How We Can Help You At Auction
Friends,
It is far too frequent that we are drafted late in the day, to help clients turn projects around that have been let down by other finance providers that cannot perform to their purchase timelines or conditions.
Challenges:
- Auction conditions;
- Planning complications;
- Condition
We are always grateful and pleased to help. But please spread the message far and wide:
- Mortgages will not complete in less than 12 weeks in the current market.
- Bridge to let products will be an expensive mortgage, not a cheap bridge.
We are able to turn applications around in hours, issuing offers in less than 2 calendar days, and instruct surveyors the same day as application; but we cannot guarantee your auctioneer will grant you multiple extensions after the due date to complete.
In Our Experience:
We have worked with nice Auctioneers, and not so nice Auctioneers. Most will agree to an extension of some form, though this varies. The best tactic you can employ to agree an extension is via the Vendor’s solicitor, and not the auctioneer.The shortest extension we’ve worked with is a 7 calendar day extension after the 21 day completion of a successful auction. The longest we’ve agreed is. 3 lots of two-week extensions, a huge 6 weeks after the due date of 28 days after the Auction.Now these are very circumstantial and the 3rd 2 week extension fell across the Christmas new year period, it must be noted solicitors aren’t open between Christmas and new year, and arranging access with your auctioneer is also a huge challenge. nevertheless we turned the project around from enquiry on 23rd December, to purchase on 6th January.The reason we were able to agree this was by demonstrating to the Vendor’s solicitor that the Borrower had been issued an offer (we can do this in under 24 hours when the need requires it) and therefore completion was imminent. We know solicitors are often fighting fire, so the prospect of having to redo the conveyancing on this sale means, if substantiated by providing an offer, we have an ally in the Vendor’s Solicitor.
Best Practice:
When going to auction ensure you have our checklist in red above completed, auctions are a valuable source of information and a great place to find deals, the deadlines and restrictions can often deter other would be buyers making opportunities available. Our advice would be to avoid auctions for your first few buy to lets, but once you’ve collected a couple, it would be well worth attending an Auction (without registering to bid!) to get a feel for the process and the environment. Follow a couple of the lots in the catalogue with a practice max bid, and carry out some desktop analysis of end values and rentals.IF a property that fits your investment strategy is in the auction and doesn’t sell, you can always follow up with the auctioneer the day after and engage outside of the auction room. Please note though, any agreed offer will of course be subject to the same auction conditions. This dress rehearsal is helpful as it allows us to experience the auction room without the risk of getting ourselves committed to a purchase.If you’re going to Auction in the not to distant future, feel free to get hold of you us or your brokers to discuss a relevant project.
Before getting into the room.
We can assess feasibility and come up with a plan for an prospective offers. Little things we do to ensure we are best placed to meet purchase deadlines without committing to buy at any price is:
– Agree a max offer long before the auction day
– Arrange for a survey to be carried out within 7 days of the auction (we are able to cancel and refund this fee if not successful in the room).
– Have Legals instructed and ready to begin the day after the auction, again subject to being successful in the Auction room at a price we are happy with.
Kindest regards,
Dan & the Team