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If you bid...
Bidding at an auction can be dicey, particularly if it's your first time. Dealers and private bidders sit side by side, but they might as well be in opposite camps. In the heat of the moment, private bidders can drive prices up and steal that lovely Hepplewhite stand out from under a dealer's nose. Dealers, in turn, have been known to gang up on a private bidder to jack a bid up and leave the buyer with a hefty bill.
"They'll mark you for being a new attendee," Skinner's Alicia Gordon warns about the dealers. "And a dealer will run a deal up. If you know what you're prepared to spend, you don't find yourself in that situation."
Dealers have also been known to band together and bid as one at auction, to keep prices low. After the auction, individuals in the group will bid among themselves for ownership of the lot.
If you're not a connoisseur, and you're at an auction run by an itinerant auctioneer, be cautious. Most estate auctions are authentic, but occasionally there are scams. Last year, a North Shore auctioneer was caught importing goods from India, distressing them so they'd look like antiques, and selling them at an estate auction.
If you see dealers bidding, chances are the item is the real McCoy. (You can spot dealers by their ever-present notebooks).
If you see the perfect dining room table at a preview but can't make it to the auction, most auctioneers accept absentee bids. An unscrupulous auctioneer, though, may take your highest bid, even if the live bids were much lower. To protect yourself, watch auctioneers in action and ask other bidders about their reputations.
If you're bidding live, auction veteran Renee Alexander offers one bidding strategy: "Don't make yourself the third person in a bidding war between two people, because you'll drive the price up. Be patient and wait until the end to bid, and you'll get a better deal."
After the sale
Expect a 10-15 percent buyer's fee to be tacked onto your winning bid, as
well as a state sales tax. It's cash or check; auctions usually don't take credit
cards.
Some auction houses, including Skinner, will hold an item for up to
three days while you arrange to ship it. Itinerant and on-site auctions expect
you to take your purchase home; delivery people often are on hand who can
be hired on the spot.
Resources:
There's an auction category in the classifieds of the Sunday Boston Globe. Also check these magazines:
Antiques And The Arts Weekly (known in the business as the Newtown Bee). Available at some newsstands and by subscription for $58 a year. 203-426-8036
Maine Antique Digest. A monthly available at some newsstands, and by subscription for $43 a year. 207-832-7534
Mass Bay Antiques. A monthly available by subscription for $15 a year. (781) 433-6700
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