Going to auction in Houston - Rosenberg - Sugar Land need advice

[Mark M.]

Hey one, hey all. I dont know if Im posting this in the right place but i had a question.

i plan on going to a auction this Tuesday. I dont plan on buying or bidding on anything at all, rather I'd like to see what happens, how it happens and maybe more importantly WHO's making it happen.

Im really very new, havent got a deal yet, but Im thinking it couldnt hurt to meet some cash buyers just to introduce myself and maybe get their contact info for future reference.

I live in the Houston area and there are 2 auctions I know of; 1 for Harris county and the other for Fort Bend county. The problem is they are both held on the first Tuesday of the month at about the same time of day. 

So my question is to anyone in the area whos has gone to these auctions. Which one of the two would you recommend going to?

Which one usually has more action, more players, more that I could watch, listen and learn from?

Any help, advice, or opinion is more than welcome. Thanks for reading.

[Jonathan Williams]

@Mark M.

First off, I've never been to the Fort Bend auction, so I can't compare the two. However, first ask yourself what your intent is for going in the first place is. If just to observe the frenzy (i.e. circus) then either should provide you the entertainment. BUT if you're going as a future buyer, then you need to go to the auction in your "farm area". Maybe you don't have that quite defined yet, and that's ok. But generally go to the one you think you'll buy at in the future. These are good networking opportunities.

Keep in mind, there is also the Bank Foreclosure auction at Harris County in another part of the event center. Might be at Fort Bend too, I'm just not sure their format. But banks are required to hold their auctions on the first Tuesday as well, so I presume so. The bank foreclosure auction is much closer to a cattle auction (my upbringing is showing itself here)...fast pasted, a true auction-style. Sheriff sale is slower paced, but often very difficult to hear or know what property is being auctioned. The digital output on the screens helps.

I've bought one bank foreclosure and one tax sale in the past year. Both were purchased at a price that I can (or already have) made money at, but the competition at Harris Co. is really stiff - I've heard more so than Fort Bend but I'll let someone w/ experience in both confirm. There have been properties I've been interested in that people pay near fair market value for a house they haven't seen the inside of. I have a healthy appetite for risk, but I calculate risk into every target I have at the auctions and its my conclusion that I'm more conservative than most investors. Explains why I've only bought 2 properties. But one we rehabbed/flipped for +$80k net, and the other is a fantastic town home site overlooking downtown that I'll either develop myself or flip to a builder for $40k or so net (we've currently got the existing structure rented to be cash flow positive and bide us some time during the redemption period to decide). But I've targeted an average of 3 properties each month for about 10 months now, so you can do the math here.

I've been going to the auctions for only a year, so I don't offer much history. But I'm curious what your intent is, and how the auctions might contribute to your investing strategy? Figure that out first.