As a real estate principal or agency leader, you’ve likely experienced the frustration of private treaty campaigns that lose momentum. In today’s challenging market conditions, this becomes even more problematic.

When property signs go up during a private treaty sale, agents can become complacent when campaigns lose momentum. In softer markets especially, there’s often no accountability mechanism once a property is listed—a signboard goes up, online listings are created, and then what? Without a defined endpoint, the entire sales process can drift aimlessly.

According to recent market data, there’s an emerging trend suggesting auctions might overtake private treaty sales as the preferred selling method by late 2025. This isn’t surprising, as the auction method creates a competitive atmosphere that can push prices closer to a property’s true market value.

The power of auctions lies in their structure and the accountability they create. Here’s why implementing auctions in your real estate business can transform your results:

1. Built-in Accountability: With an auction date set, everyone involved—agents, vendors, and potential buyers—works towards a definitive deadline. This creates natural urgency and accountability.
2. Team Performance Management: When your team knows there’s an auction date approaching, they’re motivated to do the necessary work leading up to that day—unlike private treaties where campaigns can languish.
3. Market Control: Through auctions, you gain greater control over days on market, clearance rates, and overall business performance, even in challenging market conditions.
   

Many real estate principals mistakenly believe that successful auctions depend primarily on having a charismatic auctioneer. Our Bidder Magnet training system reveals that this couldn’t be further from the truth.

As explained in the transcript, “The auctioneer plays a very minimal role in a real auction process.” The real work happens in the weeks before auction day through systematic preparation.

If you implement a proper auction system, by auction day, two critical elements will be in place:

1. The vendor will be ready to accept the market price
2. Bidders will be committed to the process and ready to participate

Our systematic approach is so effective that, as I often tell my clients, “If you run a good systematic auction process and follow the training we teach, you should be playing golf the day before the auction.”

When comparing auction versus private treaty methods, many sellers believe auctions can help them achieve a higher price, though private sales are often perceived as less stressful. The reality is that each method has distinct advantages depending on your specific circumstances.

The transformative power of auctions becomes clear when agencies implement proper systems. Agencies that shift from minimal auction activity to a systematic approach often experience their most rapid market share growth periods. This transformation happens because auctions create natural accountability mechanisms that private treaty campaigns lack.

What made this possible wasn’t just deciding to do more auctions—it was implementing systems that:

1. Controlled our days on market
2. Improved our clearance rates
3. Created predictable business outcomes even in changing market conditions

If you’re a real estate principal operating in a market where auctions aren’t common practice, this presents an extraordinary opportunity. By implementing auction systems while your competitors rely on private treaties, you can:

1. Differentiate your agency in the marketplace
2. Create greater accountability within your team
3. Drive significant market share growth
4. Establish more consistent business performance regardless of market conditions

According to the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia (REIWA), auctions offer enhanced control over sale terms, such as settlement dates and deposit amounts. This control helps sellers steer negotiations more effectively, avoiding common delays related to buyer financing or inspections that frequently occur with private treaties.

For many real estate principals, auctions represent the bridge from being caught in daily sales activities to truly leading your business. By implementing proper auction systems, you can:

1. Step away from being the primary salesperson in your business
2. Focus on leading and growing your team
3. Create consistent performance that doesn’t rely solely on market conditions
4. Build a business that performs well even in softening markets

The key is investing time to understand the psychology and systems that make auctions successful. Once mastered, auctions become an exciting business growth tool rather than a daunting sales method.

For many real estate principals, auctions represent the bridge from being caught in daily sales activities to truly leading your business. By implementing proper auction systems, you can:

1. Step away from being the primary salesperson in your business
2. Focus on leading and growing your team
3. Create consistent performance that doesn’t rely solely on market conditions
4. Build a business that performs well even in softening markets

The key is investing time to understand the psychology and systems that make auctions successful. Once mastered, auctions become an exciting business growth tool rather than a daunting sales method.

Implementing auction systems in your real estate business isn’t just about changing your sales method—it’s about taking control of your business destiny. As one principal put it after implementing our Bidder Magnet system, “It’s almost like helping you control your own destiny.”

By understanding the psychology of working with buyers and vendors through a systematic auction process, you can transform your business performance, reduce staff turnover, and create the consistency that allows you to lead rather than sell.