Bid for homes online on new property listings website

A new property website has launched – Exchangehouse – where property buyers can bid on residential homes.

Director of Exchangehouse, Mark Jamieson, said that they expect it to change the way people buy and sell property.

“We identified three major shortcomings with current methods of sale. Firstly, buyers are wasting time and money chasing properties beyond their budget,” he said.

“Secondly, sellers and buyers are making pressured financial decisions on auction day. Lastly, there is a lack of reliable information for all parties during the marketing campaign.”

The site was founded by Jamieson and Jonathan Elepano.

A fully integrated online platform, the first property to be sold and listed will be 30 Cook Street, Randwick (pictured above), which is marketed through Ray White Coogee. It was listed on Saturday.

Alike to eBay, it shows the number of watchers, which could prove an interesting bit of information for prospective buyers. It also includes an 'opening bid call' of $1,997,500, as well as the time which bidding commences.

Contract of sale, reports, further information, bidders guide and auction rules are all provided on the site.

Agents can list on behalf of vendors, an undisclosed reserve price is set on the first day of the campaign, but can be adjusted at any time.

Buyers are told when bidding will begin and it is noted that this is kept within a reasonable range of the reserve, assisting transparency, efficiency and convenience.

“Overseas buyers are expected to embrace the new technology platform,” said Jamieson.

An email and SMS alert system is in place.

Buyers are required to pay a $2,000 bond as part of the registration process, which is immediately refunded when the auction closes if they do not win the property. If they are successful, they retrieve the bond upon payment of the deposit.

It costs $250 to list a property, as well as a further transaction fee of 0.15% if the property sells.

At present, New South Wales listings are available – with a national expansion due to take place next year.

{mijopolls 55}