After some research was carried out, Bond Wolfe is reverting to live-streamed actions as the study revealed that the mass majority of bids remained online during its first return to in-room auctions.

What do online auctions work?

Internet auctions are kicked off when a buyer intends to bid on a property, and they can register their interest by creating an account on the relevant platform. If you bid, you will need to submit identification and credit card details which will be approved by the property’s listing agent.

Once a bidder has been cleared, the platform will put a hold on the bidders’ credit card.

You can watch an online auction and bid on a property using either computer or mobile phone, and you have the convenience of bidding directly in the platform or app.

Bonde Wolfe, explains

Despite hundreds of people attending in person at its auction at Villa Park on 21 July, the decision came after more than 95% of bids were made online, either by phone or proxy.

Gurpreet Bassi, chief executive of Bond Wolfe, said: “We were really excited to return to Villa Park after receiving lots of feedback from buyers and sellers that there was demand to return to an in-room auction.”

“However, while it was a successful day and it was good to see so many familiar faces there in person, it was clear to see that the majority of bidding was online.

Bassi continues to say that a closer analysis confirmed that despite excellent in-room attendance, over 95% of the bids were online, by phone or proxy.

“This prompted us to undertake some in-depth research over the last few weeks, including a survey with our sellers, buyers and bidders which received thousands of responses.”

He states that this told them that the overwhelming majority of their audience preferred live-streamed auctions, with the main reason being the convenience to bid remotely and around work and other commitments.

Bassi explains that people also said they had become used to bidding remotely, plus Covid-19 is still having an impact, with others telling them that they preferred not to mix in crowds.

“The results of our research have led us to the decision to revert to live-streamed auctions for the time being. We are not saying we won’t ever hold an in-room auction again, as we do not think that there has necessarily been a permanent shift online.”

He concluded: “But like every other industry, these trends are something we need to continue to monitor, with more research planned next year. We will, of course, adapt to demand as required.”

Telling auction results

The auction on 21 July by Bond Wolfe saw 156 lots sold and more than £26 million raised in total sales, with properties and bidders from London, the North East, and across the Midlands, as well as from the USA, South Africa, and across Europe.

On the day itself, along with those present in the busy auction room, an overall of 17,215 viewers logged in to watch the auction live and leading up to the auction, there were already 659,823 website page views, 152,978 video tours watched, and 39,218 legal documents downloaded.

Bassi added: “Our results from July show that demand for property continues to outstrip supply and it is still a great time to sell your property – with our live-streamed auctions being the ideal way to do this quickly and efficiently.”

Bond Wolfe’s next auction starts at 9 am on Thursday 15 September 2022.

For more details and to register to bid visit www.bondwolfe.com/property-auctions-west-midlands/, or email [email protected], or call 0121 312 1212 or 01902 928 510.

Anyone with properties to sell in a future auction can arrange a free appraisal by calling the auction team or visiting www.bondwolfe.com/free-property-appraisal/.