More buyers committing at Auctions

WA buyers are growing in confidence, taking the plunge and bidding at auctions.

Lately we have seen very active bidding at the auctions we have called. This is a big difference to what we were experiencing a few months ago, where buyers would attend the auction, but be reluctant to make a bid.

The increased activity is not just in the more premium markets where auctions are more common, but they’ve seen strong activity for family markets like Mandurah, Kiara, and Swan View.

There’s a number of factors at play. We still have low interest rates and good conditions for finance, and while the eastern states may be seeing massive price growth in some markets, Perth overall has been very stable for some time and buyers are confident that they will pay a fair and reasonable price at auction.

Buyers are also growing in confidence regarding the auction process. And they are realising that the auction lets them see what other buyers are willing to offer and gives them the chance to make a better offer if they wish. Whereas if they choose not to bid and the property is passed in, they might miss out on the property because their first offer wasn’t the best and they didn’t have a chance to better it, or know what they needed to offer to secure the property.

While there might be more action at auctions sellers shouldn’t expect to see record-breaking prices.

There are nearly 14,000 properties for sale at the moment and buyers have plenty of choice. They also want value and they do their research on prices. What we are seeing is that, while buyers are committing to the property and making the decision to bid, they are coming in low.

However the competitive auction environment means the seller will get the best price the market is willing to pay at that time.