Who buys houses on eBay?
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Deals on eBay for rare vinyl records, designer clothing and antique furniture are now relatively common, but one category has retained an air of mystery to some users since of the online auction site launched in 2001: real estate.
Armchair real estate gawkers have probably seen eBay home auctions pop up in the news, like when the Disney Haunted Mansion replica went up for sale, or the Italian village was offered, or when the nuke-proof bunker went on auction.
But how does this work? Who buys a house in an online auction? Are the sales really as cheap as they seem, as with an abandoned Michigan house that went for $1.75, or is there a catch?
First, to "buy" a house on eBay is not the same as winning a normal eBay auction, which is a legally binding contract. Because eBay is not a real estate agent, and laws and regulations vary around the country, to win a home auction on eBay is nonbinding: The buyer agrees to purchase the home from the seller. eBay acts more as the vehicle to advertise the property to a global audience and for sellers to meet interested buyers and learn how much they're willing to spend.
After the auction ends, the winner and the seller are expected to contact each other to proceed with the sale through traditional channels. As with any real estate purchase, the transaction is not guaranteed to close, but if the buyer does not follow through with a purchase attempt in good faith, the bidder is subject to negative feedback and eBay account suspension.
As far as what's in this unusual market, the listings on eBay include 21-acre Florida country estate with a picturesque canopied oak alley, several gold mining claims, two houseboats, a farmer's family home in the central Italian countryside, and a lot in a gated community on a Florida key. (That makes two properties from Florida. In fact, nearly half of the residential listings are in Florida, with Michigan coming in second.)
In a recent sampling of 100 completed auctions in the residential property category, roughly two-thirds sold, and the other third ended without a sale. Half of the homes sold for prices under $5,000, with a quarter of those 100 homes selling for amounts under $1,000.
On the higher end of residences for sale, there's a 23-acre compound in Southern California for $14.9 million, and 10 others above the million-dollar mark. But when it comes to real estate, it seems eBay is still a place people go to find a bargain, even when buying a house. The highest priced active auction to have attracted a bid so far was $100,000, with the next highest bids are in the $60,000 range.
As for those homes that sell at rock-bottom prices, the stock on eBay real estate has numerous self-declared handyman specials. So it seems bargain-hunting home buyers will have some homework, and likely months or years of home work, ahead of them.
Due diligence is the name of the game when buying a home online. One eBay user who identifies as a real estate agent and investor wrote a user guide to warn those who might be scammed.
Much of that user's advice boils down to research. Research the house, find out who has the title, confirm the square footage and lot measurements, find out if that lot can be built on or subdivided. The estimated value of the property could be out of date. Find out if there are any development plans for the neighborhood. Are there code violations, back taxes, demolition orders? Does the seller really own the house?
Maybe that fixer-upper house in the listing only costs a few hundred dollars now, but if you want to buy a house online, do as the bank lender would do, and spend some more to get an appraisal, do a title search, maybe hire an attorney to go over the details and paperwork.
Attempts to reach an eBay representative for this article were not successful. However, eBay's official policies state that eBay Real Estate is not involved in the actual transaction between buyers and sellers and, as a result, "has no control over the quality, safety or legality of the properties advertised, the truth or accuracy of the postings, the ability of sellers to sell items or the ability of buyers to buy items. eBay cannot ensure that a buyer or seller will actually complete a transaction."
