Bidding at auction can be quite intimidating for those who have never done it before. In reality, given that most people only transact in real estate once or twice in their lives, the opportunity to practise is quite limited! There are a few tips to it though that I’m happy to share.

The first tip I will give you is – don’t do it! If you can hire a professional to do it for you, you should do it. Buyer’s advocates are becoming more common. Like any profession there are good and less than good options available but if you can find a good one, they are worth the money. One of the best I have seen is Tony Slack from Geelong Real Estate Advocates, he has a fantastic presence on auction day and usually ends up with the property for his clients. If you can hire him, do it.

If you feel you are happy to do it yourself, then the first thing you need to decide is how much you really want the property. If it is your dream home that you intend to hold for a long period then be bullish with your budget. Set your target figure then set a second figure that might make you uncomfortable, but could just get you the property. At least have the discussion with your partner prior to the day rather than do it at the auction. If the property is just an investment, then stick to your first target figure. Be clinical with the numbers. It is a commercial decision not an emotional one.

On auction day my preferred technique when bidding on behalf of someone, is to place an early bid so the auctioneer knows I’m a participant and then stop bidding. Depending on how many people are bidding, I wait until the auctioneer is calling for final bids and then bid again. Usually the dollar amount the auctioneer is accepting bids in has decreased by then and I will try and break down those amounts again. There are obviously a lot of variables that can occur depending on the interest in the property and what your budget is, but in the absence of your own strategy, this is a good one. Remember it is only the last bid that counts.

Due to the size of this column I can only be brief. If you need a more detailed version of this bidding strategy I’m more than happy to talk it through with you, so feel free to give me a call. I can be contacted on 0419 505 279.