How property auctions work

An auction sells one property to the highest bidder inside a fixed window of time. Every bid is public, every bidder has posted a refundable deposit first, and the closing time is enforced by the platform — not by a person in a room.

This guide explains the whole flow. If you want the short version for your side of the deal, read Bidding at auction if you are buying or Selling by auction if you own the property.

The five stages of a lot

1. Draft

The auction has been created but is not visible to the public. Only the owner and an administrator can see it. Nothing is committed at this stage — terms can still be changed or the lot deleted.

2. Scheduled

The terms are locked in and the lot is published with its opening date. Buyers can view the property, read the terms, and post their deposit before bidding opens, which is what serious bidders do. Nobody can bid yet.

3. Bidding open (live)

The platform opens the lot automatically at the scheduled start time — there is no manual "go" button, and the clock runs every minute, so opening is punctual.

While the lot is live:

• Any bidder with a confirmed deposit can bid.
• Each bid must be at least the current price plus the bid increment.
• You cannot bid against yourself while you are the highest bidder.
• Two bidders can never land on the same figure — the second one is rejected and asked to bid again.
• The highest bidder is shown by masked name only. The reserve price is never revealed.

4. Bidding closed (ended)

At the closing time the platform closes the lot and decides the outcome:

• Reserve met — the highest bidder wins, the price becomes the hammer price, and a settlement deadline of 7 days starts. The property moves to *Reserved*. Every other bidder's deposit is released for refund immediately.
• Reserve not met — there is no winner and no sale. Every deposit, without exception, is released for refund. The owner may relist or negotiate privately.

5. Settled

The winner completes the purchase within the settlement window and an administrator marks the lot settled. The property moves to *Sold* and the winner's deposit is applied to the purchase price rather than refunded.

A lot can also be cancelled at any point before settlement. Cancelling releases every deposit in full and puts the property back on the market.

Anti-snipe: why the clock can move

A bid placed in the final moments extends the closing time. If a bid lands inside the anti-snipe window — typically the last 2 minutes — the deadline is pushed back by the extension period, usually another 2 minutes.

There is no limit on how many times this can happen. The lot closes when a full extension period passes with no new bid, so the last bidder always has to beat a real response, never just a fast finger. Every extension is counted and shown publicly on the lot.

Reserve, starting price and buy-now

• Starting price — where bidding opens. The first valid bid may be exactly this figure.
• Reserve price — the minimum the owner will accept. It is never published; you only ever see whether it has been met. Bidding above the starting price does not mean the property will sell.
• Buy-now price — optional, and always above the reserve. Paying it ends the auction immediately and wins the lot outright. It disappears once bidding passes it.

What it costs

• Bidding deposit — refundable, 2% to 5% of the reserve price (minimum $100), paid by every bidder before bidding. See Deposits, refunds and forfeits.
• Buyer's premium — a percentage added on top of the hammer price, paid by the winner. It is shown on the lot before you bid; many lots set it to zero.
• Seller's fee — a percentage of the hammer price, deducted from the owner's proceeds. The default is 2%.

If the winner does not complete

Missing the settlement deadline has consequences. The winner's deposit is forfeited, their bids are marked forfeited, and the sale rolls down to the next highest bidder — provided that bid is still at or above the reserve. That bidder gets their own fresh 7-day settlement window.

If no remaining bid clears the reserve, the lot ends without a sale and the property goes back on the market.

Glossary

• Lot — one property offered at auction.
• Hammer price — the winning bid amount.
• Increment — the fixed step between valid bids.
• Underbidder — the next highest bidder after the winner.
• Settlement — completing the purchase and transferring title.