Auctions tomove online for the future

After a year of online property auctions, a firm in South Yorkshire has decided to go fully-digital, calling into question the future of live auctions across the region.

Regional Property Auctioneers has been running property auctions since 2013 but has been unable to host traditional ‘ballroom’-style live auctions due to social distancing measures.

“When the pandemic forced us to stop holding an actual event at our auction house, we set out to find a way of making online auctions just as lucrative for buyers and sellers as the traditional auction house,” said James Vandenbrook, director of the Doncaster-based company.

“We quickly discovered that there are many ways in which they can be even better.

“After running some very successful online auctions last year, we’re taking the next step to fully embrace this as a service that goes beyond what we could have done before.”

Typically, catalogues of upcoming properties are published online prior to each auction and interested parties can arrange in-person viewings in advance.

Bidding then takes place online over a set timeframe, with email alerts and automated bidding facilities to keep bidders in touch with progress.

Adrian Little, senior partner and auctioneer at Mark Jenkinson & Son in South Yorkshire, said that a debate is going on nationally regarding the return to ‘live’ auctions – or not.

“We have been fully online for the last year,” he said. “We have just held our third auction of the year, raising £5.52m, with 27 out of 30 lots sold and a top price of £750,000.

“The online route has created a big question. I know we miss the camaraderie and banter which goes on, but there are so many advantages of the online route for buyers and sellers.”