Property auctions

A Reservation Fee or Reservation Deposit is paid by the buyer to give their commitment to purchase from the seller. It also reserves the property exclusively to them during the reservation period.

The Reservation Fee is non-refundable and paid in addition to the agreed purchase price. The payment is later used to cover the seller’s fees and the buyer should take into consideration the Reservation Fee when deciding the total amount they wish to pay for the property. The Reservation Fee paid is typically 4.2% (of the purchase price) including VAT and is subject to a minimum of £6,000 including VAT. The Reservation fee does not form part of the purchase price.

The Reservation Deposit is paid in the instances that the seller agrees to pay the fees. It is non-refundable and forms part of the agreed purchase price. The Reservation Deposit paid is typically 4.2% (of the purchase price), and is subject to a minimum of £6,000. The Reservation Deposit forms part of the final purchase price.

Depending on which auction option that has been selected, you will have between 28 – 56 days to complete on the property. If you are buying through the Modern Method of Auction, there is enough time to buy with residential auction finance.

Bids can be placed through the website 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, or if you would prefer to speak to someone you can make a bid over the telephone to a member of The Auction Department.

If you would like to place a bid on a property before the auction has finished it will be dealt with on an individual basis. By law we must put all offers to our clients. It is then up to the seller if they want to consider an early bid. In this scenario a non refundable Reservation Fee/Deposit is still payable and the relevant Terms & Conditions of the auction still apply.

If the reserve price is not met during the auction, we will communicate with the seller and any interested parties to see if a sale can still be achieved. If you are interested in an unsold lot please contact a member of The Auction Department.

Current HMRC policy is that the chargeable consideration (monies or monies worth) for a land transaction is what has been given (either directly or indirectly) in order to acquire the subject - matter of the transaction, by the purchaser or a person connected with them. This includes fees which have to be paid in order to acquire the property. This means that whatever the buyer pays, it will form part of the purchase price for the property and it will be included in their liability for stamp duty.

You should seek advice from your proposed mortgage provider but it is unlikely that it will be considered as part of the value of the property for the mortgage calculation.

The Reservation Fee paid is used to cover the Auction House and Estate Agent fees.

Yes and we are under an obligation to pass on all offers, unless the seller has instructed the agent in writing that offers of a particular type are not to be advised to them. It will be for the agent to arrange payment of the fee with the seller.

A Buyers Information Pack is a range of documents prepared before the property is sold via auction to allow the interested party to do the required due-diligence before purchasing. This pack typically consists of the Legal Title Documents, Local Authority Search, Water and Drainage Search and the Energy Performance Certificate (EPC). EPCs contain information on the properties energy use and typical energy costs. They also recommend how to reduce energy use and save money. Once the property is sold, the pack is forwarded to the acting solicitors.

The successful Buyer is required to pay £200 including VAT for the preparation of the Buyer Information Pack where provided.