What is online auction?

of art themselves, containing considerable detail about the items being auctioned. At this time, Christie's established a

reputation as a leading auction house, taking advantage of London's status as the major centre of the international art trade

after the French Revolution.

During the American Civil War, goods seized by armies were sold at auction by the Colonel of the division. Thus, some of

today's auctioneers in the U.S. carry the unofficial title of "colonel".[9]

The development of the internet, however, has led to a significant rise in the use of auctions as auctioneers can solicit bids via

the internet from a wide range of buyers in a much wider range of commodities than was previously practical.[5]

In 2008, the National Auctioneers Association reported that the gross revenue of the auction industry for that year was

approximately $268.4 billion, with the fastest growing sectors being agricultural, machinery, and equipment auctions and

residential real estate auctions.[17]

Real Estate Auctions

In some countries, such as Australia, auction is a common method for the sale of real estate. Used as an alternative to the

private sale/treaty method, where a price is disclosed and offers can be made to purchase the property that price, auctions

were traditionally used to sell property that, due to its unique characteristics, was difficult to determine a price for. The law does

not require a vendor to disclose their reserve price prior to the auction. During the 1990's and 2000's, auction became the

primary method for the sale of real estate in the two largest cities, Melbourne and Sydney. This was largely due to the fact that

auction is a service in which auction users

in a private sale the vendor has disclosed the price that they want, and potential purchasers would attempt to low-ball the price,

whereas in an auction purchasers do not know what the vendor wants, and thus need to keep lifting the price until the reserve

price is reached.

sale of real estate in the two largest cities, Melbourne and Sydney.

The method has been the subject of increased controversy during the twenty-first century as house prices sky-rocketed. The

rapidly rising housing market saw many homes, especially in Victoria and New South Wales, selling for significantly more than

both the vendors' reserve price and the advertised price range. Subsequently, the auction systems' lack of transparency about

the value of the property was brought into question, with estate agents and their vendor clients being accused of "under-quoting". Significant attention was given to the