Auction stations

By JAMIE MILNE
Updated:

 

BUYING anything at an auction is nerve-wracking, let alone a house.

Every year home hunters miss out on thousands of property bargains because they bypass the auction process, usually because they don't understand it or find it too risky.

But auctions are increasing in popularity with owner occupiers - especially in these days of overheated property prices.

What Howard Gooddie doesn't know about auctions can be written on the back of a stamp. What he does know he's written in Buying Bargains at Property Auctions.

Now the head of auctions at Longden & Cook Commercial in Manchester, he comes from a long line of auctioneers and first brought his gavel down on a sale in 1957.

Gooddie guides buyers through the whole saleroom process, from finding an auction and selecting a property to making sense of contracts, bidding for a home and securing the deal. If this sounds a somewhat dry read, there is a liberal sprinkling of auctioneer anecdotes and useful tips to keep the pages turning.

With large sums of money usually at stake, only a fool would walk into an auction house with anything less than a basic idea of the process. Fortunately, this book can provide prospective buyers with a good deal more.

• Buying Bargains at Property Auctions, by Howard R Gooddie. Price: £10.19

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