You’ve found the perfect property – woo hoo! But it’s up for auction, and now you’re feeling overwhelmed. I get it! But don’t worry, we will help you come out on top with these 6 helpful tips to keep you confident on auction day! 

1. Paddle up 

When you show your ID to the selling agent on auction day, they will take down your details and hand over your paddle. Every time you want to bid, you will need to hold up your paddle so the auctioneer can see and record it. Hold it up proud so your bid isn’t missed! 

2. Body language 

With your paddle in hand, stand in such a way that you can keep an eye on the competition while you bid. There are certain non-verbal cues you can look for when observing a rival buyer, such as nervousness, fidgeting and those sudden pauses and conversations that indicate the buyer has reached their maximum bid. 

If you miss these cues, you might end up missing out on the property altogether, so always watch the body language of your competition to help you decipher whether you should go in with that final bid or not. 

3. Momentum is everything

Typically, the faster the bids roll in, the more likely buyers are to get carried away in the emotional rollercoaster that is auction bidding! For that reason, I recommend bidding in odd increments, so that the auctioneer is forced into controlling the situation with arithmetic.

Here’s an example. The auctioneer is asking for bids of $10,000 – you go in with $13,000. Yes, it may confuse the auctioneer temporarily, but it will force them to keep up with the odd numbers and slow down the bidding. At this point, you’ve started a negotiation. See what we did there? 

4. Bid with confidence to the very end

You’re likely to be competing against a large number of bidders, so you may feel compelled to start the auction off aggressively with a huge opening bid. Slow down there, cowboy! Let’s change tactics. 

As a seasoned Sydney auction bidder, I suggest holding your punches until the very end. In this softening market, I would rather see you nab that property you’re bidding on by bidding confidently at the end of the auction, remaining in numbers that reflect your budget. Remember, you don’t want the auctioneer or seller to think you’ll buy the property at any cost, as that can work against you in the long run. 

5. Be likeable

In any situation where negotiation is inevitable, it always helps if the other players like you. You can do this quiet easily during an auction, without being ‘that guy’ who demands attention for all the wrong reasons. 

Introduce yourself to the auctioneer when you arrive, use the agent and auctioneer’s names, and just generally be a nice and pleasant person. Not only is this just good advice for life, but it may even make the competition feel they’re behind the eight-ball, which can work to your advantage! 

6. Avoid these 3 behaviours

You’re excited, you’re anxious, you’re ready to get the ball rolling. But wait! Hold your horses, bucko. There are three things you need to keep under control at a bid. These include: excitement, shouting your maximum bid as soon as the auction begins, and bidding if you aren’t totally sold on the property. 

When you’re bidding, it’s important to keep your excitement hidden from your competition, or they will know your buying intentions and use that against you in their own bidding pattern. Start your bidding low, and keep your larger bids for the very end. And most importantly, do not bid if there’s a chance you don’t actually want to win! 

So with that said folks, if you’ve got a property that’s up for auction that you’re set on winning, keep these tips in your toolbox to make it happen on the day! Play it cool, don’t let rival buyers know your intentions, and slow down your bids, keeping the big guns for the very end. 

And if you’d like a buying advocate with the gusto to help you win that auction, Kitty & Miles can help! We are the auction snipers you need to get you into your new home pronto, so give our Australian buyers agency a call on (02) 8916 6172 or email our team at support@kittyandmiles.com.au and we’ll be happy to help!