Buying from The Potomack Company
Buying from us is easy. You may browse our online catalogue, which will be available approximately two weeks before the date of the auction, or visit our Gallery the week before the auction to view items available for sale. Once you find that perfect item, you may inspect it at our Gallery to determine its condition.
If coming to the Gallery is not possible, you may email us to request a condition report. Given the high volume of such requests, we may not always be able provide one to you. Because all items are sold 'as is', we encourage you to visit our Gallery in person before placing a bid.
When you are ready to buy, there are four general steps to purchasing your item:
- Registration
- Bidding
- Payment
- Picking up your Purchase
Registration
You must register with us in order to bid for your item. You may either register here to leave an absentee bid online or at our Gallery to bid in person. Once you register, you will be given a bidding number. You should then review our Terms and Conditions of Sale and Limited Guarantee. After that, you are ready to bid!
Bidding
You may bid any of three ways: in person, through absentee bids faxed to us or left on our website, and by telephone bids. Some auctions may also offer live internet bidding.
Please read our Terms and Conditions of Sale and Limited Guarantee before you bid. Bidding on an item in our auction indicates that you accept these terms and conditions.
Bidding in person
After registering in person at our Gallery, you will be given a paddle with your bidding number. The auctioneer will only recognize bids from those who have a bidding number and paddle. Once the auction begins, the auctioneer will clearly announce the lot number starting bid price. To place a bid, raise your paddle to the auctioneer until he acknowledges you. The auctioneer will take increasing bids on the lot until one bidder remains. At that time, he will give fair warning and sell the lot to the remaining bidder for the last bid amount. This amount is what is known as the 'hammer price'. He will then call out the hammer price and the bidding number of the purchaser of the lot. Some lots may have a reserve, the confidential minimum selling price agreed to between seller and the Potomack Company. Lots with a reserve will not be sold if bidding does not reach the reserve price.
Absentee bidding
Up to 4 pm the day before the auction, you may call our offices to leave an absentee bid. You may also fill out and fax back the absentee bid form found here. You will need to download and install Adobe Reader to view and print our absentee bid from. You can download it for free here. The Potomack Company keeps all absentee bids strictly confidential. You will be the winning bidder so long as no one bids higher than you during the auction and the reserve, if any, has been met. In the case of identical bids, the one received earliest will be the winner.
Absentee and telephone bids are offered as a complementary service to our clients and are placed at the buyer's risk. The Potomack Company cannot accept liability for failure to place such bids.
If you are the highest bidder, we will send you an invoice for your purchase after the auction.
Telephone Bidding
Up to 4 pm the day before the auction, you may call our offices to register to bid on the telephone. You may also fill out and fax back the telephone bid form found here to register for telephone bids. You will need to download and install Adobe Reader to view and print our telephone bid from. You can download it for free here. A Potomack Company representative will then call you from the Gallery during the auction when your lot is coming up for sale. They will then execute bids at your discretion.
Telephone bids are offered as a complementary service to our clients and are placed at the buyer's risk. The Potomack Company cannot accept liability for errors or omissions in placing such bids.
If you are the highest bidder, we will send you an invoice for your purchase after the auction.
Internet Live Auctions
For certain auctions, we will accept Internet bidding via the eBay Live Auctions service. The availability of this service is noted on a per-sale basis on potomackcompany.com. You must pre-register through eBay Live Auctions at least 48 prior to the auction in order to bid online. There will also be additional premiums due for bids placed through this service.
Payment
Now that you are the successful bidder, the item is yours! Payment is due immediately upon conclusion of the auction. Please remember that property at the Potomack Company is sold 'as is' and all sales are final. The Potomack Company accepts payment in the form of cash, check, money order or wire transfer (with certain restrictions) and most major credit cards (with certain restrictions).
Buyer's Premium and Sales Tax
A buyer's premium will be added to the hammer price of each lot sold. The buyer's premium is equal to 17.5% of the hammer price. Additionally, in most cases, you will need to pay Virginia sales tax on the purchase price of the item. The purchase price is equal to the hammer price plus the buyer's premium. The Virginia sales tax 5% of the purchase price.
Picking up your purchase
Upon payment, you may pick up your purchases at the auction location or arrange to have them shipped. All purchases should be picked up or shipped within two business days after the auction. After that time, your property will be subject to a handling charge and you may be charged for storage.
