How to: Have a successful auction on a hot day
An auction is like a Broadway production – the show must always go on. But what if it’s going to be a scorching hot day?
Dan Ware, a licensed real estate agent and auctioneer with LJ Hooker in sub-tropical Rockhampton in Queensland, has a few great ideas about hosting a successful auction on a hot day.
Rockhampton averages about 134 days over 30C and nearly 20 days above 35C, but Ware still auctions up to four properties each weekend – although he doesn’t do it in a suit.
“Auctions are on the rise in this part of the world and having one certainly reduces the total days on market, which is attractive to sellers. If it’s hot – and it usually is – we just adapt,” Ware says.
Four things are key to ensuring a successful action when the mercury is rising, according to Ware; timing, location, hydration and preparation.
1. Timing
“Firstly, we set an appropriate time for the auction and often have them early in the day, before the heat really kicks in,” he says.
2. Location
“Then, if the auction is on-site, we ensure we have a shady spot for it to take place,” Ware says.
3. Hydration
Having cold water on hand for vendors, bidders and the auctioneer, is vital, he adds. “That’s where extra staff come in handy,” Ware says.
4. Preparation
For inspections, both on the day and leading up to the auction, Ware ensures any air-conditioning is “cranking”, not only for comfort, but to show potential buyers that feature of the home.
Ware says genuine buyers will always turn up for an auction, despite the conditions.
“It might be a bit uncomfortable, but if a house ticks all the boxes for a buyer, they will be there, hot or not,” he says.
“People can be pretty laid-back up here, so it can sometimes take a bit for an auction to get going, but having an auction campaign means the vendor has a good sense of what price their property might make, because people have already been through and given their feedback. And as an agent, we have an indication of how many genuine buyers are out there.”
The market in Rockhampton is “on the up”, Ware says, thanks to low-interest rates and recent news that a nearby coal mine is hiring new staff. “If mining gets up and going again, we expect the investors to flock,” he says.
