Beware of online property auctions

Property auctions can be useful, but contain pitfalls for the unwary. So make sure you know what you’re in for.

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In a traditional auction, once the gavel falls, you're on the hook
(Image credit: Credit: Jeff Gilbert / Alamy Stock Photo)

Auctions have long been a good way for sellers to offload a property quickly or for buyers to bag a bargain. Today, however, more and more properties are being sold in online auctions. These work in a different way to traditional auctions, and it is important to be aware of the potential pitfalls before going down this route. More than 35,000 properties come under the hammer each year, according to the Essential Information Group. Many are repossessions, while others are uninhabitable or unmortgageable, and thus only suitable for cash buyers or those with access to alternative finance.

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Emma Lunn

Emma Lunn is a multi-award-winning journalist who specialises in personal finance and consumer issues. With more than 18 years’ experience in personal finance, Emma has covered topics including mortgages, first-time buyers, leasehold, banking, debt, budgeting, broadband, energy, pensions and investments. Emma’s one of the most prolific freelance personal finance journalists with a back catalogue of work in newspapers such as The Guardian, The Independent, The Daily Telegraph, the Mail on Sunday and the Mirror. As a freelancer she has also completed various in-house contracts at The Guardian, The Independent, Mortgage Solutions, Orange and Moneywise. 

She also writes regularly for specialist magazines and websites such as Property Hub, Mortgage Strategy and YourMoney.com. She’s particularly proud of her work writing about the leasehold sector and a Guardian front-page story about a dodgy landlord. She has a real passion for helping people learn about money – especially when many people are struggling to get by in today’s challenging economic climate – and prides herself on simplifying complex subjects.