Baby Steps: Auction Directories
There are thousands of local auctioneers and real estate agents conducting real-life auctions on any given day, and few people have the time to monitor all those individual sources to find what they want. Online directories of available properties are extremely efficient and easy to use, allowing you to search up-to-date listings by state, by price, and by type of property. Looking for new residential construction in Florida? Commercially zoned property in Georgia? Undeveloped land in Canada? Take your pick.
For a seller, too, an auction directory is a good way to test the budding market without having to commit to the online revolution. In Romney, West Virginia, for example, a bank had requested the auction of an exclusive mountain estate with hangar and airstrip. Don Hockman, owner of Hockman Auctions, drafted a marketing plan that included advertising in aviation circles — after all, who better to buy a fly-in estate than someone with a plane? — and listing in online search engines. The estate was not available for online bidding, but it did turn up in multiple directories during a hunt for unique property. Prospective buyers in search of a fly-in property, even if they'd missed the seller's marketing blitz, could have discovered this property on their own and contacted the auctioneer directly.
Hockman may appreciate the extended reach the Internet provides, but he's no believer in online bidding. "An auction is the best way to sell any property in the accelerated market," says Hockman. "But I just don't believe we'd get the response online that we can get with traditional auctions." Why, he wonders, would he have wanted to limit his prospect list to the online audience? Besides, Hockman says flatly, "the market's not ready for online auctions of real estate yet."
If you're not ready for real-time online auctions either, you can still put a toe in the water by trying one of the auction directories. As a rule, directory sites provide a description of the property, some basic details about the auction, and a link to the local auction house or real estate agent conducting the sale. After you've gone online to find the auction, the Internet's role is finished and real life takes over. Go visit the property, do your homework, follow the pre-auction instructions of the auction house, then show up on the right day and grab a bidding paddle.
Auction Marketing Institute (www.auctionmarketing.org)
A trade association for the auction and appraisal industry, the Auction Marketing Institute includes on its Web site an Auction Find tool that searches auction listings on everything from comic books to domain names to wine and cigars. In addition to category and regional searches, it includes a date range feature that lets you look for auctions within a specified period of time. So if you're looking for real estate auctions in the Plains states within the next three weeks, you're in luck.
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Internet Auction List (www.internetauctionlist.com)
The Internet Auction List is a directory of all types of auctions worldwide, online and off, including real estate. It includes an Auction List of currently available properties as well as a Search Tool that lets you sort by category, country, or name.
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National Association of Realtors (www.realtor.org)
The Auction Information Center of the National Association of Realtors Web site is a good place to start. It has a wealth of information about auctions from a real estate agent's point of view, which can be very helpful to read before you start searching for sales. There are basic tutorials on auctions and what makes a property a good candidate for sale at one. Finally, you can find listings of upcoming auctions, with referrals to the local auction house.
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National Auctioneers Association (www.auctioneers.org)
The Find an Auction tool lets you search a large directory of all current auctions, including antiques and collectibles, farm equipment, and real estate. Search for commercial or residential properties, or undeveloped land, anywhere in the United States and Canada.
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PropertyAuction.com (www.propertyauction.com)
No vintage cars or comics here — at PropertyAuction.com you'll find only real estate. Search auction listings by category, commercial, residential, mixed-use, or land, and follow links to local auctioneer or agent. Its Property Auction Search tool is a bit spare, but it does the job in finding the kinds of properties you want, in the state you want.
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