Selling a property at Auction
You may consider selling a property at Auction. This can often be a faster process than selling your property on the open market. Before the property is sold at Auction, solicitors are instructed to prepare an Auction Pack which is then passed to your chosen auctioneer who makes this available to prospective buyers prior to the Auction.
Methods of Auction
There are two types of Auction. You can sell the property through a traditional Auction, where the buyer is committed to the purchase by exchanging contracts at the Auction and paying the 10% deposit. Alternatively, you can sell by the Modern Method of Auction where the buyer pays a reservation fee which gives them an exclusive 28 day period in which to exchange Contracts and then a further 28 days to complete the purchase. This will give a buyer time to arrange mortgage finance.
What is in an Auction Pack?
The Auction pack contains all of the documents which are required to be provided to a prospective buyer prior to exchanging Contracts which include:-
- Contract for Sale including special conditions of sale.
- Transfer of Part (if you are selling only part of your legal title).
- Up to date copies of the Land Registry Official Copies of the Register and Plan together with any copy documents referred to on the title.
- Local Authority, Water and Drainage Searches together with any other searches relevant to the area the property is situated in.
- Completed Property Information Forms and Fittings and Contents forms along with any copies of any planning or building regulations certificates.
- A copy of the Energy Performance Certificate.
- Where the property is leasehold, replies to enquiries from the freeholder and/or managing agents and a Leasehold Information Form completed by the seller.
- Tenancy agreements, where the property is tenanted.
What is included in the Contract and Special Conditions?
The Contract will include the agreed completion date, which is usually 28 days after the date of the Auction, the agreed sale price and the requirement for the buyer to pay a 10% deposit when they agree to purchase the property at the Auction.
Alternatively, if you choose to sell via the Modern Method of Auction the buyer will pay a reservation fee at the Auction giving them 28 days to exchange Contracts. The Contract will include a completion date 28 days after the date of exchange of Contracts.
We can add special conditions to the Contract which could include that a buyer covers your legal fees, the search fees and auctioneer fees if required.
What happens after the Auction?
Once the sale of the property is agreed at the Auction and the deposit paid by the buyer, we will then handle the transfer of the property to the buyer on the agreed completion date. Where the property is tenanted, or if it is a leasehold property, rent and service charge apportionments will be calculated and a completion statement provided to the buyer’s solicitors.
Where the sale is by Modern Method of Auction, we will then deal with exchange of Contracts as soon as the buyer is able to do so within the 28 day reservation period and then complete within the further 28 day period. If the buyer does not exchange Contracts within the 28 day reservation period the seller can keep the reservation fee paid.
If you are looking to place your property into an Auction please contact us at the earliest opportunity so that we can prepare the pack in sufficient time for the Auction.
Contact Our Conveyancing team:
Call us on – 0116 255 1811
Email us on – info@josiahhincks.co.uk
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Should you have any queries regarding this, or any other Conveyancing matter please don’t hesitate to contact Josiah Hincks Solicitors and we would be happy to help.
Written by Alison Broad.
