What the Boston Globe didn’t mention about the Beacon Hill Auction …
This week the Boston Globe ran a story about two Beacon Hill real estate auctions that will take place March 3, 2010. Upon reading the article, a potential client contacted me and asked me to find out more details. I contacted Great Rock Auction and requested sales information on 20 Brimmer Street. In reading their marketing brochure, I found this paragraph interesting:
Buyer’s Premium: A 5% Buyers Premium will be added to the final bid price of the property detailed in this brochure, per the terms of the sale.
This is important for you to know: If you place a $5mil bid on 20 Brimmer Street townhouse you will also be required to pay a 5% surcharge fee of $250,000.
I contacted Great Rock Auctions to make sure I had my facts correct and this what they told me: “John, it’s a very common practice in NYC at art auctions to have the buyer pay a surcharge fee, and it’s the same concept here with this property.” Huh?
Apparently, buyers paying a “buyer’s premium” is commom practice in NYC. Hmm … I wonder what Boston homebuyers think of this?
BTW, if you are interested in participating in the Beacon Hill auction, please contact me as a buyer’s agent. If you are the winning bid, I’ll use part of my broker fee to offset your “buyer’s premium.”
Your thoughts? Do you see this auction format catching on in Boston?