Personal Property and Real Estate Professionals

Residential and Commercial Real Estate Auction

All across the country, real estate auctions have increasingly gained momentum as a winning marketing tool.  Auctions offer market activation and expose a property to a wide number of potential buyers, capturing the active buying market, and getting buyers to act now!  Auctions offer a stress-free method of sale for a seller with costs of commission and settlement being the burden of the BUYER.

For more than 15 years, our team has become proficient in real estate sales by way of Real Estate Auction.   Our Real Estate Auctioneers are also Licensed Real Estate Agents.  Because of these dual credentials, we are able to provide the professional service that a properly run Real Estate Auction must provide in order to be successful.  Licensed Real Estate Agents who are also Real Estate Auctioneers will see fellow Licensed Agents bring buyers to their auction to participate in addition to others who attend.   This greatly increases the buyer pool.

Real Estate Auction provides a seller with an individualized national marketing plan for the property, a platform of live or online competitive bidding, and a sale for market price in a condensed time frame.   

This type of sale method is NOT for distress or foreclosure only anymore.  While foreclosure is a separate method of Real Estate Auction, which is also a service we provide, 95% of the property our firms sells is NOT due to foreclosure.  Our clients choose this method because of a desire to obtain the highest dollar amount possible with no ceiling or cap and because it is one of the most efficient manners of real estate sale by bringing all buyers together at one time.  Buyers in attendance at a real estate auction feel confident when they see other buyers also placing comparable bids in real-time and this is how an increased market value is obtained.

The Real Estate Auction method provides for the following:

  • As Is Sale
  • No Negotiations
  • No Contingencies
  • Buyer Responsible Commission Payments
  • Buyer Responsible For All Settlement Charges
  • Buyer Responsible For Choosing Attorney or Title Company For Settlement (we can offer recommendations)
  • 30 Day Aggressive Marketing Period Pre-Auciton
  • 45 Day Settlement Period
  • 2 Open Houses and Agent Viewing via lockbox (if appropriate).
  • We represent the seller through settlement reviewing and verifying all settlement paperwork
  • Property can be sold Absolute to the High Bidder or With a Reserve Price

When  our team is employed to sell property using a real estate auction, the first step is a FREE CONSULTATION.  We gather all information regarding the property and prepare a detailed proposal for the client which includes market comparables for similar sold properties and an estimated range of value that can be expected.   

If our proposal is agreed upon and once contracts are signed, we begin our process of marketing.

The marketing campaign can include the following:

The property is available for viewing during the marketing period if appropriate.  Potential buyers are welcome to have pre-auction day licensed inspections for their comfort; however there are no negotations and no contingencies.

Each potential buyer must present a sizeable non-refundable deposit in cash or certified funds prior to the auction.  This deposit will be due from the winning bidder and held in escrow until settlement.  This gives assurance that the buyer will attend settlement.  Settlement must occur in 45 days post auction. 

 If the buyer is unable to settle, the deposit will be forfeited. 

Our commission and the buyers agent commission (if an agent is used) are obtained through a Buyer’s Premium.  A Buyer’s Premium is a certain percent added to the final high bid of the property.  The Buyer’s Premium is paid by the BUYER.   The client will receive the high bid auction day at settlement and all other fees are the burden of the buyer some paid through the Buyer’s Premium and others paid at settlement.

Buyers are welcome to use real estate agents/brokers when purchasing at auction if they desire.  We do provide a portion of the Buyer’s Premium as a commission to the buyer’s broker/agent.  Our firm provides all contracts when using real estate auction so using a buyers agent is solely the buyers’ preference.  

Auction is an excellent opportunity for property owners to sell and settle in 75 days from start to finish for current market value. 

NOTE – If the property is a seized assets or foreclosure,  the real estate auction can be held in a lessor time period dependent on each individual situation.  We understand certain lenders are on different timelines.

Benefits of the auction method

  1. The seller gets to determine the date and time at which the property will be sold. 
  2. Using the real estate auction method, property can typically be marketed and sold within a four to six week time frame. A timely auction allows the seller to drastically reduce holding costs such as taxes, insurance and maintenance.
  3.  An auction environment arouses the competitive spirit among the prospective bidders.
  4. Setting a specific date and time of sale creates a sense of urgency and forces the prospective buyers to a point of decision. 
  5. The seller can set the terms of the auction, thereby avoiding lengthy negotiations of price and terms. 
  6. A marketing program is tailored to the seller’s property which will attract the largest number of potential buyers. This insures a true “market value” price for the property on the day of the auction.
  7. There is no ceiling price set on the property, which allows the price to increase freely with no limit. Historically, when the market is on the upswing, public auctions have established the highest prices. When the market is declining, an auction will capture the current market price before values drop.
  8. The competitive bidding format creates confidence among the buyers when they see other people willing to pay a similar amount for the property.

We are excited to have the opportunity to work with you in selling your property. The real estate auction method has become a great alternative for many home sellers in obtaining the greatest amount of money for their home in the shortest amount of time.

Seller FAQs

The Seller remains in control, and has the option to accept or reject any bid prior to final confirmation.

Yes, we analyze the property and consult with you about a minimum or reserve price within our initial proposal. The price is not advertised or disclosed to bidders.

We are very meticulous prior to signing a contract to sell the property to research and provide anticipated values based on comparables of other sold property in the area.  This is all part of our initial proposal prior to contracting the job. Therefore, we typically will not accept a job if the expected market price we have researched is not in agreement with the client expectations.  This saves all parties involved time and expense. We operate on complete honesty and transparency on anticipated values. However, if we have agreed to sell using the reserve method and you are not satisfied with the high bid on auction day, you can reject the final bid and we will continue to market the property in a conventional manner for a short-listing period.

The cost incurred by the seller for a real estate auction is the marketing cost. Dependent on what type of property is being sold, we provide different options for the marketing plan and the seller decides which they prefer.   Example, a traditional residential home marketing plan will be much less than a luxury home, commercial property or resort property where additional marketing methods will be used.

Absolutely NOT! In recent years the popularity of competitive bidding has exploded to estimate 28 billion in estimated sales.  One in five properties are sold using this method.

The buyer is responsible for all commissions by way of a  buyer’s premium. The buyer’s premium is added to the final high bid price which becomes the total sale price for the buyer.  The seller receives the high bid at settlement and the additional buyer’s premium will pay the commissions at settlement.

The buyer pays all settlement costs.

Conventional Real Estate LISTINGS

Included, as part of our Real Estate Services, is a Conventional Listing. Our Broker is Quad State Realty, Inc.  Certain sellers prefer conventional listing. We therefore, list the property for a period of time chosen by the seller. 

As part of the listing process, we list on the Multiple Listing Service as well as numerous other online venues as well as signage, flyers and brochures. Additionally, we hold two open houses, post the property on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn and other online platofrms.

We go over and above to market and sell the property in the conventional manner.

What our customers have to say.

Awesome experience from start to finish! Entering this process was new and out of our comfort zone. Steve and his team are always professional, straightforward and great to work with. I would recommend anyone thinking of going through the auction process to work with Rawlings Auction, Appraisal and Reality. The team’s expertise in this area shows from the 1st phone call of them explaining the whole process of the auction from beginning to end, with Steve making sure the settlement went smooth, and their communication made me feel like I was the only client they were handling. As a matter of fact, my family enjoyed working with them so much we’re thinking of using them for our next real estate deal. We would like to thank the whole team for an excellent job!

After contacting several auction companies we decided to go to Rawlings. From the very beginning, Patti and Steve were informative as to the process, always available and responsive to our questions, and adjusted the marketing plan to our specific needs. One month before the sale, we had the farm appraises, and the final sale price was 98% of the appraised value. Given the current state of real estate, we were very pleased. The Rawlings also represented us at settlement. I was very pleased with my experience with Rawlings Auction, Appraisal and Realty LLC and highly recommend them!

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