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Repossessions Driving UK Auction Sales

Dan Johnson

There was an interesting press release from Wrigglesworth yesterday, which claims that the volume of repossessed properties being sold through auction houses is dramatically increasing as a proportion of total properties sold at auction.

Set against declining rates of sale for auctions generally, the growth in appetite for repossession sales is not wholly surprising. Investors love a bargain, and in these cash strapped times, banks are quite happy to take a hit on the selling price of repossession stock, simply to add a bit of much-needed liquidity onto their balance sheets.

New figures from the EI Ggroup show that repossessions now make up more than 20% of the total stock for sale at auction, with those properties where the reserve is set low having the best chance of a sale.

Although heavily discounted new build flats also starting to show up at sales in much greater volume, the unrealistic price expectations of vendors mean that many of these are remaining unsold, particularly in Northern city centre locations.

TheMoveChannel.com will be running a seminar about buying and selling at online auctions, so watch this space for further details in the near future…