Your final chance to beat the stamp duty deadline
National Property Auction
Thursday 26th August 2021 at 10:00am
Addendum
You can find the addendum for this month’s auction by taking a look at the link below.
The addendum is where you can find any last minute updates or changes to the lots on offer – it will be updated up until auction day, so if you’re bidding on Thursday, make sure to regularly check back to stay in the know.
Welcome to your August
interactive digital catalogue
Andrew Parker
Managing Director & Auctioneer at
SDL Property Auctions
It’s my pleasure to launch our catalogue for our August National Property Auction, taking place on Thursday 26th August – the biggest August auction in the UK for the second year running.
You can find out a little more about our upcoming auction and just some of the 215 lots going under the hammer in the video below, featuring our Commercial Director, Louise Moss who also discusses how auctions can benefit everyone.
Deadline day is approaching, not quite the end of the transfer window, but instead our August auction, which is your final chance to be sure of securing a sale that can complete prior to the September stamp duty deadline. Properties under £250,000 will not be eligible for the tax, provided the property completes in time, saving you from the surprise of being hit by any unexpected surprises or tax bills.
Whether this is your first time buying at auction or you’re a seasoned auction attendee you may wonder how we value the properties that are referred through to us – and what we mean by things like guide prices and reserve prices. Our valuer, Carl Finch, has produced an explainer guide below where you can find out more about the process from start to finish.
Last month we raised a fantastic £31m+ for our sellers across the UK through our biggest ever live-streamed auction, as well as in our daily Timed Auctions. We’re looking forward to another month of great results and I hope to see many of you, albeit virtually, in August’s auction.
There’s a fantastic selection of properties in this month’s catalogue, including everything from residential family homes and traditional doer-uppers, to large scale development sites and buy-to-let investments. Simply use the view all lots button at the end of this section to take a look at the 215 featuring in this month’s auction.
If you’re interested in bidding in this month’s auction, you will need to register before midday on Wednesday 25th August – to do so, simply head to our quick and easy online form here. It’ll take no more than a few minutes to complete and costs nothing to sign up. There’s also a handy guide below which takes you through all our remote bidding options: online, on the phone and by proxy, so that you can bid in the way that you’re most comfortable with.
Next month’s National Property Auction takes place on Thursday 30th September. If you’re interested in selling by auction, take a look at our frequently asked questions below or contact our friendly team on 0800 046 5454.
Frequently asked questions
Over the past few months we have naturally received some questions from our bidders about how the buying process works. Largely we are operating as we always have been, we’re simply not able to see you in the auction room when you bid. We’ve put together these frequently asked questions to help guide you through your auction purchase.
A reserve price is the price stated as the lowest acceptable figure by the seller. This figure is confidential between the seller and auctioneer.
No, not always. The guide is an indication given by the auctioneer. Where the guide price is a bracket figure, the reserve cannot exceed the top end of the bracket price. If the guide price is a single figure, then the reserve can be up to 10% in excess of this.
After the auction has ended one of our team will contact you to advise you of the result.
Yes, and these vary depending on the method of sale associated with the property and the country in which you are purchasing. These are listed below – please note the reservation fee does not contribute towards the purchase price. Any further additional costs, which are payable in addition to the purchase price will be included within the Special Conditions that are attached to the Contract. Therefore all prospective purchasers must inspect the legal packs thoroughly. We also strongly advise prospective purchasers to request a legal representative reviews the pack for every lot that you may wish to bid on, so that you are fully aware of any additional costs, if applicable.
England and Wales
Unconditional with Fixed Fee: On the fall of the hammer, the successful bidder will be legally bound to purchase the property. The successful bidder must immediately exchange contracts and pay a 10% deposit (subject to a minimum of £5,000), along with a non-refundable Buyer’s Fee. The Buyer’s Fee is £1,074, and completion must take place within 20 business days, unless the Special Conditions of Sale state otherwise.
Unconditional with Variable Fee: On the fall of the hammer, the successful bidder will be legally bound to purchase the property. The successful bidder must immediately exchange contracts, pay a 5% deposit (subject to a minimum of £5,000) along with a non-refundable Buyer’s Fee of either 4.8% of the final sale price of the property up to and including £250,000, or 3.6% if the final sale price is over £250,000. The Buyer’s Fee is subject to a minimum of £6,000. Completion must take place usually within 20 business days unless the Special Conditions of Sale state otherwise.
Conditional with Reservation Fee: On the fall of the hammer, the successful bidder will enter into a Reservation Agreement with the seller and be granted an exclusivity period of 40 business days to purchase the property (unless the Special Conditions of Sale specify a different timescale). The successful bidder must use the exclusivity period to proceed to exchange of contracts and complete the purchase. On the fall of the hammer, the successful bidder must immediately pay a non-refundable Reservation Fee of 4.8% of the final sale price of the property up to and including £250,000, or 3.6% if the final sale price is over £250,000. The Reservation Fee is subject to a minimum of £6,000.
Scotland
Unconditional with Fixed Fee: On the fall of the hammer, the successful bidder will be legally bound to purchase the property. The successful bidder must immediately exchange contracts, pay a 10% deposit (subject to a minimum of £5,000) along with a non-refundable Buyer’s Fee. The Buyer’s Fee is £1,074, and completion must take place within 20 business days, unless the Special Conditions of Sale state otherwise.
Unconditional with Variable Fee: On the fall of the hammer, the successful bidder will be legally bound to purchase the property. The successful bidder must immediately exchange contracts, pay a 5% deposit (subject to a minimum of £5,000) along with a non-refundable Buyer’s Fee of 3.6% of the final sale price of the property, subject to a minimum of £4,000. Completion must take place usually within 20 business days unless the Special Conditions of Sale state otherwise.
Conditional with Reservation Fee: On the fall of the hammer, the successful bidder will enter into a Reservation Agreement with the seller and be granted an exclusivity period of 40 business days to purchase the property (unless the Special Conditions of Sale specify a different timescale). The successful bidder must use the exclusivity period to proceed to exchange of contracts and complete the purchase. On the fall of the hammer, the successful bidder must immediately pay a non-refundable Reservation Fee of 3.6% of the final sale price of the property, subject to a minimum of £4,000.
There are a number of options when selling by auction which can include paying no fees at all and having the buyer an additional fee instead.This is often an attractive option when you are selling due to a bereavement or a divorce and you have limited cash prior to the auction to fund the sale. Alternatively as a seller you can pay an initial fee and commission price for the sale of the property, meaning the buyer doesn’t have to pay anything extra, maximising the final sale price of the property
Regardless of which auction route is selected, there are solicitor fees to prepare the legal pack for your property, which typically costs around £350 to £500. After your home is sold, you will also need to instruct a solicitor for the conveyancing of the property, which can cost anywhere from £450 to £750.
Yes, if a reserve price is not met during the bidding process, then the lot will not sell. We continue to market our unsold properties after the auction and if a post-auction sale is agreed it will be carried out under auction conditions.
Bidding registration
Bidding registration closes at midday the day before the auction.
Registering to bid in one of our National Property Auctions is quick, easy and painless. By completing our online form, you can register for bidding online, on the phone and by proxy, meaning you can bid from the comfort of your own home. There’s no need to wait for the legal pack to be completed before registering, there’s no obligation to bid on the day and there’s no money taken prior to bidding.
How we value your property for auction
Carl Finch – Senior Valuer
The first step towards selling a property by auction is to get a valuation. Here valuer Carl Finch explains how he values your property.
When you talk to us about selling a property, our first step is to provide a free, no-obligation auction valuation. This can be done using online resources but we can also visit your property if you prefer.
What are your circumstances?
We begin by chatting to you about your circumstances, to establish your selling timetable, your price expectations and what type of auction sale is right for you. We offer three ways to sell your property:
- Monthly live-streamed National Property Auctions with an auctioneer on the rostrum;
- Timed Auctions, which can be started at any time on our website, so are ideal if you need to sell sooner rather than later;
- Buy It Now sales if you prefer to sell at a fixed price.
Researching your property
Next we research your property, analysing its location, checking sold prices for similar homes nearby and digging deeper into your local market.
We begin with the simple steps of studying Google Street View to see the other properties on the road and nearby, then checking sold property prices using various websites.
All of this information is available to anyone but, as property professionals, we have access to additional sources, too, such as Rightmove Plus. This not only shows us how much similar properties in the area have sold for but crucially which ones were marketed and then withdrawn. This can happen as a result of a property being priced too high, so is really useful information to have. We can also access sales information about every property sold by auction across the country from The Essential Information Group.
If your property is a refurbishment project, we will assess the cost of any work against the value of the property once any work is completed.
Who will buy your property?
We also use our experience and expertise to predict who will be interested in your property, as this will affect the selling price.
If we believe your property will appeal to landlord investors, we will research rental incomes and yields for similar properties, using these to guide our valuation. On the other hand, a private buyer will be less driven by short-term profit and may be led by their heart rather than their head.
All this information we gather enables us to build up a picture of your property and location to calculate a value.
How auction pricing works
Many factors have an impact on the valuation but ultimately we need to be able to offer your property at a price which will attract interest from bidders. Therefore, be prepared for our valuation to be lower than any you receive from estate agents.
Whether you sell through an estate agent or an auctioneer, the price is just a starting point. When selling a property with an estate agent by private treaty or on the open market, potential buyers will usually negotiate the price down. Even though any problems with the property will have been taken into account by your estate agent when setting the asking price, buyers will still use these as bargaining tools.
In an auction, however, we aim to drive the price up by encouraging competitive bidding, which is why we will start from a lower price point.
Once we have our valuation, we will work with you to decide on two different prices for your property; the reserve price and the guide price.
The reserve price is the minimum you are willing to accept and protects you from having to sell for less than you are happy with. If the reserve isn’t met, the property doesn’t sell but we will continue to market the property afterwards. Most of our unsold properties will sell after the auction, many on the same or following day.
The guide price is the price we advertise to potential buyers. This is just what it says it is; a guide. Because the guide price must always be within 10% of the reserve price; higher or lower, it gives bidders a realistic idea of how much you are willing to sell for. For example: If your property’s guide price is £200,000+, the reserve must be between £180,000 and £220,000.
If you have a property to sell and would like to find out more about selling by auction, please call our friendly team on 0800 046 5454 or click here to request a free, no-obligation auction valuation.
Remember to tune in!
Our Auction Events are currently broadcast online, live from our auction studio in Nottingham.
It’s really easy to tune in and watch on the day. The auction begins at 10:00am and will run throughout the day, with our each of our auctioneers taking to the rostrum. To tune in on the day, simply visit our website where you’ll be able to watch the auction unfold from our home page, or follow the link below!
Our buyers terms
If you’re planning on bidding at auction, it’s really important that you do your due diligence prior to the auction – part of which is reading our buyers terms which you can find below. Make sure to read them in full to ensure you’re prepared to bid.
Guide to additional fees
Important notice relating to fees, costs and charges payable by the buyer in addition to the purchase price.
In addition to the purchase price, buyers may be required to pay additional fees, costs and charges. These may include, but are not limited to, Value Added Tax (VAT), Stamp Duty, ground rents, rent arrears/apportionment of rent, outstanding service charges, sellers search costs/disbursements, reimbursements of sellers solicitors, auctioneer costs or reservation fees. All prospective buyers are advised to inspect the legal documents including the contract and special conditions of sale and seek their own independent legal advice as to the full cost of purchasing a specific property.
Homes under the Hammer
If you’re successful in this month’s auction, you could take part!
Despite the current restrictions the Homes under the Hammer team are still looking for properties to feature in upcoming episodes of the show, even though they can’t be in the auction studio. If you’re interested in taking part in the programme or would like any information about what is involved in taking part please contact either Romy Lyon on 07929 829814 or Sophie Morrison on 07929 829812 or alternatively use the button below to contact them via email.
Legal Packs
We recommend reading the legal pack prior to the auction, to make sure you’re aware of all the information before bidding.
It’s really important that you take a thorough look through the legal pack for the property you’re interested in buying before placing a bid, as they lots of important information regarding your purchase. We recommend going through the pack with your solicitor prior to the auction. You can view the legal packs for all lots in this month’s auction using the link below.
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