Editor's note: This brief was summarised by The Property AI Newsroom from a report by Property118. Read the original article for full details.

Auctions Gain Ground as Landlords Sell Tenanted Properties Online

Private treaty sales remain the dominant route to market in the UK, but auction volumes are rising sharply. Auction House reported a 70% year-on-year increase in tenanted properties sold through its weekly online auctions in April, while EIG figures show residential lots offered at auction rose 33.5% year-on-year in June, with sales up 29.7%.

Why auctions are changing

Writing on Property118, David Coughlin of Landlord Sales Agency notes that although auctioned property typically achieves a lower sales price than a high street sale, the format has evolved. Most auctions are now online with longer bidding windows, and some allow 56 days to complete rather than the traditional 28, so buyers who need a mortgage can now participate. A larger pool of buyers means auctions no longer carry the equity costs they once did.

Speed, certainty and tenants in situ

Auctions offer sellers speed, control and certainty. Buyers are legally committed from the start, removing the risk of a sale collapsing after months of waiting. Auctions are described as particularly useful for properties that do not fit the conventional estate agency market, including properties sold with tenants in situ.

For landlords, this matters directly. More are choosing to accept less than vacant-possession value rather than pay the costs of gaining vacant possession and preparing a property for sale, avoiding the risk of holding an empty property while other landlords also exit the private rented sector. The article frames this trade-off as the "cost of surety": exchanging some potential value to avoid prolonged uncertainty, ongoing mortgage payments, maintenance costs and the risk of falling prices during a lengthy sale.

Who is turning to auctions

The report identifies several seller types: landlords with cooperative tenants wanting to release equity quickly; inherited-property owners who never intended to be landlords and cannot afford to run an empty property; older landlords planning retirement; and those seeking to end arrears, legal costs or management problems, or to minimise the risk of disputes with tenants.

When speed becomes a priority

Auctions are also used when things go wrong: a private treaty sale falls through, a buyer reduces their offer, a tenant stops paying, a dispute develops, access becomes difficult, unexpected repairs arise or a financial deadline looms. A more reliable sale route, it argues, can stop debt spiralling into repossession and remove stressful situations.

For letting agents and inventory clerks, the trend points to growing activity around tenanted sales and tenant-in-situ transactions, where accurate inventories, tenancy documentation and clear records become central to the sale process.