in the brochure and a well-written description
of the house. Distribute the flyers and brochures to mailing lists,
local Realtors, supermarkets and wherever there is a high traffic count
of people.                        
                                                    
Advertise in the newspapers and trade journals. Consider a low cost
late night television ad to encourage participation. Advertise the
house auction online as well and consider a website just for the house
auction.                                       
                           

Place signs at strategic locations to maximize the number of people who
will see the sign. Place the signs at intersections where people will
read them while waiting for a traffic light to change. Ask permission
to place signs at the entry or exit to shopping malls, grocery stores
and big box stores".                

I plan to  do all of these suggestions as well as place an ad on Craig’s list, feature it on all of my websites, make one of the open houses an evening event with food and beverages and contact the local lenders too. The sale date will be the first week in December so I have my work cut out for me.

The seller has agreed to get his home staged since it has been vacant for months now and make a few cosmetic repairs to get it ready for the big day. The current list price is at $695,000 which is already reduced $100,000 from it’s original price. It has 4 bedrooms, 4.5 bathrooms, is 3600 square feet plus has a finished lower level with a spa bathroom complete with a party sized steam shower. Currently Zillow (for what it’s worth) has it "Zestimated" at $739,186. Any takers that want a gorgeous home in the suburbs of St. Louis Missouri????

So I think I have most of the bases covered to begin marketing this home for auction and look at this experience as a learning opportunity. If any of you bloggers or Realtors out there have had experience conducting a home auction, I’d love to hear your suggestions. If not…wish me luck.

By: Kathy Helbig