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WITH repossessions becoming more common, it can’t be long before estate agency firms latch onto the business of selling distressed property. Already there are rumours that a nationwide firm will set up a special auctions division to deal with property that has to be sold – think apartments and townhouses in new schemes that have lain empty for a year or more where the builder is being forced to sell by the bank.

Repossession auctions are common in the US, and to a lesser extent in the UK, but that is set to change. American repossessions specialists Real Estate Disposition Corporation (REDC) is setting up business in the UK, and already has almost 500 homes to sell on behalf of lenders, according to EGI, the Estates Gazette website. REDC plans auctions in London, Leeds, Gateshead, Manchester and Birmingham, selling on behalf of lenders including Mortgage Express, Clydesdale Bank and Merrill Lynch, with the sales taking place from March 31st to April 5th. REDC last year sold 32,800 homes in the US for $3.4bn. But UK auctioneers are none too keen on the competition, warning that REDC will charge a 10 per cent buyer’s fee, a first for the business.