How do I bid?

Before placing your first bid, thoroughly review the auction description and any additional details included in the listing. Remember, it is incumbent upon the bidder to verify all information provided in the auction and conduct additional research before placing a bid.

When you are ready to place a bid, enter your amount in the bid box and click on the "Place Bid" button. If you are logged in, you will be taken to a page to confirm your bid. You will need to be logged into your account before you are able to bid.

For auctions that do not require a deposit, Bid4Assets requires all bidders to provide a valid credit card prior to placing a bid. Bid4Assets will confirm the card via a $1 charge that will be refunded to your account after the card is authorized. If a bidder wins an auction but does not complete the transaction, their card will be charged a $250 non-performance fee for a real estate auction and $100 for all other auctions.

A bidder will be prompted to verify their bid amount. They must then confirm they have completed their due diligence, understand the terms of the sale and agree to abide by Bid4Assets’ non-performing bidder policy.

If a bidder has not entered their credit card information into the system, they will be prompted to do so at this time. If a bidder has already entered at least one credit card into the system, they can select which card they'd like to use to confirm this bid. Finally, they must enter their password and click on the "Bid Now" button to complete the bid.

To initiate an Auto Bid, enter the maximum amount you are willing to pay for the auction item into the bid box. Bid4Assets will automatically increase your bid to maintain your position as high bidder or to meet the reserve price. In the event that you are outbid, you will receive a notification in your Bid4Assets message center and you will have the option to increase your bid if you wish.

Note: If two bidders place auto bids for identical amounts on the same auction, and this amount is the high bid when the auction closes, the first auto bid that was placed will be the winning bid.

Examples of Auto Bid:

• If the auction has a minimum bid of $200 and you enter your maximum bid amount of $400, your bid will automatically be placed at $200. Your bid will automatically increase as other bidders participate, up to your $400 maximum bid amount.
• If the auction has a Reserve Price of $20,000 (this amount is hidden from bidders) and you enter an Auto Bid amount of $18,000, your bid will automatically be placed at $18,000. The Reserve Price has not been met so there will be no winning bidder unless additional bids are placed.
• If the auction has a Reserve Price of $20,000 (this amount is hidden from bidders) and you enter an Auto Bid maximum of $21,000, your bid will automatically be placed at the Reserve Price of $20,000. If another bidder jumps in, your bid will automatically increase until you meet your $21,000 maximum bid.

A BuyNow auction means you can bid on the item one of two ways:

• If you are willing to offer the BuyNow price before the first bid comes in, you win the item immediately and the auction ends.
• If you place a bid first instead of offering the BuyNow price, the BuyNow option disappears. Then the auction proceeds as a regular online auction.

BuyNow auctions are identified with the following icon:

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You MUST click on the BuyNow icon to choose this option.

A reserve price is the minimum dollar amount a seller is willing to accept for an item. This amount is not disclosed, but bidders are notified (“reserve met” message appears on the auction listing) once the reserve price has been met.

A bid increment is the minimum amount you can bid above the current bid price. A bidder can place a bid amount that is equal to or greater than the bid increment, just not less than the bid increment.

It depends on how you placed your bid. If you placed an Auto Bid, you may raise or lower your bid amount by entering the new bid amount in the bid box and clicking “Place Bid.”

Note: You can lower your bid amount only one bid increment above the current bid amount.

Yes. If you are the current high bidder, you can increase your bid amount. Enter your bid in the “Place Your Bid” box to submit a higher bid amount. If you have a maximum Auto Bid amount that you would like to increase, type the new bid amount in the bid box and click "Place Bid."

No. A bid amount cannot be removed or cancelled from an auction once it is placed. A bid is a binding contract between buyer and seller; an irrevocable offer to purchase an item from the seller at the stated bid price. Buyers are required to conduct any research or due diligence of an asset prior to placing a bid.

All bidders should be aware that they have entered into a legally binding agreement if they place a winning bid in an auction on Bid4Assets. We take bidder performance very seriously and expect every winning bidder to complete their transaction. We vigorously enforce any violation of policy.

A “Non-Performing Bidder” will be subject to the following penalties:

• If a deposit was required to bid, your deposit will be forfeited.
• If the auction does not require a deposit, bidders will be charged a Non-Performing Bidder fee using the credit card they have placed on file. They will be charged a fee of $250 for a real estate auction and $100 for all other auctions.
• Additionally, for the first, non-performing offense: you will automatically be suspended from buying or selling on Bid4assets for 60 days. You may request reinstatement after 60 days by sending an email to [email protected]. Whether the account suspension will be lifted is at the total discretion of Bid4Assets’ Client Services team.
• For the second non-performing offense you will be permanently suspended from our site.

Overtime bidding occurs automatically when a bid is placed within the last few minutes of an auction. The auction will remain open until an entire overtime increment (5 minutes) has passed without any bidding. The overtime increment is indicated on the auction listing page.

Buyer’s Premium is an optional fee that sellers can add to the winning bid amount of an auction to cover costs associated with their auction. The fee cannot exceed 10% of the winning bid amount and is included in the total purchase price paid by the buyer to the seller. The buyer’s premium percentage is indicated on the auction listing and displayed during the bid process. The seller is responsible for collecting the Buyer's Premium from the Buyer.

A Bid and Assume auction is an owner-financed real estate auction. In a Bid and Assume auction, potential buyers are bidding for the down payment only and the winning bidder will assume the balance amount as stated within the auction. Buyers are required to carefully review the seller's terms listed in an auction — prior to placing a bid — as there may be additional collection/processing fees, closing costs, a Buyer’s Premium or other fees. Click here to read our FAQs on Bid and Assume auctions.