Have you ever thought what the disadvantages are of selling via auction? We unpack them below so that you are fully informed when you come to sell your property with us.

Whilst there are many advantages to selling a house with us via modern online auction (quicker sale, it is free with us, we have a fewer than 1% buyer back out rate) there are some disadvantages in this method to take into account when deciding to sell your property by modern online auction:

You have to move out quickly

While a typical property sale and legal transaction can take 3 – 6 months, with Smart Auction UK, you could be handing your keys over and moving out within 28 days. This may be a consideration if you are living in the property and have to find another place to live quickly. This doesn’t affect people who are not living in the property and are selling it empty.

Over 90% of our sellers either live in the property they are looking to sell, or currently have tenants living in them, so it is a big consideration. Nevertheless, some people may be ready to move in with their significant other, or be ready to move abroad soon, so may be looking to sell their property as fast as possible. This is generally the trend we see, as most of our properties are some unconditional and within 28 days.

If you receive a bid straight away and you are happy with it, the property can be sold straight away for that bid. We always advise to wait until the end of the auction cycle, as much higher bids can come in, and we always want to get you the most money for your property. At the end of the auction on day 28, the buyer pays the reservation fee, non-refundable deposit and legal contracts are exchanged straight away. The legal conveyancing process can start straight away which takes 28 days, and on day 28, you would hand over your keys and be legally required to move out.

You need to set realistic prices

When deciding to sell by auction, you have to prioritise what you want – a quick sale, highest offer – or a mixture of both. This will dictate the realistic price you could expect to sell your property for.

With us, the seller doesn’t pay any fees to sell their property and the buyer takes on all the fees. The average estate agent’s fees are 2-3% of the value of the property, and should be taken into account when setting a realistic price.

The price you set will also depend on whether your property has been on the open market before, and for how long. A lot of our buyers are investors and landlords, who would have seen and have intel into properties that have been on the market via digital software. If a property has been on the open market before at an inflated price, and then reduced down time and time again on advice of estate agents (happens more than you could imagine!) then this will play a consideration.

When deciding on a realistic price, you and our auction manager will agree on a reserve price. A price that you would be happy to walk away from the property for, and what it will not sell under, even if an auction cycle ends. We can advise you of a realistic price, based on your individual circumstances, when we speak. We are proud to say that over 80% of our properties sell for over reserve price.

You need to commit to 3 months

So that we are able to do our job properly for you and sell your property for the highest prices possible.

When you sign up with estate agents, you will usually be in contract for them for 3, 6 or 12 months, in which they sell your property. Here are Smart Auction UK, we ask for your commitment to us for 3 months. We don’t believe in tying you up to a lengthy contract process, but also want to give your property a reasonable time to sell. We often find that properties sell sooner than this, however we believe this a good timescale to achieve the most for you.



In the 3 months, we will proactively sell your property. We are not like the usual estate agents, who will advertise your property and hope for the best and for a buyer to magically come along. On top of advertising your property on all the usual online channels for international exposure, we also proactively reach out to our vast network of investors and landlords, and partner with 3,500 independent estate agents and over 600 partners branches, who will all be raring to go and sell your property.

If you have any other questions or concerns that you would like to talk to us about, get in touch, and an expert will be happy to answer any other questions you may have.