How do auctions work?

Not long ago you read in Designer Monthly of the fascination our peripatetic bon-vivant-about-town, David Dannenbaum found watching the auction of the Israel Sack collection of fine American antiques at the prestigious Sotheby's auction house in New York City. In that article, the author of our Old Stuff & Whatnot, L.L.P. column describes the elegant and interesting people that frequent the high-end auction halls such as Sotheby's and Christie's. These are the two most prestigious auction houses in America, and the world's masterpieces of fine art and antiques are often sold during hushed bidding at these well-known institutions. Bidders discretely raise paddles as the price for each treasure rises. To be sure, there have been reports suggesting that even these illustrious auction houses do not always play fair. Indeed, not long ago the head of Sotheby's, Alfred Taubman, was found guilty of price fixing with Christie's in a federal trial. But let us step away from the pinnacle of ...  more

While conventional methods of selling real estate continue to dominate the national market, auctions are quickly growing in popularity. The stigma that real estate auctions are only for "distressed" property sales is changing as more and more real estate sells at auction, at top market prices! A good auction opportunity exists when a seller is auction-minded, with the confidence that their property will bring a fair market price. They should have a strong equity position in the property, want to avoid paying sales commissions and be time sensitive...requiring a timely sale that they control, so they don't have high carrying costs associated with the property. A good auction opportunity also exists when the real estate market and/or buyers are changing, where there is a limited supply of a particular property type with strong buyer demand (i.e. ocean-front property) or there is a flat or declining market with little buyer interest for conventional property sales. Offering a property ...  more

By Chuck DeLaney Not long ago you read in Designer Monthly of the fascination our peripatetic bon-vivant-about-town, David Dannenbaum found watching the auction of the Israel Sack collection of fine American antiques at the prestigious Sotheby's auction house in New York City. In that article, the author of our Old Stuff & Whatnot, L.L.P. column describes the elegant and interesting people that frequent the high-end auction halls such as Sotheby's and Christie's. These are the two most prestigious auction houses in America, and the world's masterpieces of fine art and antiques are often sold during hushed bidding at these well-known institutions. Bidders discretely raise paddles as the price for each treasure rises. To be sure, there have been reports suggesting that even these illustrious auction houses do not always play fair. Indeed, not long ago the head of Sotheby's, Alfred Taubman, was found guilty of price fixing with Christie's in a federal trial. But let us step away from ...  more

While conventional methods of selling real estate continue to dominate the national market, auctions are quickly growing in popularity. The stigma that real estate auctions are only for "distressed" property sales is changing as more and more real estate sells at auction, at top market prices! A good auction opportunity exists when a seller is auction-minded, with the confidence that their property will bring a fair market price. They should have a strong equity position in the property, want to avoid paying sales commissions and be time sensitive...requiring a timely sale that they control, so they don't have high carrying costs associated with the property. A good auction opportunity also exists when the real estate market and/or buyers are changing, where there is a limited supply of a particular property tuype with strong buyer demand (i.e. ocean-front property) or there is a flat or declining market with little buyer interest for conventional property sales. Offering a property ...  more