London auction sales attract fierce bidding

Auction House London has broken its own record, with sales at its last auction exceeding £10.6m.
 
A second record was also broken in the saleroom when it sold a property (pictured) in The Drive in South Woodford, London, for £1,675,000 –  the highest amount for a single property achieved during one of its auctions.

Totals at Auction House London have risen steadily since its debut auction in March 2011 with a large jump at its most recent sale on October 31, where almost all the properties being sold were in London and the South-East.
 
Auctioneer Andrew Binstock said: “This is a fantastic result and we are now considered a serious contender in the London property auction market. There is currently a shortage of good-quality well-located London stock, but we are attracting excellent lots, which translates into fierce bidding on the auction floor.”
 
At the sale at the Everyman Cinema in Belsize Park, a total of £10,675,900 was raised with 30 out of 35 lots sold (86%).

In Sidcup, Kent, a parcel of land with a guide of £370,000 sold for £111,000 above the guide price. The corner site has the potential for development, but was sold without planning permission.
 
Meanwhile, Network Auctions held its national sale, also in London, a day later, with 11 out of 13 lots sold.

Both Network Auctions and Auction House work on a national basis by partnering with local estate agents.

However, both their sales were easily overtaken by Andrews and Robertons’ November 5 sale, where 59 out of 83 lots were sold for a total of £17.5m – the firm’s second highest result this year.

Robin Cripp, chief executive, said properties sold for an average of £296,653, with investors chasing a good return on their equity.

Cripp, a former estate agent, launched Barnard Marcus auctions before retiring. He came out of retirement five years ago and bought auction house Andrews and Robertsons. Two months ago, Cripp took over Quinton Scott estate agents, in Wimbledon.

Andrews and Robertons’ next London sale is on December 16.