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Selling property at auction: a guide for sellers
You choose the auction day and the lowest price you will accept. At a traditional sale the winning bidder is committed on the day, and how far above your minimum they go is up to the room.
On this page
The short answer
Selling property at auction means agreeing fees and a reserve, your confidential minimum price, with an auctioneer. Your solicitor prepares a legal pack, then bidders compete. At a traditional auction in England and Wales the contract binds when the hammer falls.1 The Common Auction Conditions set a deposit of at least 10% and completion 20 business days later.2
How does selling a house at auction work?
Selling a house at auction runs in five stages. Most of the seller's work comes before the auction day. The guide price is the advertised figure that signals where you expect to sell.12
- 01 Appraisal and terms The auctioneer inspects, proposes a guide and sets out fees, the reserve and what you owe if you withdraw, in written terms of appointment.
- 02 Legal pack Your solicitor prepares title documents, searches and the special conditions of sale for the lot.
- 03 Marketing The lot is listed with a guide price. Buyers view, read the pack and arrange their money.
- 04 Auction day If bidding reaches the reserve, the hammer falls, the contract binds and the buyer pays the deposit.
- 05 Completion The buyer pays the balance on the completion date, 20 business days later unless the conditions say otherwise.
The terms of appointment come first. The RICS professional standard for auctioneers says they should state precisely when the seller's fees arise, how much they are, what you owe if you withdraw and how long the appointment lasts.1 The standard also expects your solicitor to write special conditions for each lot, the sale terms particular to your property. At a minimum they give the title number and say whether the property is let.1
An auctioneer that belongs to The Property Ombudsman and recommends auction to you must explain its benefits and disadvantages in clear terms. It must also give you written terms of business, with fees, before you are committed.13 If you would like us to introduce you to one auctioneer, how our introductions work explains what you see first.
Traditional auction or modern method: the short version
A traditional auction binds both sides to the sale when the hammer falls. The modern method, a form of conditional auction, binds them only to a reservation, which holds the property for the winning bidder. The buyer then has a set period to exchange and complete. According to the RICS standard, most auction sales are unconditional, and conditional terms must be made clear to the seller and to bidders.1
| Traditional | Modern method | |
|---|---|---|
| Binds on the day | The sale contract1 | A reservation agreement5 |
| Completion | 20 business days by default2 | No later than 56 days from draft contract, at iamsold5 |
| Seller fee | An entry fee and commission, in amounts that differ from firm to firm | Typically none at iamsold. The buyer pays a reservation fee6 |
| Buyers it allows | Buyers with funds ready for a short deadline | Buyers who need time to arrange a mortgage, as iamsold presents it7 |
Under the modern method the buyer pays a fee on top of the bid, and that can lower what they offer. The detail, including when each side is bound, is in the modern method of auction, explained for sellers. What each firm charges sellers under either method is on property auction fees for sellers.
Guide price and reserve price
The reserve is the lowest price you authorise the auctioneer to accept, and it stays confidential. The guide is the public signal of where you expect to sell, and advertising rules tie it to the reserve. Under the RICS standard the lot can only be sold at or above the reserve. Bidders must be told that a reserve exists, but not what it is.1
Disclosing the reserve has been a legal requirement since 1867. The particulars or conditions of sale must say whether land is sold with a reserve, without one, or with a right to bid reserved.4 The Common Auction Conditions, a standard set of auction contract terms, give every lot a reserve unless stated otherwise.2 They also let the seller, or the auctioneer on the seller's behalf, bid up to the reserve but not at it.2
How a guide must relate to the reserve
- Guide given as a range
- The minimum sale price must fall within the range3
- Guide given as one figure
- The minimum sale price must fall within 10 per cent of it, unless the auctioneer updates the guide whenever a reserve goes above it3
- Explanation
- Every guide needs text defining it, distinguishing it from a reserve and saying it can change3
- Reserve
- Confidential between seller and auctioneer. Can be set or changed up to the lot being offered1
The guide price rules come from the advertising regulators' 2014 advice on auction guide prices, which the RICS standard adopts as a minimum.31 An auctioneer that routinely updates the guide whenever a reserve is set above it may skip part of the explanation.3
In practice, raise your reserve late and the guide may have to rise with it. A guide says something about the least you will take. It is neither a valuation nor a forecast of the price. Guide price and reserve price explained covers what a guide price means, how it differs from an asking price, and what four auctioneers publish about their reserves.
The legal pack, and why it comes first
The legal pack is the set of documents buyers rely on before they bid, and your solicitor needs to finish it before marketing starts. Bond Wolfe describes it as the title documents, special conditions of sale, searches and other legal papers.9 The RICS standard says documents should be available to inspect for as long as possible before the sale.1 An energy performance certificate has to be ready by then as well. GOV.UK says a seller must order one before marketing the property and can be fined for not having one. Its list of exemptions includes some buildings due to be demolished.20
Buyers are held to the legal pack, not the brochure. Under the Common Auction Conditions the buyer is treated as knowing what the documents say, whether or not they read them, and is not relying on the particulars.2 A question left open in the pack is one a careful buyer allows for in their bid, or answers by not bidding.
Should anything change after marketing begins, the RICS standard expects an addendum, a written correction brought to bidders' attention before the lot is offered.1 What firms say a pack costs is on the seller fees page, and what the rest of the legal work usually costs is in solicitor fees when selling.
What the buyer commits to on the day
At a traditional auction the winning bidder is bound to buy when the hammer falls. Under the Common Auction Conditions they pay a deposit of 10% of the price or the auctioneer's stated minimum, whichever is greater.2 Completion, when the buyer pays the balance and the property becomes theirs, is 20 business days after the contract unless the special conditions give another date.2 HMRC treats the auctioneer's relationship with the buyer as starting at that moment.16
The Common Auction Conditions' defaults for the buyer
- 10% Deposit on the day, or the stated minimum if greater2
- 20 business days From the contract to completion2
- 10 business days To comply with a notice to complete2
- 6% Minimum default interest, or 4% above Barclays base rate if higher2
Many firms adjust these defaults in their own conditions. Bond Wolfe says its deposit is usually 10% with a £5,000 minimum and completion usually within 28 days.9 Pugh also gives 28 days as typical,10 and SDL allows 30 days for its unconditional sales.8 The date in your special conditions is the one that binds.
A buyer who is late can be served a notice to complete. Under the conditions either side may serve one, and default interest is payable unless the special conditions say otherwise.2 Should the buyer still fail to complete, you may end the contract and keep the deposit, without losing any other remedy.2 Whether that covers your loss on a resale is a question for your solicitor, applied to your own conditions.
What happens if a property does not sell at auction?
A property that does not reach its reserve at auction is withdrawn unsold, and nobody is bound. The RICS standard says the auctioneer should announce that it has not sold, must not bring the hammer down, and must not suggest bidding reached the reserve when it did not.1 The Common Auction Conditions say the same: no bid at the reserve means the lot is withdrawn.2
The cost of an unsold lot depends on your terms. Clive Emson and First for Auctions both say commission is only due on a sale, and First for Auctions says its entry fee is non-refundable.1112 A buyer may still come forward afterwards, and the RICS standard expects your terms to say whether the auctioneer's fees and authority to sign extend to sales before and after the auction.1
Your options are to relist, possibly with a lower reserve, to accept a later offer through the auctioneer, or to move to another route.
After the bidding at a traditional auction
- Bidding reaches the reserve Where that leaves you: The hammer falls and the contract binds. The buyer pays a deposit of 10% of the price or the stated minimum, whichever is greater.2 What the buyer commits to
- Bidding stops below the reserve Where that leaves you: The lot is withdrawn and nobody is bound. The auctioneer must not bring the hammer down.1
- The buyer is late to complete Where that leaves you: Either side may serve a notice to complete, which gives ten business days to comply.2
- The buyer still fails to complete Where that leaves you: You may end the contract and keep the deposit, without losing any other remedy. Ask your solicitor whether that covers your loss on a resale.2
- A buyer offers after the auction Where that leaves you: Your terms should say whether the auctioneer's fees and authority to sign extend to that sale.1
Selling at auction: what are the pros and cons, and which properties suit it?
Auction suits a property whose paperwork is complete and whose likely buyers can move to a fixed deadline. It suits less well a property whose natural buyer needs a standard mortgage and weeks to arrange it, unless you use the modern method with its longer period. The RICS standard notes that most auction contracts are unconditional, so the buyer relies on the information available before bidding.1
| Points for auction | Points against |
|---|---|
| A binding contract on the day at a traditional sale, with a deposit paid2 | A 20 business day default completion excludes buyers who need time for a mortgage2 |
| A known sale date, fixed when you instruct | The price is whatever bidding reaches above your reserve. There is no negotiating it upward afterwards |
| A reserve protects you from selling below your minimum1 | Buyers rely on the pack, so gaps in the paperwork cost you in bids or bidders2 |
| Commission, at firms that say so, is only due on a sale12 | Entry fees can be non-refundable, and buyer charges come from the buyer's budget12 |
A property sold with tenants can go to auction. The Common Auction Conditions sell a lot subject to any tenancies disclosed in the special conditions, with vacant possession otherwise.2 The tenancy documents then become part of what buyers rely on. Our guide to selling a tenanted property covers the tenancy side. A house with a structural history is another lot where the pack carries the disclosure, and selling a house with subsidence lists the evidence buyers look for.
Should I sell my house at auction?
Selling a house at auction makes sense when three things are true. The date matters more to you than the last part of the price. Your paperwork can be complete before marketing starts. And the buyers your property attracts can pay a deposit on the day and complete within the period in the conditions, 20 business days by default.2
If any one of those fails, auction makes less sense.12 And the reserve only sets a floor. Nothing stops the lot selling just above it.1
Should I sell my house at auction?
- Does the date matter more to you than the last part of the price?
- Yes Can your paperwork be complete before marketing starts?
- Yes Can your likely buyers pay a deposit on the day and complete within 20 business days?
- Yes A traditional auction fits The buyer is committed when the hammer falls, and completion follows on the date in the conditions.2
- No Look at the modern method Its longer period gives buyers who need a mortgage time to arrange one. The modern method of auction
- No Auction suits you less Gaps in the legal pack cost you in bids or bidders. The legal pack
- No Weigh the other routes first Where the open-market price matters more than the date, set auction beside the other routes before you instruct anyone. Ways to sell your home
How to choose a property auctioneer
Choose an auctioneer on evidence you can check: its registrations, its complaints scheme, its written fees and what its sale figures count. For a seller, most of what separates one firm from another is in its terms rather than its marketing.
Online auction platforms are judged the same way as a room auctioneer, because they do the same estate agency work under the same rules on reserves, guides and redress.115 So there is no separate test for the best property auction sites in the UK or the best online property auctions. The five checks below apply to both.
1. Regulation and professional standards
Ask whether the firm is regulated by RICS. The RICS professional standard for auctioneers binds RICS members and sets out what the seller's terms, guide prices, reserves and published results must do.1 Clive Emson, for example, states on its site that it is RICS regulated and a member of The Property Ombudsman.19
2. A redress scheme
Anyone doing estate agency work on residential property has to belong to an approved redress scheme. That is the body you complain to if the firm does not resolve a dispute.1514 Ask which scheme, and check the firm's membership with the scheme itself. The Property Ombudsman's code applies to its members' estate agency work in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.13
3. Anti-money laundering supervision
Auctioneers that sell land or property carry on estate agency business under the Money Laundering Regulations, according to HMRC's guidance.16 An estate agency business must not trade without registering with HMRC.17 The register is published as a spreadsheet, and you can search it yourself.
4. Published fees, in writing
The House Desk read the seller fee pages of ten auction firms on 14 September 2026, and one published a seller charge of its own in pounds.12 The useful test is whether a firm will put every fee into its terms before you sign. That means VAT, the withdrawal cost and the fee on a sale after the auction, as the RICS standard expects.1 Our seller fees page lists what each firm publishes.
5. What a published sale rate does and does not show
A firm's success rate or sale rate is a company-reported figure. Under the RICS standard, published results must be accurate and exclusive of VAT, and a conditional sale cannot be shown as sold until its conditions are met and it completes.1 We found no common definition of a sale rate in that standard. Ask the firm what its figure counts:
- lots withdrawn before the auction, or only lots offered on the day
- lots sold before or after the auction rather than under the hammer
- conditional reservations, or only completed sales
- which period and which auction rooms
A high rate can also reflect reserves set low enough to sell. It shows that a firm's lots tend to find buyers, and says nothing about what yours will fetch.
When an auctioneer quotes a sale rate, I would ask for it split in two, in writing: lots sold under the hammer, and sales agreed before or after the day. If conditional reservations are in the total, ask how many of them went on to complete.
Haroon Ali Author, The House Desk. Over 11 years in property and renovation Four auction firms have profiles of their own: iamsold, which runs the modern method of auction, SDL Auctions, Bond Wolfe and Allsop.
To set an auction beside an agent and a cash buyer using your own figure, try your price through each route, and if your deadline is fixed, work back from it with the sale timeline planner.
Considering auction? Weigh it against the other two routes
Each route asks you to give up something different. At auction you give up haggling over price in return for a sale day set in advance.
Not sure which fits? Answer three questions and we will suggest one.
Property auction
A sale day known in advance, a reserve you set and, at a traditional sale, a binding contract on the day.
- Binds
- At the hammer (traditional)
- Completion
- 20 business days by default
House-buying company
Speed and certainty from a single buyer, usually below open-market price. Check the company behind the brand.
- Binds
- At exchange of contracts
- Check first
- HMRC register and proof of funds
Find the route that fits you
Three questions, about 30 seconds. Your answers stay in your browser.
Question 1 of 3
Your best fit
What you give up:
Why this route
Close second: Property auction.
Selling in Scotland works differently, with a Home Report and offers over a closing date. The guides note where Scottish rules differ.
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Sources
(20)
Numbers in the text link to these. Each was read on the date shown. How we research
- Auctioneers selling real estate (incorporating Common Auction Conditions), RICS professional standard, UK, 7th edition
- Common Auction Conditions (5th edition), reproduced with the consent of RICS
- Guide prices in ads for property auctions
- Sale of Land by Auction Act 1867, section 5
- Terms and Conditions, Modern Method of Auction
- Fees explained: buying and selling with MMoA
- Leaders property auction terms page, operated by iamsold
- Property auction fees for sellers
- Our guide to selling property at auction
- Guide to selling property at online auction
- How much does it cost to sell a house at auction?
- Auction selling fees explained
- Code of Practice for Residential Estate Agents
- Estate Agents Act 1979, section 23A: redress schemes
- The Estate Agents (Redress Scheme) Order 2008, article 2
- AMLG2200: Sector specific guidance, estate agent business guidance
- Who needs to register for money laundering supervision
- Check if a business is registered for money laundering supervision
- Contact us
- Buying or selling your home: Energy Performance Certificates