Online auction raises £14.2m for SDL
SDL Auctions raised £14.2m in its online national auction last month, a significant improvement on the £5.5m raised in April.
The regional auctioneer offered 104 lots on 28 May, of which 87 found buyers – an 84% success rate. However, just over 20 lots were withdrawn prior.
The auction was watched by 1,500 people – including the Homes Under the Hammer team seeking properties for the next BBC television series – and more than 1,200 people registered for remote bidding.
SDL Auctions raised £14.2m in its online national auction last month, a significant improvement on the £5.5m raised in April.
The regional auctioneer offered 104 lots on 28 May, of which 87 found buyers – an 84% success rate. However, just over 20 lots were withdrawn prior.
The auction was watched by 1,500 people – including the Homes Under the Hammer team seeking properties for the next BBC television series – and more than 1,200 people registered for remote bidding.
Bidding got off to a strong start with the sale of a boarded-up bungalow requiring full renovation in Sutton Coldfield, Birmingham. It sold for £221,000 from a guide of £90,000-plus.
An investment with development potential in Hall Green, Birmingham, sold for £415,000, a yield of 4.5%. Lot 11 comprises two flats and an office with permission to extend.
“Sellers are realising that auction is a lifeline at the moment, offering speed, transparency and certainty, with a fall-through rate of less than 2% – something that sellers on the open market can only dream of,” said managing director and auctioneer Andrew Parker.
A notorious farm in Lancashire triggered a fierce bidding battle before selling for nearly eight times its guide.
Trice Barn Farm in Bacup (Lot 61) previously hit national headlines after animals were found living there in squalor. It has recently experienced a fire and has an occupant who has been served notice to leave but remains living there. Despite all this, the 80-acre site sold for £394,000 from a guide of £50,000-plus.
Parker said: “In order to move on with their life, the owner was willing to accept a price way below the farm’s market value, which is why it had such a low guide price. In the end, we had potential buyers lining up to bid and the final figure exceeded all expectations. We are delighted to get such a good result for the seller and that the farm will now be given a new lease of life.”
SDL will hold its next national property auction online on 30 June.
To send feedback, e-mail julia.cahill@egi.co.uk or tweet @EGJuliaC or @estatesgazette
