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Starting, Guide and Reserve prices... What is the difference?

When listing at auction you will need to understand three separate prices: a Starting price, a Guide price and a Reserve price. Below, we are going to look at the difference.

The Reserve Price is a confidential figure between the agent auctioneer, the vendor and Bamboo. It is the minimum price that the seller is willing to accept for the property. All bidding will need to either meet or exceed this ‘reserve’ before a sale can happen - providing your vendor with a financial safety net. The reserve cannot be more than 10% above the guide price.

The Guide Price is effectively the marketing or advertising price. Informally it is a guide on where the seller's reserve price might be. The seller's reserve price might be the same or lower than the guide price, so it is important not to assume that the guide price is exclusively tied to the reserve price.

The Starting price is the price that the auction bidding will commence at and the first bid that bidders are able to place online.

Properties at auction are priced to sell in a transparent, fair and competitive process. This means that pricing is designed to encourage buyers into the market to compete for the property by placing higher and higher bids. The aim is to achieve the best possible price for the vendor \ property in the shortest amount of time.

If you require a second opinion on how to price a property at auction we have added a new feature in our dashboard called ‘Appraisal Advice’ which is designed to simplify the appraisal process for our partner agents. 

With just a click of a button, you can request a professional auction appraisal directly from our in-house auctioneers from within the dashboard. Our in-house qualified auctioneers will review the information provided and deliver a detailed auction appraisal, helping you make informed decisions and set realistic expectations for your clients. 

For any questions or assistance, our support team is always here to help. Contact us at hello@bambooauctions.com.

Thank you for choosing Bamboo Auctions. Stay tuned for more updates and features designed to enhance your property auction experience. Happy listing!

Follow us on social media for the latest news, updates, and insights from the Bamboo Auctions team.

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What is the difference?

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Just because a property goes up for auction, doesn’t make it a guaranteed sale.

What happens when a property auction ends and the reserve is not met?

If you haven’t thought about selling property via auction before, now might be the time to consider it as a serious option. In the current market, forward-thinking agents are using auctions as an alternative route to sale more frequently and here are five reasons why:

Sale by auction is a tried and tested way to sell property, backed by decades of sales history. Many estate agents in market towns across the UK come with the tagline ‘Estate Agents, Auctioneers and Valuers,’ a telling nod to the place auctions hold in the industry’s history. Despite the fact that, in more recent years, some agents have withdrawn the service from their repertoire, sale by auction is now making a comeback and it’s easy to see why. For more about how online property auctions work, see our recent blog post: 

In today’s market, which is known for its ever-increasing transaction times and lengthy delays, one of the key benefits of selling at auction is the way it speeds up the sales process. Sales at auction generally complete within 28-42 days, meaning buyers and sellers are no longer left frustrated and facing delays. With faster transaction times, agents can take their fee faster than through traditional treaty sales, meaning everyone involved has a quicker turnaround and less stress. In today’s climate, getting income in and having an injection of cash to the agency is key.

In the last six months, we have seen a steady increase in the supply of properties available to the market, with over 5,000 transactions now having sold through Bamboo’s platform. Over the last 12 months, we have seen a 50% increase in the number of properties being listed for online auction by agents. As the market in general is more robust, with strong offers from buyers on the up, it’s the perfect time for agents who have not yet introduced auctions to their service offering to start doing so. 

As well as faster transaction times, selling at auction provides more certainty over the sale, giving the seller more control over the whole process. There’s significantly less chance of a sale falling through after auction, which is often the case with a private treaty sale, if the buyer decides to change their mind or back out. Selling at auction means you’re dealing with multiple buyers, rather than just one, giving everyone the chance to bid. The auction process ensures there are set deadlines in place to make sure the transaction completes. Buyers using the Bamboo platform have completed their ID checks and already input their payment details prior to the auction starting, showing just how committed they are to the bidding process. As a result, when the auction closes, the winning buyer is instantly charged and the property can exchange online, with a legally binding commitment to complete within an agreed timeframe.

With the new Labour government, the market is now entering a period of greater economic certainty and we are seeing green shoots appearing as things start to rebalance. Our statistics reinforce this. We’ve seen growth year on year in the number of properties being listed for online auction by agents. In addition, the average price reduction required to sell has also reduced to just 9.5% of the original reserve price, as compared to almost 20% in May 2024. These figures highlight the fact that pricing is hardening and becoming more aligned with buyer expectations. 

More and more agents are now using auctions as an alternative route to sale and embracing Bamboo’s technology and expertise to manage the transaction. The platform provides the tools the agent needs to complete the auction, and Bamboo’s team of experts are on hand to help guide estate agents through the process.

The use of auctions, particularly online auctions, is gaining in popularity and providing both agents and vendors with a seamless way to navigate property transactions. To read more about how the auction process works, take a look at our recent article featured in The Negotiator. 

If you’re an estate agent ready to discover the power of online auctions, get in touch today to speak with one of our team of experts, we’d love to hear from you!

Auctions have long been a popular way to determine value through competition in buying and selling. Two primary types of auctions often come up in the property or high-value asset world: traditional and conditional. While they share similarities, their structure, process, and legal implications can vary greatly. 

In this article, we will explore the key differences between traditional auctions and conditional auctions to help potential buyers and sellers understand which might suit their needs best.

Traditional auctions, also known as unconditional auctions, follow a straightforward process that has been used for centuries. The sale is immediate and final, with binding legal implications the moment the hammer falls.

Example: A traditional auction might be the right choice for sellers looking to sell a property quickly and for buyers who are ready to move fast, such as investors or developers.

Conditional auctions, sometimes referred to as modern auctions, offer more flexibility for buyers and whilst it commits the buyer to pay a reservation fee and adhere to the conditions of the reservation contract, it does not fully oblige the buyer and seller to purchase the property. The advantage of this is that it allows the buyer more time to raise finances should they need to purchase the property, but the disadvantage is that the sale is not legally binding. If you are a seller of an unmortgageable property or you need a fast and certain transaction, then the traditional online auction is the way to go.

Example: Conditional auctions are an attractive option for buyers who need time to arrange a mortgage or complete legal checks, while sellers benefit from the certainty that they can move forward with the highest bidder, but with slightly less pressure than a traditional auction.

3. Comparing Traditional and Conditional Auctions

Amounts payable at the end of the auction

Both traditional and conditional auctions have their merits.. Traditional auctions provide immediate certainty and speed, while conditional auctions offer flexibility and open the market to a wider array of buyers. Understanding the distinctions between these two auction types can help ensure that both parties are well-positioned for a successful transaction, tailored to their individual needs.

Are you an estate agent ready to revolutionise your property sales? Discover the power of online auctions with Bamboo Auctions and

With a high number of estate agents adding auctions to their list of services, Bamboo Auctions has reached a new milestone of 5,000 online auction sales, raising just under £1bn in total property transactions.

Launched in 2016, Bamboo now has more than 1,100 estate agency partners and has sold over 5,150 properties through its online auction platform to date with a total value of £904m.

With more estate agency partners than ever before Bamboo Auctions says that it is on track to have its best year yet having already reached 839 sales in 2024 with an average sold price of £184,251.

Bamboo Auctions provides estate agents with the technology to enable them to offer their own online auction service, adding this to their existing offering and giving vendors another option when it comes to marketing and selling their property.

Through the platform, agents can list, control, and manage their listings using Bamboo’s technology, whilst keeping control over the sales progression, buyer and seller relationships and cross-selling opportunities.

Robin Rathore, CEO, Bamboo Auctions, said: “Bamboo was built to help agents sell more properties, with an ambition to make online property auctions more accessible for both estate agents and their customers, wherever they are. We continue to invest heavily in technology and innovative solutions that help agents sell more properties while supporting our agents with the highest levels of consultative customer service.

“We’ve seen a significant uptake in the demand for our platform as agents seek to take back control of their own auction service. Using online auction, estate agents earn more of their revenue, faster, which in the current market helps to ensure positive cash flow. Bamboo provides all agent partners with training on how to use the platform, along with advice and knowledge around how to spot the right properties for auction, when to suggest it, and how to ensure the vendor gets the best outcome.

“Reaching the 5,000 sales milestone is hugely significant for the Bamboo team and further cements our place in the market. I’m grateful to our agent customers for putting their trust in our technology and service and look forward to building on our successes together as we head towards another record-breaking year for Bamboo.”

The South West with 30 offices covering Somerset, Devon and Cornwall offering the Complete Property Service – offering the best moving-related services under one roof. From Sales, Lettings, Mortgages, New Homes, Conveyancing, and of course Auctions.

Have you previously sold via auction online auction before?

Our auction service has varied over the years, starting with the more traditional in-room auctions selling everything from property and land to more peculiar water storage tanks and pumping stations! This service evolved with the technology to the online format with another provider initially, then to Bamboo.

How has offering auctions powered by Bamboo helped you?

Bamboo has helped Bradleys auction service by supporting our desire to manage the process with our clients, something that supports our motto of People Serving people. The platform provides the transparency we believe is important and the technology to perform at speed, and accurately and ensure the process concludes successfully.

How would you describe onboarding, support & service from Bamboo?

The onboarding process was very simple and following the short training sessions, enabled our teams to take it forward immediately. It naturally helped due to us offering the service before, so it was a change of platform essentially, although the support team and ability to contact someone at Bamboo should a situation not be clear, or some support required has been invaluable.

Lastly, anything else you would like to say about Bamboo Auctions? 

The appeal of Bamboo was not only the people that run the business being very open and easy to connect with, but also backing up everything they said they would do. The platform and offering continues to evolve and that is also important to continue to grow our success of selling via the modern method of auction.

What is the new Alto updated Property Selection in the Bamboo Dashboard?

We have been busy updating our Bamboo Auctions integration with Alto and are making our agents’ lives easier by helping them identify suitable properties for auction. We are constantly improving our technology and for this reason, we have recently updated the new Alto automated property selection scoring system. 

The new Alto scoring system evaluates properties based on the presence of specific keywords within Alto for each property, assigning them different scores ranging from "Hot Property" to "Average." If your property is labelled as a "Hot Property," consider discussing with your seller the option of listing it for auction and both you and your vendor can benefit from a more secure, certain and speedier sale!

We have also added a new info button to Alto Properties that displays a preview of the property details when clicked. In addition to displaying the data used to score the properties, the preview also highlights some of the keywords we look for in the scoring process.

At Bamboo Auctions, we are committed to empowering our partner agents with the tools and resources they need to succeed in the competitive property market. Introducing this new streamlined way of self-managing fees is a testament to our dedication to innovation and excellence. By providing you quick and easy access to amend fees on an individual listing basis, we aim to support you in achieving the best possible outcomes for your clients.

0330 088 9659

hello@bambooauctions.com

Starting, Guide and Reserve Prices

Starting, Guide and Reserve prices... What is the difference?

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