Menu
Login
This company is a scam.
Supposedly this company auctions off real estate to the highest bidder;however in reality its a glorified short sale. You have the dubious priviledge of paying thousands of dollars in "ernest money" and then have to wait as long as 15 days to find out if you won.
To make matters worse the seller is allowed to bid on his own property up to the reserve price.
If you think you are bidding against bona fide real buyers you are wrong, just the seller bidding up the price.
These are all "problem " properties with sometimes major defects. Since you are bidding against a reserve price you won't save all that much money. In addition you can be really burned because you don't get to do a termite or home inspection. Case in point: a house located in Mill Valley featured as a "premier" property was repeatedly aucioned off and then would reappear again and again. Why?-- a foundation that needed more than 150K in repair work which was known to the seller but not disclosed on the web site. How many deposits were pocketed by REDC on this one transaction alone? To save a few thousand dollars could cost you a 100K. You are way better off buying an REO directly from a bank and making your own inspections.
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
Auction.com has been around since 1990 and in the past few years alone we have sold billions of dollars worth of bank owed homes. Our track record speaks for itself.
At Auction.com we pride ourselves on customer service and support. We assist you throughout the entire auction process with our on-site customer service staff, unlike other auction sites. We also completely refund all earnest money deposits for any incomplete transactions.
In terms of due diligence, we highly recommend that you bring in home inspectors, termite inspectors or whomever you need to help you make an informed and confident decision about your purchase. We host multiple open houses to accommodate this process as well.
Additionally, we post all terms and conditions not only on our website but on all documents a client will have to sign in order to complete a purchase. We even encourage you to take the agreements to your lawyer for review before attending an auction or bidding.
Please find several blog posts that may help you understand the process better...
http://www.auction.com/blog.php/_sheriff-sale-trustee-sale-risky-compared-redc-auction
http://www.auction.com/blog.php/_happens-repossessed-houses
We look forward to serving others and to helping turn houses back into homes.
It is really hard to get my money back. I am still waiting
REDC Auction: Scam or Real Deal
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPhkEt1XF80&feature=player_embedded
I went to the mutiple open houses as posted on Auction.com, and always ended up finding no open house being held at all. There is never any agent there, and any interested buyers going there are always completely locked out.
Be sure to read the fine print and don't count your chickens before their hatched! I bid on a home at auction.com and won. The reserve had been met. I signed all the papers right away and expected the seller to do the same. I did everything I was supposed to do and was told it should close in 30 days. The auction company told me to start the loan process as soon as I won the bid.
The fine print included the following clause:
7. AUCTION/SALE PROCESS. Neither Seller, Seller’s Broker nor auctioneer is making any representation or
warranty as to the manner in which the sale process will be managed. Seller may select the winning bid in its
sole and absolute discretion. No obligation to sell shall be binding on Seller unless and until a written
contract of sale or purchase agreement is signed and delivered by Seller. Seller may rescind any oral
acceptance of a winning bid prior to the execution and delivery of this Purchase Agreement for any reason,
including, but not limited to the receipt of a subsequent higher bid or offer to purchase whether such higher
bid or offer to purchase was received pursuant to the Auction Terms and Conditions or otherwise.
I was told by the escrow company this is a formality and there shouldn't be any problem. Almost 3 weeks into escrow they rejected my bid. They would not even give me a counter-offer. They said I could make a higher offer and they might consider it. I did, and they didn't. I was told I could increase my bid even higher and they might consider it but it would be a week before they would get back to me.
The house is no longer available so I can only assume they got a higher offer 2 weeks after they sold it to me. Of course, if I changed my mind at any time after the auction, I would have lost my earnest money of over $4, 000. They lose nothing. I cashed out my 401k to get the down payment and the loan docs have all been completed. I'm not even sure how much money I'm going to owe the mortgage company for all they've already done.
I still think online auctions can be a great. I've gotten a vehicle and a trailer on E-bay with no problems. I think auction.com needs to rethink their policies.
BUYER BEWARE!
The comment from the REDC rep is a joke. I peed myself when I read "At Auction.com we pride ourselves on customer service and support. "
My report here: http://www.complaintsboard.com/bycompany/redc-auctioncom-a273172.html
you should just buy your home on ebay !, ...i missed out on a condo at the minneseota auction, ..and thought suspicious things, . the minute i entered the room, and they had signs all over, no tping ! no camera etc...if its all on the up and up, what would they not want taped ? i think it might be, the auctioneer always can say, up to seller approval, which they started doing on most properties, ..meaning the auction type process is useless, ..i was told i could also make a higher offer, ..which i did, but never heard anthing from them, ..i know the winner, was proablelly rejected, low bid, but then why would i not get a message my offer was higher ? they would not let me get the name of the winning bidder either, ...just makes you wonder, ..all those black suits and all, ...or are they just dressed up for their party after...
As 'redclient' points out, you are better off working with a Realtor who represents the bank directly.
I would like to know how you can find the reserve price, I have been trying to buy a so called pre auction home with cash and I can't get someone to accept the offer. Any help in this would be great.
I made an earnest deposit of $2500 for a property in Satellite Beach, FL. I wired the deposit on November 15, 2010. I was then notigied that I did not get the property. As of this date (2/9/2011) I still have not had my deposit returned. This is almost 90 days of them making interest on my deposit. Is this fair?
I made an earnest deposit of $2977.50 for a property in Charlotte, NC. I wired the deposit on January 13, 2011. I also did not get the property. As of today, May 17, 2011 I still have not received my deposit back. It has been over 120 days and still no money. I filed a complaint with the California attorney general's office today against Auction.com and their escrow company Powerlinkss.com.
buyer signs off that they have searched for, and take ALL responsibility for any and all liens, tax, code, hoa, on and on and on, AND that you release the seller from any and ALL liability. and no one has a prelim - that you sign off that you DID get it/one... (saying the contract is very one sided is still a MAJOR understatement!)
THEN, you read the closing docs. the title insurance EXCLUDES anything that "you allowed or agreed to" (you better have read and understood every one of the 39 pages of contract).
so really, your 6 month title insurance policy is worth EVEN LESS now!
it is almost like these guys are in bed together and/or laundering!
Real rip off...
They even add the seller closing cost to the buyer, along with various other fees such as Re-key fee while none of the locks are re-keyed. Stay away from this company, it is a real SCAM!
Need help, I bid and won I have not signed anything yet, only verbal on the internet and phone. Can I back out of the deal?
According their FAQ (http://www.auction.com/faqs.php)
1) There are no liens on the property. The sellers provide insurable title to the properties sold at auction.
2) Closing costs are standard and customary for the county in which the property is located.
Well, none of the above is true. How can they get away with it?
Hi raytige,
Thank you for your interest in Auction.com. It is unclear in your case but it sounds like you’ve got some questions about our lien policies and closing procedures. I'd be happy to speak with you to learn a bit more about your concerns and answer your questions. Please give me a call at [protected].
Sincerely,
Peter Chevalier, Director of Customer Service
Don't call them!
Keep this an open discussion, they don't want transparency, no criminals want that...
Two of my friends have had a terrible experience with Auction.com, they are plain dirty!
Dear noHome,
Thank you for reaching out and expressing your concerns. I’d like to be able to set up a call with you to better understand your experience using our platform. I’m going to reach out to you directly through your ComplaintsBoard profile to see what I can do to help come to a resolution.
Sincerely,
Peter Chevalier
Director of Customer Service
Auction.com customer service agents are rude and very unclear in giving you the answers you are seeking. I called to confirm that auction can cause you to outbid yourself. There is no protection to prevent you from outbidding yourself if you find yourself anxious and eager and unsure if you are the highest bidder already. Their auction system will let you continue to outbid yourself and reset the auction time for another 2 minutes when you outbid yourself when there was few seconds left on the bid. Ebay is much better when it comes to auction protraction for the buyer. This company are run by shady people and policies. I wish I saw this complaint board before dealing with them. Its too late for me. When i called to ask if i may have outbid myself, the customer service agents were telling me they can't know, which was a lie. After two calls and 20 minutes of arguing with them to tell me my bid history amount and at what increments and if others bided in between my bids they final told me. Due to their timer resetting and my lack of knowledge that i was already the highest bidder, i have outbid myself and added an extra $4, 000 to the house I was bidding for. I have sent the whole amount of the house as an earnest deposit, I hope that was not a bad idea. Since I am reading here they hold to your money forever if they decide to not sell you the house. Beware of this company. The deals seem good but be very cautious all the reviews above state.