Proper Etiquette to Bid on Auction after working with Realtor

[Omar Hamza]

Hey everyone!

I hope you're all safe and well in these crazy times. My name is Omar, and I am in the process of learning more about real estate investing. I have been analyzing deals daily in a workbook I built based off of the calculators on this site and others I found. I'm starting to get a good handle on comps, by analyzing sales of similar homes in my area within the past 6 months to determine my ARV, and utilizing a contractor who is a family friend to help estimate rehab costs.

The goal for my first deal is to do a fix and flip and my partner and I have been working out what our desired ROI from this deal. We have been looking at homes together and have gotten advice from another family friend who is in the business to look at auction properties. However, we have already seen houses over the past three weeks with a realtor, who has been absolutely helpful and patient with us as we are looking through these properties.

My question is, if we were to come across an auction that we think we can get at a good deal, would it be poor etiquette to bid on and potentially purchase the house if we have taken up our realtor's time? What would be the best way to proceed in this situation?

I appreciate any advice you can give!