House Auction Fees: How Much Does It Cost to Sell at Auction?

Auction Fees: A Full Breakdown

The costs of selling a house at auction fall into five main fees, plus the no-sale risk.

• Auctioneer's commission. Roughly 2 to 3 per cent of the final sale price. On a £200,000 property, that's £4,000 to £6,000.
• Entry or lot fee. £300 to £600 or more, paid upfront and non-refundable even if the property doesn't sell.
• Legal pack. Your solicitor's preparation of title documents, searches and special conditions. Usually £300 to £800.
• EPC. Required if your Energy Performance Certificate is out of date. £60 to £120.
• MMoA buyer reservation fee. Around 4 to 5 per cent paid by the buyer, but it suppresses what they can offer for the property. On a £200,000 property, the fee runs to £8,000 to £10,000.

If bidding doesn't reach your reserve, the property doesn't sell, but the entry and legal costs are usually non-refundable. Essentially, you have paid for an auction that didn't happen.

To put real numbers behind those percentages, let's take a £200,000 house sold at a traditional auction. A 3% commission takes £6,000 straight off the top. Add a £500 entry fee and £500 of legal costs, and the seller walks away with around £189,000. 

The Modern Method of Auction usually nets even less because the buyer's reservation fee pulls bids down before any of those direct deductions are applied.