REA is up!

[barrysloate]

Blair- anything is possible, and in no way does it hurt to knock bidders out. It never hurts. But I'm still not convinced it helps. If you knock thirteen bidders out and the only bidder left is Bill Gates, I think you still lose. But I agree that there is a lot of shifting around in the wee hours of the morning and only somebody who qualified will be able to jump back to your lot. However, I still think you've only eliminated the bottom feeders and not the real competition. I suppose there is no definitive answer to this.

[Bosox Blair]

Originally Posted by barrysloate

I suppose there is no definitive answer to this.

Hi Barry,

For sure - and I'm not purporting to have any kind of study to support my idea. It is just something I feel intuitively (ie. that I'd rather enter an auction against 7 qualified bidders than against 15). But I definitely see your points...the number of bidders is not as important as: who they are, what finances they have, and what their goals/motivations are in the auction.

Ultimately, I'm aware that two bidders makes an auction, and two motivated bidders can create a record price. But somehow I still feel better with 2 bidders than with 15.

Cheers,
Blair

[barrysloate]

Blair- I'm sure you've experienced this too, but I can't tell you how many times I've been the underbidder on a lot and said to myself, If it just wasn't for that one guy, I could have won that lot at such a good price. And that's the one bidder I'm suggesting you haven't knocked out. Obviously, whether you finish second or fifth, the end result is the same. Maybe we should do a study of bidding patterns and behavior.

[Bosox Blair]

Originally Posted by barrysloate

Maybe we should do a study of bidding patterns and behavior.

Hi Barry,

I might be a strange guy (...well, I am ) but I would really find that interesting.

All the best,
Blair

[barrysloate]

I can tell you from my years of doing auctions that watching people's bidding behavior is fascinating indeed! There are many eccentric personalities out there.

[jmk59]

I just got an email notifying me that bidding is open. Now that I've been outbid many times over on all but three things.

J

[JP]

No harm in sharing my bidding strategy. I look at all the lots I want, figure a final price I'm good with, subtract 17.5% BP, then subtract 20% more and then bid that price on all the lots I want...so around 70% of what I'm ok with the final price being. Then I wait and once I'm outbid on most of them, on the last day I narrow down my lots by a half and rebid on the ones I'm willing to go the extra mile with and then go to sleep that night -- the night that it closes. I never want to really OVERPAY so I often miss out on most lots. But at times my system REALLY works. The Plank I won was my 70% bid, and it never got outbid again. Other times, I end up missing out on lots with prices that in retrospect seem like incredible deals.

[calvindog]

My strategy: I buy whatever I want at whatever I feel like paying for it and then I go back to work the next day and make more money.