E-Property Contracts Herald A Future Of 'E-Bay' Style Auctions

Australia’s first fully fledged e-property contract auction of 31 residential land lots debuted in Gledwood Hills, Sydney on Sunday September 20.

Developed by Colin Biggers & Paisley lawyers (CBP) and e-transaction specialist, DocuSign, the e-contract technology used at this auction marks the first step towards establishing an ‘e-bay’ style marketplace for real estate that will revolutionise the way property is bought and sold in Australia.

For buyers in the near future, the need to physically trudge from one auction to another will be a thing of the past.  CBP’s e-contract system will facilitate their ability to ‘toggle’ multiple auctions simultaneously on their computer or mobile device and bid on one or more properties from the comfort of their couch anywhere in Australia or overseas.

“This could be a huge benefit in a heated property market,” CBP property partner Mr Mark Morgan said.  “For every ‘winner’ at an auction there are dozens of ‘losers’ who are out-bid and miss out. Because buyers generally need to be physically present, they may also miss out on bidding on other properties if auction times or locations aren’t convenient.

E-contracts will haul the real estate market out of the dark ages and pave the way for properties to be bought and sold entirely online - just like any other commodity on e-bay."Developers and agents are also big winners with e-contracts opening the marketing of their product to a far wider range of potential purchasers, while fast tracking the sales process and substantially reducing transaction costs.