Auction Rooms

An auction room is a room intended for the sole use of auctioning off particular items, the term however most often refers to the premises from which an auctioneer conducts business on an ongoing basis. The premises are therefore referred to as auction rooms.

Some auction rooms will specialise in a type or types of product and some may specialise rather in a period of product. Auction houses range from relatively low budget operations through to prestige houses offering luxury goods. Auction rooms may specialise in such widely variant offerings such as period or antique furniture, fine and decorative arts, livestock such as racehorses and beef cattle or repossessed motor vehicles.

Goods are able to be consigned to an auction house for sale, whereby the owner of the goods places them in the hands of the auction rooms and receives whatever prices is achieved by the auctioneer on the day. These returns will usually be less some fee or commission paid to the auction rooms and may also be the subject of a reserve or minimum price set in advance by the owner. Items on offer at auction which do not reach such a reserve price are said to have been passed in.

Auction rooms can be a great place to find a bargain or an unusual item and can also be a handy way of selling on your own goods.