House Auctions

[Opara]

Hi, i'm considering buying my first property and having looked around Rightmove i'm seeing alot of houses up for auction.An example of one property I have seen has a guide price of £80,000 it's pretty run down but that wouldn't put me off if the price was right.Other houses on the street have sold for upwards of £110,000.I was interested in how you would go about surveying the property, it seems a waste getting a survey done on a property you were merely bidding on.Do the auction houses have one that can be reviewed to make sure it isn't a dog?


Have any of you bought a house at auction, it seems a little too good to be true at the moment, are there really bargains to be had?

Cheers

[jas xjr]

guide prices often bear no relation to the prices realised at auction . it can merely be a device to attract attention to the property . not always but quite common .
an alternative to buying at auction is to make an offer on the property before it goes to auction .
we have bought quite a few at auction and have never had a survey , but always have a good look at them before hand . my dad once bought one that he had not seen , which was a few doors away from a completely burnt out house . it over thirty years ago but i still recall it . just run up to yz road son and take a look at number 159 .
good luck

[Tino]

Winning at auction is the equivalent to exchange of contracts, so you put down 10%, and have a month to complete the purchase.
You have to be sure that the mortgage company will lend on the property, and that you have some understanding on what work is required.
Or you have a survey done, which as you say could be a waste of money, as lots of property goes over guide.
I went to see one that had a guide of £495,000 which went for £795,000!

[Dominicc01]

Have a look at the area and understand what the place would be worth after it is finished, and try to work out what you would need to spend to get there. Add in roughly a 15% - 20% margin for error, and that is roughly what you might expect to pay for the place, irrespective of the guide price. You might get lucky and pay less, but don't pay more.

Most surveyors, especially smaller firms, will be willing to spend an hour of their time wandering around the house with you, explaining anything which might be of concern. They will not produce a report or put anything in writing, but for an hour's rate you can have peace of mind over what you are buying. Give them a call and ask if they will do this.

[Opara]

Cheers, i'm only at the research stage so i'll keep my eye on some upcoming auctions and see what they go for.This should give me an idea of the potential for a bargain.