A Guide to Online St. Louis Real Estate Auctions
Nowadays, the best St. Louis real estate auctions are online. If you want to find great properties in your area, online St. Louis real estate auctions can provide you with great deals, whether you’re looking for a permanent home or an investment property.
Here is our guide on how to successfully navigate and bid on online St. Louis real estate auctions.
How Auctions Work
People have been doing real estate auctions for centuries. Now that technology has evolved, we’ve changed how they’re done. Many of them are now done online where more bidders can participate.
Though the technology has changed, the auction itself hasn’t, At most online St. Louis real estate auctions, you’ll find two sale agreements:
- The property will go to the highest bidder, even if that bidder goes lower than the asking price.
- The property will go to the person whom the seller chooses. There is usually a minimum amount that must be paid, and the seller will have the option to accept and reject offers.
What’s really nice about online St. Louis real estate auctions is that a lot of the traditional negotiations go away. Your seller will set the terms, and you either accept or reject them. While you don’t have as much buying power, you can find good deals and sellers who are highly motivated.
You also have to remember that you won’t have any tests or inspections done before you buy the property. If there’s anything wrong with the property, such as a structural issue, then it will be on you to fix.
How to Succeed
If you really want to bid on good deals, remember these tips:
- Before the auction, try to inspect the property. If you can’t go inside, look at the outside property and try to look in the windows. Look at any disclosures and adjust your bid based on what you find.
- Bidding can be very exciting, and some people lose their heads. Keep yours on by setting a budget for yourself. Don’t go over that budget.
- Make sure you have all your financial ducks in a row before bidding. Auction sales close much faster than traditional homes, and sellers expect you to be able to close right away. Doing this will make the auction process go much smoother for you.
How to Make Pre-Auction and Post-Auction Bids
You might think online St. Louis real estate auctions are in-the-moment events, but there’s a lot to be done before and after the auction. For some properties, you can make pre- and post-auction bids.
Pre-auction deals are submitted to the seller before the auction begins. If the seller accepts, then the property is yours. Remember, it will be “as is.” In post-auction sales, you might go after a property that didn’t sell at the auction. Sellers may be more motivated, and you might be able to get a better deal.
Online St. Louis real estate auctions are great places to find investment properties. Before you get started, educate yourself on the process by doing as much research as you can. Consider experiencing one before you are actually ready to purchase so that when the time comes, you can act quickly.