Robinson and Hall held their fifth auction of the year on 20th November at The Holiday Inn, Milton Keynes East. All six lots that went under the hammer were sound investments from Herts, Beds and Bucks, but the extraordinary demand came as a surprise. There was nothing particularly unusual about the properties, but this was the first time they simply could not fit everyone in the room, even with some perched on the edge of the stage.
Their auctions always start at 2.30pm and up until this event, bidders have always turned up in the afternoon – this time they started turning up at 9.30am. Fiona Stacey, assistant auctioneer at Robinson and Hall, described what happened:
“There were telltale signs that it would be an extraordinary auction: I had been receiving around 35 enquiries a day for two weeks concerning the Great Brickhill and Luton houses. We had to cram people in wherever we could. This is the first time we had to ask those who were not interested in certain lots to wait outside to create enough standing room. “
The extended completion times on some properties meant that bidding was not restricted to cash buyers as the six-week period is sufficient to arrange a mortgage. This makes properties accessible to a wider audience, which may have contributed to attracting such a huge crowd.
A guide price of £90,000 for a three-bedroom detached house in Luton proved irresistible and triggered furious bidding, ending at £215,000. The seller of a three-bedroom detached house in Great Brickhill refused pre-auction offers, suspecting a much greater true market value. With a guide price of £300,000, bidders flocked in to try their luck, and it fetched £388,000.
“The last time we saw a crowd like this was when house prices were peaking and our auction was being televised on Good Bid, Good Buy,” commented David Jones, auctioneer at Robinson and Hall.
To find out more about Robinson and Hall’s auctions or to register your interest for future properties then visit the auction section of www.robinsonandhall.co.uk or call us on 01234 351000