New auction advice for aspiring property investors

A 60% year on year growth in property purchases at auctions signals another strong year for auctioneers but Property Secrets CEO Neil Lewis believes that getting the right property at auction is beset by obstacles that for the uninitiated, which will hit them where it hurts most, their back pocket.

As a sales channel, auctions are still providing a readily accepted way to buy and sell property. Avoiding the complicated property chain and making a quick purchase enables the experienced auction investor to make a rapid profit, but costly mistakes are still common-place amongst the inexperienced.

Lewis comments: “New visitors to auctions often still pay too much for substandard property, are beset by hidden legal or finance issues and often discover huge building and renovation problems which haven’t been budgeted for. All features of the modern auction.

“Others may recognise a bargain property but lack the confidence to make a good investment great. We see knowledgeable investors knock between 15-50% off the value of a property turning a canny discount into a sizeable profit but this isn’t the norm”.

But help is at hand. Property Secrets has released Property Auction Secrets 2007, an invaluable guide with unique incite from expert auctioneers and investors alike into bidding tips and tricks plus advice on tenancy agreements, finance and tax.

A unique feature is Property Secrets’ price ceiling software, a bespoke package to enable you to calculate your price ceiling – essentially what you believe the property is worth – on any purchase. This ensures that your price ceiling is always below the market value of the property.

Whether the purchaser decides to develop and re-sell, or buy to let, the price ceiling software helps the investor objectively set and realise their investment potential.

Lewis concludes: “Auctions still offer huge opportunities. With the online advantage of researching a property in advance of the auction, the impetus is with the investor to make a good purchase but knowing which strategy to use, and when, is becoming more and more important if you want to make it a success”.

Property Auction Secrets is available to non-members of Property Secrets at £57.00 and for its ‘pro’ members at a reduced rate of only £10. For more information go to propertysecrets.net.