Minimum bids at judicial auctions

The judge sets the starting price based on the appraisal report (perizia), having regard to market value (art. 568 c.p.c.). The court-appointed appraiser (esperto stimatore) calculates commercial area, value per square meter and total value, then states each reduction: absence of a warranty against defects, zoning regularization, condition, occupancy, remaining restrictions and unpaid condominium fees (spese condominiali).

At the first attempt the starting price therefore equals the already reduced appraised value. If the auction fails, the judge may reduce it by up to one quarter for the next attempt, and after the fourth failed attempt by up to one half (art. 591, para. 2). Thereafter the starting price is the price of that attempt rather than the property's value. Reductions are explained in what happens when an auction fails.

The minimum bid dates from D.L. 83/2015, which amended art. 571 c.p.c.: a bid is ineffective if more than one quarter below the price set in the order. The notice of sale (avviso di vendita) already shows it calculated beside the starting price. ImmobilScan listings show the same information: the minimum bid prominently, with the starting price alongside.

No. This guide concerns property enforcement proceedings, where the code permits a bid up to one quarter below the starting price. In insolvency proceedings and tax collection sales the notice governs, and the minimum bid often equals the starting price.

In judicial liquidation (liquidazione giudiziale, formerly bankruptcy), the liquidation program sets the rules on reductions, attempts and bids (art. 216 CCII). In public bodies' notarial auctions, such as public asset sales, the notice governs and may require a bid at least equal to the starting price (see notarial auctions).

The deposit is calculated on your bid, not the starting price. If you bid €95,000 on a €120,000 starting price, the minimum deposit is €9,500. You can deposit more: at equal prices, some notices favor the higher deposit.

Once submitted, a bid is irrevocable. You cannot withdraw it unless the judge orders an open-bid auction (vendita con incanto) or 120 days pass after submission without acceptance (art. 571, para. 3).

This happens when only one bid arrives, for example €92,000 on a €120,000 starting price. A single bid at or above the starting price is accepted. If it is between 75% and the starting price, the sale delegate (delegato alla vendita) may accept it under two conditions (art. 572):

• they must see no serious prospect of a better price in a new sale;
• no creditor must have requested assignment of the property.

Normally the bid is accepted. It is not accepted if the delegate sees a serious prospect of a better sale or an assignment request exists. For example, the Court of Ancona's model order asks the delegate to award the property at a 75% bid unless "specific and concrete circumstances" are recorded in the minutes. A minimum bidder should nevertheless know that refusal is possible.

The second obstacle is assignment (assegnazione). Up to ten days before the hearing, any creditor may request assignment of the property to themselves or a third party if the sale fails (art. 588). The request must offer at least that attempt's starting price (art. 589). If a request exists and your bid is below the starting price, the property is assigned to the creditor. You do not know before participating: you discover it at the hearing. This happens, for example, when a creditor prefers assignment to a sale below the starting price.

With two or more valid bids, the delegate invites bidders "in every case" to compete starting from the highest bid (art. 573), even if two bids are equal. Each increase must exceed the previous one by at least the minimum bid increment (rilancio minimo) in the notice, which varies by court:

• The Court of Locri's model notice for mixed synchronous sales requires increments of at least 3% of the starting price and closes bidding 180 seconds after the last increment.
• The Ancona asynchronous model sets increments by appraised value: €1,000 up to €100,000, €2,000 up to €200,000, €3,000 up to €400,000, and €5,000 above that.

The format depends on the sale method. In synchronous bidding everyone raises at the same time, online or in the room. Asynchronous bidding lasts 24 hours to one week, depending on the order. In the Ancona model it closes at noon on the seventh day after it starts, and each bid in the last 10 minutes extends closing by another 10 minutes. See synchronous and asynchronous auctions for the differences.

The Ancona model does not allow decimal increments. Always bid a whole amount.

If competitive bidding does not start because nobody joins, bidders do not connect, or nobody raises, the best bid wins. A bidder who did not connect can also win. Art. 573 lists the criteria: price, deposits, forms, methods and timing of payment, and any other useful element of the bid.

The Court of Locri's model notice puts them in order: highest price wins; if prices tie, the higher deposit; if deposits also tie, the shorter payment deadline; if all are equal, the first bid submitted.

Under these criteria two €100,000 bids differ if one has a €10,000 deposit and the other €15,000. The same applies if one promises the balance in 60 days and the other in 120. If you are sure you can pay sooner, state it in your bid. A shorter deadline binds you, however, and if you miss it you lose the deposit.

Bidding can close below the starting price: a €120,000 starting price, two bids of €90,000 and €92,000, and a final increase to €104,000. Without assignment requests, the highest bidder wins. If an assignment request is on file, the judge does not proceed with the sale and assigns the property to the creditor (art. 573, paras. 2 and 4). The same applies if the best bid, without competitive bidding, remains below the starting price.

The minimum bid tells you where you can start, not what the property is worth. Work backward to find the right price for you:

1. Estimate the property's current market value in its present condition, which may differ from an appraisal made years earlier.
2. Subtract work, regularization, condominium fees you will owe, taxes and the costs of the award (details here).
3. Subtract the cost of time and risk: an occupied property produces no return for months.
4. What remains is your maximum price, to decide before bidding.

Set your limit beforehand and do not move it during bidding. For the first step you can compare the starting price with an estimate based on OMI data and comparables: see starting price and market value. With an ImmobilScan account you can also see the history of attempts, showing how far the lot's starting price has already fallen.

Art. 571 c.p.c. and notices identify cases where a bid is invalid:

• A bid below the minimum, even by a few euros.
• A late bid: by law bidding is the day after the deadline, at the time set in the notice.
• A deposit below 10% of the bid or not credited in time.
• A bid made by a representative who is not an lawyer.

A balance deadline beyond 120 days is a separate case if the notice does not permit installments. Depending on the order, the bid is ineffective, as in the Locri model, or the deadline is brought back to 120 days.

Higher bids after the award are still discussed. Today they exist only in an open-bid auction: within ten days, at least one fifth above the price reached (art. 584 c.p.c.). The judge may order that method only if a price more than half above the value is considered likely (art. 569), which is rare. In sealed-bid sales (vendita senza incanto), now the rule, the award is not reopened for a later higher bid.