· Kensal Rise (£240,000, 2 bed maisonette, close to Bakerloo line)
· Finchley (£90,000, 2 bed apartment, close to Northern line and North Circular)
If you’re looking to invest in property, you may want to consider property auctions. TheMoveChannel.com provides an overview of auction properties.
The Good Old Days
‘Buy low sell high’ is an old profit making axiom that applies so aptly at auctions and one that is feverishly encouraged by day-time television programmes. But it’s not just the profit margin that appeals to investors; other attractions are the speed of the purchase and the transparency of the transaction.
Previously, when house prices were going through the roof, investors and home seekers were flooding auctions hoping to secure a property for very little fuss and cost. Their aim was to purchase a property that was undervalued, whether it was because it needed repair, refurbishing or it was a repossession. The reason didn’t matter as long as there was a bargain to be had.
Hard Times
But recently, times have changed, with the ‘credit crunch’ looming over everyone’s heads. Sellers are sitting tight and leaving their properties off the market, price growth has ground to a halt and as a result, attendance at auctions isn’t what it once was.
Opportunity Knocks
But this absence of competing buyers represents a huge opportunity for canny investors to still bag a bargain at auction.
Many sellers seem frustrated with the current property scene, dealing with estate agents and buyers that try to gazump them. They are tired of seeing a ‘for sale’ sign outside their home for months on end and losing sleep about their property chain collapsing.
Therefore now could be the time that many sellers want to simplify their sale by putting their property into an auction and dealing with a quick, efficient and transparent way of selling.
This all bodes well for the potential buyer, as a seller that is desperate for a quick sale will be more prepared to accept offers well below market value.
Also, the number of properties that have been repossessed recently is on the rise, mainly due to homeowners struggling to maintain payments on the increase in their mortgage rates. This means more properties end up at auction houses.
This means that well maintained homes are popping up at auctions as more and more regular sellers that would normally do direct to an estate agent, are now trying their luck at auction.
To the Victor, the Spoils
Buying auction property now accounts for an estimated five per cent of all property transactions, according to the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and around 25,000 properties now go to auction every year at more than 200 auction houses nationwide.
Purchasing a property at auction means you will complete on the deal within 28 days. Considering that the traditional method takes an average of 12 weeks from the day an offer is accepted until contracts are exchanged and almost one in three agreed sales collapse, it’s easy to see why buying at auction is such an attractive proposition and still a great place to bag a bargain.
Dan Johnson, Managing Director, comments:
For more information on property auctions and the market in general, please visit http://auctions.themovechannel.com/
-ENDS-
Notes to editors:
TheMoveChannel.com is a property website that was founded in 1999 as an online resource for buying, selling and learning about property. It now receives as many as 300,000 visits per month and advertises over 50,000 properties in nearly 90 countries, which are listed by over 500 partner organisations.
For further information as well as images and interview possibilities, please contact:
Dan Johnson
Managing Director
www.themovechannel.com
0207 952 7650
