November Auction Newsletter
A word from our Sales Manager, Richard Webb
The last couple of months have brought impressive new records and milestones for us as an auction service provider, along with the rapid growth of an already strong 3,100+ portfolio of Partners.
We are now well and truly into conference and award season, meaning even more time on the road as we seek to promote our national and international auction facility.
We recently once again participated in the annual EA Masters awards, as VIP Sponsors. This always proves to be a superb event, with a great turn out of estate agents and industry suppliers, from across the country. With the introduction of our new Pattinson Auction stand, we really appeared to have created quite an attraction! We welcomed a mixture of existing partners, coupled with new agents who were keen to talk all things property with our team. What was evident, were the positive conversations with the agents who are now hugely embracing this method of sale. The acceptance of auction is constantly growing within the property industry, and this is illustrated by the ever-increasing number of agents who have seen successful sales with our auction facility.
As one event is now behind us, we look forward to meeting agents who are attending this year's Negotiator Conference & Expo, along with the evening awards ceremony on Park Lane, London, on November 24th. Please do come and say hello, and enjoy a drink.
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Felix Keene - Auction Manager Team South West
As 2023 has brought its fair share of hurdles for the property industry, it is with great pride and significant pleasure to report that our national and international auction house has continued to grow. October saw the Southwest Auction sales team beat all previous records in terms of exchanged fees and smash the annual target by a full quarter. However, we are not resting on our laurels and are eager to finish the year with a bang!
We have seen superb engagement from a plethora of partner agents and are thrilled that we have so many new partners to work with. This time of year is traditionally associated with a downturn in valuations, sales and enquiries, but auction is less affected by these festive trends as many of our buyers and sellers are eager to beat the competition to get their property sold in time for the new year. We are entering into the twilight zone where listings can be agreed, exchanged, and completed before Christmas. With the time for this fast running out, please let all your clients know that now is the time to list and buy to ensure they have the best chance of completing before the end of the year.
We have continued achieving impressive results with one property going live and exchanging within the space of 48 hours! Another received 40+ bids and went for £85,000 higher than the reserve. We have also managed to secure the sale of a property at £600,000 that had reported subsidence, and in turn helped a family, desperate to secure funds to provide care for a poorly family member. They now have the peace of mind knowing exactly when the funds are going to be available to ensure the best care is immediately available.
We expect a significant and positive end to the year with November already shaping up to be stronger than this time last year, as we have plenty of prospects to take us deep into December. Solicitors may close from 21/12/23 - 04/01/24 but we are relentless and will be on hand up until 22/12/23 with a short break over the holidays and back in action on 27/12/23-30/12/23 ensuring as many deals can be done this side of the new year.
The festive break often brings around a modicum of flexibility from our vendors and in line with the increasing understanding of market trends, there has never been a better time to recommend the auction method of sale, in order to get the deal completed before the end of 2023. We always say that it's not the property that dictates the need for auction, but rather the requirements of the vendors. If they need to sell in time for the new year, auction gives them the best chance of achieving this.
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Ellen Herbert - BDM West Midlands
As the end of 2023 is approaching, it is beneficial to reflect on the year and the changes we have seen in the property and auction market.
As my colleagues have mentioned, this year, has been hugely successful in terms of auction sales here at Pattinson Auction. And in the Midlands region, we have definitely delivered! More Partner Agents are interacting with our service, enabling them to offer a secure sale solution to their vendors.
Interestingly, we have seen an uplift in the non-quintessential auction properties, and this reflects our Partner Agents’ understanding that the actual property is not necessarily the main driver for auction, as it is largely lead by the vendors’ circumstances and motivation to achieve a secure sale, in a fixed time frame.
The market is very different to what it was 12 months ago, with interest rates now sitting at 5.25% which appears to have been a driving force for many landlords seeking to sell. We are overseeing numerous properties with tenants in situ successfully selling, and it appears that there is still a keen appetite for buying investment properties by those seeking to expand their own portfolios.
There is still plenty of time to refer a property to auction and exchange contracts before Christmas!
