Ray White Gold Coast Property Auctions

Ray White Gold Coast offices will this week take part in an unprecedented trans-Tasman property auction where 700 properties will be sold under the hammer in 10 days.

They started in suburban Sydney and in Christchurch last Thursday, and will continue in all capital cities and various regional centres, winding up on March 29.

Around the Gold Coast area, offices from Tweed Heads to Sanctuary Cove have banded together to auction 40 properties at The Sheraton Mirage, Main Beach, and tomorrow from 10am.

Ray White Group director Mark McLeod said the event was backed by every arm of the group, including Ray White Rural, Ray White Commercial and the Loan Market Group.

“A recent combined auction on the Gold Coast defied the economic downturn, generating sales in excess of $30 million,” said Mr McLeod.

“The 2009 Auction Spectacular will be unprecedented — more massive than anything attempted before.”

Gold Coast properties listed feature a myriad from Tweed Heads to Sanctuary Cove; from high-end waterfront mansions at Paradise Point and Runaway Bay, to beachside units at Tugun, Palm Beach and Currumbin, as well as houses and apartments to suit the first home buyer or investor.

Meanwhile, Ray White Broadbeach and Ray White Surfers Paradise will run their own property auction ‘shows’, with the Broadbeach auction being held today from 10am, at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre and Surfers Paradise taking to the stage next Friday and Saturday from, 11 am, at the Surfers Paradise Marriott Resort and Spa .

“These offices already hold heir own highly successfully grand-scale auctions during the year, and will run their own events,” said Mr McLeod.

He said an overall 80 per cent clearance rate is expected from the Ray White Auction Spectacular.

“Auctions create a highly competitive environment and there’s a sense of urgency which stimulates buyer interest and a call to action,” he said.

“For the seller, there is no upper price barrier and they have the opportunity to expose properties to serious buyers via large-screen presentations.

“For buyers, we have display photographs and on-hand expert advice.”

Mr McLeod said that with property auctions the overall campaign was a key consideration.

“We look at the lead-up to the auction; what happens on auction day and, just as importantly, the sales which flow through in the days and weeks immediately after the actual auction.

“The figures speak for themselves and we can anticipate an 80 per cent — or even higher — clearance rate, directly attributable to the auction process.”

Philip Parker, Ray White chief auctioneer agreed that auction day never revealed the true picture.

Mr Parker said 60 days was an accepted time frame for an ‘auction window’ and recent surveys on Ray White southeast Queensland clearance rates was a whopping 88 per cent with properties on the market an average of just 31 days.

To prospective buyers and first-time bidders or buyers, Mr Parker has these tips: “The agents will have done the work and it will be up to my team to create the energy in the room,” he said.

“We will be aware of what properties people have shown most interest in, and will have a plan to maximise that potential.

“Buyers need though, to have a bidding strategy and to know their budget.

“The odd buyer might freeze, although, strangely we are finding that is the first home buyer who seems the most enthusiastic when it comes to bidding.

“There will be some remote buyers who may do their bidding over the phone or, for those who prefer not to bid for themselves; they can give written authority, prior to the auction, for someone else to do the bidding.”

Mr Parker praised the transparency of the Queensland auction system.

“Everyone is aware beforehand of the terms of sale and the settlement date,” he said.

“Vendor bids must be declared as such and buyers know who the competition is.

“And remember, every property being sold has had a previous owner and there is no reason it won’t appeal again to someone else.

“It’s like the old saying, ‘there is a lid for every pot’.”

Source: goldcoast.com.au

Property for sale on the Gold Coast:

Photos: Ray White Gold Coast Property Auctions - click to enlarge