The auction contract is unconditional — there is no 'subject to mortgage' protection, no cooling-off, no renegotiation after survey. The 10% deposit at exchange is at risk from the moment the gavel falls. The buyers who get hurt at auction are almost always the ones who bid first and arranged finance second.
Auction finance reverses the order. The lender assesses you and your target lot (or your buying criteria) before the auction; a decision in principle confirms the maximum advance; and you bid knowing precisely what you can complete on. The 28-day window then holds no fear, because the only work remaining is valuation and legals on a pre-agreed facility.
Preparing before auction day gives you a stronger chance of success. Reviewing the legal pack and confirming lender suitability early helps avoid delays and unexpected issues.
Identify title issues and special conditions early.
Match the property with the right lender before bidding.
A standing facility makes repeat auction purchases faster.
Inside the 28 days, three things consume time: valuation, legals and funds flow. The lenders who genuinely complete on auction timescales run panel valuers who report in days, in-house or fixed-fee legal teams who work from the auction pack, and credit processes that were finished before the auction. Lenders without that machinery miss deadlines regardless of their marketing.
Your own readiness matters equally: identification, proof of deposit, and a solicitor who handles auction work (many excellent conveyancers do not) should all be in place before bidding. We coordinate all three sides — lender, valuer, solicitor — because the deadline punishes whichever one starts late.
Auction finance is short-term by design — the exit is either a refinance onto a term product (buy to let, residential, commercial, HMO) once the property qualifies, or an onward sale, often after refurbishment. The exit determines the true cost of the project, so we arrange it in parallel rather than afterwards.
For contractor and self-employed investors, this is where our core expertise compounds: the term refinance is arranged with contractor-friendly criteria from the outset, so the bridge-to-term journey is mapped before the auction, not improvised after it.
Auction finance costs what bridging costs — monthly interest of roughly 0.5% to 1.5%, arrangement fees, valuation and legal costs. The economics work because auctions are where below-market-value purchases genuinely happen: probate sales, repossessions, properties with curable defects, and lots that simply failed to find their audience.
A disciplined auction buyer prices the finance into the bid: maximum bid = end value, minus refurbishment, minus finance and transaction costs, minus required margin. We help clients run exactly that arithmetic before the auction — the finance cost is a known input, never a surprise.
Yes — and you should. A decision in principle before bidding, ideally against the specific lot after legal pack review, is the entire discipline of auction buying done well. Bidding without agreed finance puts your 10% deposit at risk on an unconditional contract. We arrange pre-auction agreements as standard.
You are in breach of an unconditional contract: the seller can serve notice, retain your deposit, and pursue losses. This is why lender selection matters more in auction finance than anywhere else — we only place auction cases with lenders whose valuation and legal machinery genuinely operates inside the deadline.
Yes — refurbishment facilities advance the purchase funds at completion and release works funding in stages against progress. For heavier projects, the facility is structured against the gross development value. We size the whole project facility before you bid so the works are funded, not hoped for.
Typically 25% to 30% of the purchase price, plus the 10% payable on the day from your own funds (it forms part of your overall contribution). Equity in other property can substitute for cash through additional security. We structure the contribution before the auction so your maximum bid is precise.
Yes — company and SPV purchases are routine at auction and with auction lenders, usually with directors’ personal guarantees. If the long-term plan is a limited company buy to let, buying in the company from day one avoids a later transfer with its stamp duty and CGT consequences. We coordinate the structure with your accountant before bid day.
No — first-time auction buyers are financeable, though lenders look harder at the exit and the realism of any refurbishment plan. Where we add most value for first-timers is before the bid: legal pack review, honest cost arithmetic and a funding ceiling, so the first auction purchase is a calculated one.