Making a bid: the minimum valid bid and the deposit
Submitting a bid at a court auction is nothing like making an offer to buy. It is not a negotiation, there is no counterparty to haggle with, and above all there is no going back.
Three rules decide whether your bid counts for anything. They are in art. 571 of the Code of Civil Procedure and are worth knowing before you write down a figure.
The minimum you can bid
This is the rule almost nobody explains properly: a bid is not effective if it is more than one quarter below the price set in the sale order.
In practice: if the starting price is €100,000, the minimum valid bid is €75,000. At €74,000 you are not making a low bid, you are making a bid that does not exist — it is simply discarded.
It is good to know in both directions. On the one hand, it tells you there is a real margin below the starting price, and that bidding the full price when it is not needed is money given away. On the other, it stops you from throwing away an opportunity with a figure that will not even be read.
But be careful: bidding the minimum does not guarantee the award. If several bids come in, an auction among the bidders opens, and then what counts is who bids the most.
The deposit is 10% of what you bid
Another rule that is often misread: the deposit is not 10% of the starting price; it is no less than one tenth of the price you offer.
With a starting price of 100,000 and a bid of 75,000, the deposit is at least 7,500, not 10,000. If you bid 110,000, it is at least 11,000.
The method is set by the sale order: almost always a bank transfer, with crediting times that must fall within the deadline. A transfer sent the day before the deadline is not a transfer that has arrived, and it is one of the silliest ways to lose an auction.
If you do not win, the deposit is returned to you. If you win and then do not pay the balance, you lose it — by way of penalty, as the code puts it.
The bid is irrevocable
The code says it in one line: the bid is irrevocable, and there are only two cases in which it lapses: if the judge orders an open auction (incanto), or if one hundred and twenty days have passed since it was submitted and in the meantime the bid has not been accepted.
One hundred and twenty days is four months in which you are bound to a figure you wrote down once.
This means that between the moment you file it and the moment the envelope is opened, you cannot change your mind. You cannot withdraw it because you found something better, because the bank made difficulties, or because on going back to the property you saw something you did not like.
That is why all the checks — viewing, appraisal report, sums, bank — must be done beforehand. Afterwards there is no due diligence phase any more: there is only a commitment.
How to submit it, in practice
Today almost all sales are online and go through the Portale delle Vendite Pubbliche and the appointed sale operator, named in the notice.
The process, in the form you will find in most cases:
You fill in the bid on the operator’s portal, identifying yourself with SPID or with a digital signature and PEC. You enter your details, the lot, the price offered and the payment terms. You attach the documents required by the notice.
You pay the deposit by the method and to the IBAN stated in the order, making sure it is credited by the deadline.
You send everything by the deadline set in the notice. That is the deadline, not “the morning of the auction”: in many procedures the bid must be submitted by the set time on the previous day.
The in-person format still exists, with a bid in a sealed envelope filed with the court registry, but it is now residual: the notice tells you which of the two applies.
Every notice has its own specifics, and it always prevails. If something does not add up, the person to contact is the sale delegate, not the custodian.
The mistakes that cost you the auction
They are almost always the same, and they are all avoidable.
The deposit that arrives late. The transfer should be made with days to spare, not hours.
Incomplete documents. The notice lists what to attach: if a document is missing, the bid is irregular.
The deadline misread. The bid deadline and the auction date are two different things, and the first is the one that counts.
Bidding your whole budget. After the award come taxes, the delegate’s fee and costs. Anyone who calculates their maximum on the starting price finds themselves without the money to complete, and that is where the deposit is lost.
Frequently asked questions
Can I bid less than the starting price? Yes, down to 75% of the price stated in the order. Below that threshold the bid is not effective.
How much deposit do I have to pay? At least 10% of the price you offer, by the method set in the sale order.
Can I withdraw my bid? No, except in the cases provided for by the code. It should be considered binding from the moment you submit it.
If I am the only bidder, do I win automatically? Not automatically. The judge may still suspend the sale if they consider the price offered to be significantly lower than the fair price.
Do I need a lawyer or a notary to make the bid? No. You can submit it yourself. A professional is useful, if anything, beforehand, to read the appraisal report and assess the risks.
Can the debtor take part? No. The code expressly excludes it.
This guide describes the general framework. Deadlines, deposit payment methods and the documents required are set by the sale order and stated in the notice: that always prevails.