Pre-Auction

Do you want to bid in a Live Auction?

The following are the step-by-step instructions to allow you to participate in a live auction on Continental Auctioneers:

1. Create an account with Continental Auctioneers, instructions below.
2. Get Approved to Bid in the auction you are interested in, instructions below.
3. Preview the lots within the auction.
4. Place absentee/max bids if you are interested in bidding prior to the auction day. instructions below.

Creating an account with Continental Auctioneers

Creating an account with Continental Auctioneers is quick and easy! Here is how:

1. Go to the create new account page if you haven't already done so. Create a username/password combination, enter your name and provide us with a valid email.
2. Review the user agreement and privacy policy. Check off that you have read and accept the user agreement and privacy policy.
3. Click the Create Account button at the bottom of the page.
4. A confirmation email will be sent to the email address you provided. The email contains a link that you need to click to confirm your account. If you do not receive the email please check your spam box.
5. After you have confirmed your account, you will be signed into Continental Auctioneers and ready to proceed.

Getting Approved to Bid in an Auction

Getting approved to bid in an auction is simple! Here is how:

1. You need an account to be able to get approved for auctions. Need an account? Click here to create a new account...
2. Select the auction you are interested in from the list of Live & Upcoming Live Auctions on the main page or from the auction listing page. Click the Get Approved To Bid button or link.
3. Sign in with your Continental Auctioneers username/password. You may already be signed-in, if so skip this step.
4. Read the privacy policy and the auctioneer's terms and conditions.
5. Fill in the requested information as necessary, confirm your information is correct and click the button to submit it for approval.
6. In most cases you will be automatically approved to bid, in a very few cases the auctioneer will need to manually approve your information before you will be allowed to place any bids. If the auctioneer manually approves you an email will let you know when you're approved to bid.

Absentee/Max Bidding

An absentee bid is a bid placed before the start of an auction. Bidders are allowed to place absentee bids on an lot up until the lot is opened for live bidding. When live bidding begins our system will bid on the Bidders behalf up to the amount of their absentee bid. If the system can win you the lot for less than the absentee bid it will.

To place a bid, navigate to the lot you are interested in. Enter the amount you are willing to bid and click the Place Max Bid button. You will be prompted to confirm your intention to bid, click ok to finalize your bid. That's it!

If you would like to increase your bid, you can do so through the same routine. There is one scenario where you can outbid yourself by 1 increment, it is as follows. If you are the high bidder, in a scenario where you and another bidder have an equivalent high bid, the bidder who placed their bid first, will be winning at that bid amount. If you were to increase your max/absentee bid, then the system will re-evaluate the top two bids and because your "new" max/absentee bid was placed after the other bidders max/absentee bid, the system will increase you max/absentee bid 1 increment over the last high bid placed, effectively outbidding yourself. For example: Bidder A, places a $100 max/absentee bid on a lot, Bidder B, places $100 max/absentee bid on the same lot, Bidder A is winning for $100. If Bidder A now wants to increase their max/absentee bid by 1 increment to $125, the date/time of their absentee bid now becomes after Bidder B, so the system will increase Bidder A's bid to 1 increment higher than Bidder B's, to $125.

If you would like to view the lots you have bid on and their corresponding absentee bids, sign in to your account.

Cost of Bidding

As a buyer on Continental Auctioneers, you don't pay anything to browse and bid. You will pay the auctioneer directly in the specified auction currency when you win a lot in an auction. You'll be contacted directly to inform you of what you have won and how much you owe. The total amount payable on your invoice may include the following where applicable:

1. The amount of your winning bid,
2. The applicable buyer's premium,
3. Applicable taxes,
4. Fees and shipping costs as agreed upon.

A buyer's premium is an amount traditionally paid by the buyer to the auctioneer for every purchase in a live auction. This premium is a percentage of the final price of a lot. For example, if the auctioneer charges a buyer's premium of 12% on a bid price of $1,000, you will have to pay an additional $120 for a toal of $1,120 (not including taxes/shipping/etc).

To find out about buyer's premiums and other charges, please read the terms and conditions of sale outlined in the auction overview page of each individual auction carefully.