“They say you should go to court to buy a home cheap”...A complete guide to what beginners need to prepare [Jip Nawara Ttukttak!]

[Financial News] Real estate auctions are one way to buy a home of your own for less than market value. But when it comes to actually taking part, it can be daunting to know where to find properties and which documents to prepare. How much is needed for the bid deposit, and what can you do if work makes it impossible to go to court in person?
■ID, personal seal and deposit required...Different requirements apply when bidding through a representative
According to people in the real estate auction industry on the 5th, the basic items needed to participate directly in a real estate auction are an ID, a personal seal and a bid deposit. Bid forms and deposit envelopes are available at the auction courtroom.
If it is difficult to go to court in person, it is also possible to bid through a representative. In addition to the representative’s ID and personal seal, however, the bidder must prepare a power of attorney bearing the bidder’s registered seal, a certificate of seal impression and other documents.
Care is needed, especially because bidding can be invalidated if the documents are not prepared correctly. A certificate of seal impression must be obtained in advance from a community service center or similar office, with the registered seal brought along.
The bid deposit must also be prepared in advance. It is generally set at 10% of the minimum sale price, but depending on the case, 20% or more may be required. The deposit is unrelated to the price the bidder submits. It should be prepared based on the purchase application deposit amount set by the court.
When filling out the bid form, a bidder who wins after entering the bid price incorrectly—for example, with the wrong digit or place value—may have to pay an unexpected amount. Care is also needed because if the bidder is then unable to pay the sale price, they risk losing the deposit.
■From finding properties to rights analysis and on-site inspections...What should you check before bidding?
Before taking part in an auction, it is important to check whether the property you plan to bid on is free of risks.
Anyone can search for auction properties on the court’s auction information website. By selecting a region and property type, users can check the appraised value, minimum sale price and sale date for apartments, villas, detached houses, commercial properties and other listings.
One thing that must be checked at this stage is “rights analysis.” This is the process of determining whether there are any rights or costs that the successful bidder will have to take responsibility for in addition to the bid price. Key documents to review include the certificate of registered matters, the property sale description, the status investigation report and the appraisal report.
After checking the information online, an on-site inspection is also important. Visiting the actual apartment complex makes it possible to check things that are difficult to assess from documents alone, such as the parking conditions and the state of the building.
The YouTube channel 'Jip Nawara Ttukttak!' also shares a firsthand account of a visit to the auction courtroom at Seoul Southern District Court last September.
The property bid on at the time was an apartment in Yeongdeungpo District, Seoul, with an exclusive floor area of about 85 square meters. The highest recent actual transaction price for an apartment of the same size was 1.82 billion won, but the auction’s minimum sale price was 1.11 billion won—at least 700 million won lower.
A total of 21 people placed bids for the apartment that day, making for intense competition. More details, from what auction beginners need to prepare and how to bid through a representative to rights analysis, on-site inspections and firsthand accounts of attending an auction in person, are available on the YouTube channel 'Jip Nawara Ttukttak!'.

[email protected] Choi Ga-young Reporter