The standard terms for sale by auction include no cooling off period, a 10 per cent deposit on the fall of the hammer, settlement in 30 days and no special conditions.

Anyone contemplating purchase at the auction should be aware of these basic terms and confirm whether they and any others apply to their sale.

These terms reflect the needs and wishes of the seller but, from time to time, there may be changes.

For example, a 60-day settlement may be more convenient to the seller and the terms changes accordingly.

This will certainly be announced by the auctioneer on the day and should be advised to prospective purchaser by the sale representative in the lead-up to the auction.

Conversely, some minor change to the terms may make the difference between someone bidding at an auction or not. An inability to settle in 30 days may preclude some bidders, where as 60 days may be ideal.

In these cases, prospective buyers should approach the agent to see whether the seller will agree to a minor change of terms to enable them to bid. Such a change, if agreed to, would be specific to them if there were the highest bidder over the reserve.

There is no obligation on the seller to agree to any change. However, it is an avenue that prospective buyers should not overlook if it could make the difference between their bidding or not.

A more likely arrangement may relate to the payment of deposit at a Saturday morning auction where the buyer has no cheque account. It is usually in the seller's interest to be flexible in this situation.

A prudent prospective buyer must have some prior arrangement in hand if they wish to insure the "risk" that transfers to them at purchase.

The purpose of the auction is to effect a sale, this may be more satisfactorily handled by making some minor changes to accepted arrangements.