Comment:

Inflation, rising interest rates and tighter controls on the supply of finance have caused property sales to fall sharply under the hammer, a new report shows. The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) said more.
Contracts were subject to sale or financing and buyers were becoming more confident in negotiating property prices. One auctioneer said the role of the auctioneer had changed but the declining numbers were only “a blip on the radar” and more sales would soon begin to happen under the hammer.

Read the full story here: Property goes under the hammer in Bay of Plenty

Auction is the worst way to sell in a falling market… Why? Bargaining is the best method and if you think auctions will come back into vogue anytime soon, despite their “positive attitude”, those auctioneers are dreaming.
– Glenn S

In reply to Glenn S: The greats are very suspicious of unwashed auctions. There are too many unknown bids.
– Roy H

There are still agents who tell their suppliers to buy their prices.
Some of the prices are ridiculous in today’s environment. Do you want to wait two or three years or do you want to move on? Find a cash buyer and let them buy the house. Don’t just hold open houses and expect people to pay what they want. Those days are over. Tomorrow your house will be worth less.
– Roy H

In the current environment, and if you are interested in selling – just put a bright price on it. Otherwise, you will be wasting your time and the time of others.
– David J.

The reason auctions are popular is that agents are more likely to accept a competitive bid than any other method in the soft market, knowing that the owner has spent $5,000 up front on the auction. It is difficult for the owner to accept and understand that last year’s high prices are now historical. Because they think they are being ‘run or beaten’ by buyers. Markets change. Ups and downs.
– David F

There is no harm in planning for an auction. You put the reserve and the day before the auction, the seller should give you enough information to make a decision to look at the conditional buyers. Oops, I forgot, there are a lot of hungry sellers right now so maybe you’ll be pushed to bid as part of the cooling off process. If the property has an X-factor and is going to create an emotional response, or if the source is hard to come by ie: house and income, then auction, if not, maybe price.
– Rosemary W

– Reprinted comments may be edited at the editor’s discretion.

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