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Choosing an Auctioneer: Written Proposal (Part 4)

This is the 4th installment in our Choosing an Auctioneer series (read other articles here). In this post, we will discuss the importance of a written proposal and the parts of ours.

Receiving a written proposal from the auctioneer prior engaging him to conduct the auction lets you know what the auctioneer is going to do for you as part of the auction process. You can think of it as a list of services that the auctioneer will provide for his fee. It is important that your communication regarding services of the auctioneer be in writing whenever possible. This protects both of you should any problems arise in the future.

Prior to signing an auction agreement, Terry Howe & Associates will present you a written proposal for review. You must be completely confident that selling by auction is the best method to sell your property before entering into an agreement. While reviewing the proposal, you should ask questions!

Our written proposal includes information on how we evaluate your property for auction, determining property value, the advantages of an auction, how the auction will be promoted and advertised and the costs of conducting the auction. It also covers the types of auctions and how we will prepare the property for auction. These detailed documents should answer most, if not all of your questions, about the auction process.

One of the first things it discusses is Evaluation of the Property, which we covered in a prior post. This includes the evaluation of the market, the seller and the property. This section is followed by how we determine the property’s value, including sections on Comparative Market Analysis, Appraisals, Income Approach, Tax Assessments, Market Studies and more.

After discussing the suitability for auction, the proposal details some of the advantages of the auction method of sale, including choosing when your property sells, seller advantageous terms, selling “as is”, and the importance of the marketing campaign.

Next is the Marketing and Advertising section, which starts with the Target Market from our previous post. The advertising and marketing are how we reach this target market, using a mix of direct mail, signs, internet and social media, videos, and other publications.

Then the proposal covers the costs to you and the commission to be paid.

Next, we cover the types of auctions (absolute and minimum bid) and the auction venue. All of our auctions since 2009 have been conducted online only. This maximizes the visibility and participation for your auction.

Finally, the proposal includes sample documents, such as the Contract of Sale, Online Auction Terms and Conditions, and other documents that will need to be signed as part of the auction process. It also includes an Event Checklist that lets you know what we will be doing at each stage of the auction process.

If you have property that you are considering selling, call us today for an appointment and a written proposal of the auction process.