Auction of Newport Coast Home

[jamboreedude]

Gorgeous Pelican Ridge Home with Unobstructed Views @
15 Sea View Lane, Newport Coast, CA 92657
Previously Listed At : $2,275,000

see:http://www.auction.com/California/l...-15-Sea-View-Lane-NEWPORT-COAST-CA-92657-X010

Just days ago, it said on this website, auction ends in just a few hours and the last bid was at $900K, now it's at $1.5 million and auction has been extended for another 8 hours or so. How legitimate are the online bidders and who is to prevent a group to conspire with the bank/agent to drive the bid higher in an effort to fool the ultimate buyer?

 

[zovall]

I don't have an answer to your question but just want to point out that auction.com (REDC) has some points in the FAQ that definitely need to be checked out.

Reserve price

A "reserve" is an amount established by the seller which represents their minimum selling price. Reserve prices are not published and the starting bids do not represent the reserves.

Buyer's Premium

In most cases, the Buyer's Premium is a five percent (5%) fee which is based on the Winning Bid Amount. This Buyer's Premium is then added to the Winning Bid Amount to calculate the Total Purchase Price. For example, if the Winning Bid Amount is $1,000,000, then the Buyer's Premium would be $50,000 (5% of $1,000,000). The Total Purchase Price is then calculated as the Winning Bid Amount plus the Buyer's Premium, or $1,000,000 + $50,000 = Total Purchase Price of $1,050,000.

When REDC held in-person auctions, there were people accusing them of using 'shill' bidders.  I wish I had the terms from when they held those auctions to verify what they said they do.  Here's an old post from someone who tries to explain it.  I don't know if they do this on their online auctions.
http://sdcia.websitetoolbox.com/post/show_single_post?pid=26916978&postcount=9