Auction.com - Are you watching?

A couple of weeks ago I noticed a new sign in the front yard of an REO property I was showing from real estate auction company REDC - website Auction.com

I called the listing agent and found out that the bank that owned the property had turned it over to REDC to sell through their online auction process.

Whether on purpose or just too much going on, the listing agent never updated the MLS information and since this property was at the end of a cul-du-sac I think very few people knew about the auction.

In addition, the payout from REDC to a buyer's agent is 1%, so I imagine very few buyer's agents working with buyers even let their buyers know about these.

It was last listed in the MLS at $194,900 and the opening bid was $69,000.

This property was not like many of the REO's I've looked at. The bank had actually spent money replacing all the carpeting, painting and putting in new vanities and toilets in all 3 bathrooms. It was a very nice 4 bedroom home in a great area of west county St. Louis.

My buyer won the bid at a great price and now we are just waiting on confirmation from the seller (bank).

But, what's the opportunity?

REDC is a huge auction company selling tens of thousands of homes across the US through their auction process, but what seems to be missing is the local marketing for these properties.

This is a great time for the local broker to get up to speed on using an online auctions to market their listings and provided that needed local customer service that is missing from the REDC auctions. Join us to learn how