I recently found the perfect property for one of my clients that had been searching for that elusive parcel of land that was Perked, and ready to go. I met him in October ff 2007 and he told me that he had been searching since 2003 for just a couple of acres that was ready to build on.
Unfortunately, everything he found was tied up by a builder, and he wanted his dad to build his house for him. I think he had seen every lot that had come up for sale in the county for the past 4 years. So my team and I went to work trying to find a property that accurately fit his criteria. Low and behold, the AUCTION listing came up.
My client loved it! The process was simple; there were 4 lots that a builder was liquidating. We met our buyer at the site the morning of the auction, and for a $5,000.00 deposit, he could bid on the lots. The auctioneer stated that the highest bidder would be able to choose the lot they liked best of the 4 available.
Before the auction began we advised our client of the market price that he might expect to pay for his lot. And that he needed to decide how much he was willing to pay prior to the auction. This is very important because it is very easy to get caught up in the emotion and momentum of an auction, and it is very easy to get carried away in moment, and you can end up paying much more than you expected. I have been to hundreds of auctions and have seen this happen time and time again, much to the dismay of the winning bidder.
We also made sure that the perc's were still valid, checked to make sure the engineering study was up to date, and checked if the school allocations had been paid or not. This could have been a real problem since we are not sure if there will be a perc season in our area next year, and the school allocation could mean an extra $13,000.00 to $15,000.00 per lot. These are Questions that our buyer had not even thought about prior to this time.
In the end our client was able to get the lot of his choice for exactly the price we advised him, he was prepared to pay $25,000.00 more than the bidding went, the lot had a current sewage easement plat, and the school allocation had already been paid. He was very happy with our services, and managed to quickly find a lot that suited his family within two months of our first meeting.
The bottom line is that even in the auction arena, Agents do have a place, and a responsibility to protect and advise our clients. We still need to do our homework, know the ins and outs of the property being sold and help our clients make an educated decision.
To top it all off, the local newspaper was there on auction day to cover the event because auctions of this nature are unusual for our area. By the time all was said and done, Our client paid $75,000 LESS than the builder had invested in the property! It's great to see people able to get a deal and know that they're interests have been protected by knowledge, professional Realtors!
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