2022 REINZ National Auctioneering Championships

In June, the REINZ Real Estate National Auctioneering Championships saw the country’s most talented auctioneers take the stage. It’s a frenzied three days as our competitors call their way to the champion title. Our 2022 division winners and Chief Judge Mark Sumich, spill the beans on what makes a good auctioneer a great one, their journeys to the auction room, advice for auctioneers in the current market, and how to use a hybrid of humour and wit to create a captivating auction experience.

Mark Sumich, Chief Judge

When I was 18 years old, tallying up the results at my local rugby club, a bloke came up to me and told me to take up auctioneering: “It’s going to be the next big thing in real estate,” he said.

He was right. Auctions have evolved into a successful and process-driven way to exchange real estate. I saw it as a genuine option, and after studying and performing it full-time, I fashioned it into a fun and eventful career.

Our current market is an excellent test of an auctioneer’s abilities. We often deal with a single buyer, meaning basic life skills and patience are essential attributes. The negotiations undertaken off the floor have become a pivotal part of this (now) wider role of either selling the property or making it more saleable. While the rewards in our industry are often determined by the competitions, a great auctioneer is one who can — week-in and week-out — add value to their salesperson and be relied upon to create an atmosphere that will encourage people to participate. As we look back at the REINZ Real Estate National Auctioneering Championships, it appears those who can relax and bring an element of humour and enjoyment to their call are most likely to succeed.

And the winners are

On the first day of the Championships, we saw Faith Tupuhi from Diocesan School for Girls take out the REINZ Auctioneering Schools’ Championship title. The sheer unbridled joy shown by Faith was a sight to behold. In her second attempt at the title, she fought off several from her campus and numerous other excellent performers.

We then saw Karin Attwood from Harcourts Cooper & Co mesmerise the audience and win the coveted Colin Brown Memorial Cup as the Rising Star Division winner. Whilst Karin works in an auction-focused office, her journey to success was essentially through her determination and steely resilience, which enabled her to handle pressure.

The Open Division has been the springboard for many strong callers to gain confidence before moving into the Premier ranks. This year, Brayden Coldicutt performed an incredible display of arithmetic authority, wooing the crowd and the judges. A fine Harcourts salesperson in his own right, Brayden’s future in our craft looks particularly promising.

After dead-heating for the Premier title last year, Conor Patton of Bayleys Real Estate left no stone unturned in his desire to win it outright in 2022. Honing the perfect combination of humour, wit, numerical accuracy, empathy, and patience to dominate a strong Championship division. Conor and runner-up Robert Tulp from Apollo Auctions will represent New Zealand in the Australasian Auctioneering Championships this October.

Get to know our winners

Karin Attwood Harcourts Cooper & Co, Winner of Rising Star Division

How did your journey into auctioneering begin?

I started in real estate in 2020, joining Harcourts Cooper and Co. They have a strong auction focus and their own auctioneer team. I immersed myself in their auctions and attended auctions every Thursday until we went into a COVID lockdown, then I would watch the live stream instead.

I didn’t realise there were auction competitions until I attended the Harcourts Conference last year. Travers Smyth, one of our agents, was competing in the Rising Star Division, and we went to support him. I’ve always been up for a challenge. So after a few wines at the conference dinner, I decided to give it a go too. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of voicing my intent, which meant I had to front up and follow through with it!

Aaron Davis, an auctioneer from Harcourts, ran a half-day introductory course that I attended. At the same time, Travers Smyth, an auctioneer from Harcourts Cooper & Co, sent me a link to the REINZ course Mark Sumich delivers, so I booked in for February, and that’s when things got real.

How did you feel when you won the Rising Stars Division?

I thought my call went well. I had two tongue twisters in there, but I knew if I could roll those out without issue, I’d get through comfortably. I managed that and got positive feedback from the judges on completion.

There were a lot of shocked people, but no one was more shocked than me when they called my name as the winner. When people talk to me about it now, there are still parts I can’t remember because I got such a big fright!

The entire experience of competing has been amazing. I have learned an immense amount about the auction process, and I am very grateful for all the help and support I received. I’m glad I was brave enough to give it a go; with many nerve-wracking moments and not having called an auction before, I was proud to achieve such an outcome.

Brayden Coldicutt Harcourts Hawke’s Bay, Winner of Open Division

What made you want to become an auctioneer?

I’ve always been interested in how auctioneers can add so quickly and think on their feet. But I think the biggest thing for me was relating it to theatre. I have done shows since I was very young, and the actual auction day always reminded me of putting on a performance. So, that part of it was what stuck with me and made me want to see what it was like.

What is an auctioneer’s role in negotiation? How does that play out?

An auctioneer has one of the biggest roles in negotiation, especially on auction day. However, this doesn’t just start on the day itself. The negotiation is through the entire process with the vendor and potential purchasers. Our role is to ensure the vendor walks away with the best possible offer in the room and to ensure that they receive certainty in their real estate goals. If the property isn’t sold on the day, the auctioneer has still negotiated the best result for the owners to get an efficient result post-auction.

When you are at auction, how do you make first home buyers feel comfortable while satisfying the more seasoned buyers attending?

When I am made aware that it’s someone’s first time attending an auction, I will sit with them before the auction to make sure they understand how the process will play out. There would be nothing worse than sitting in a room and having an auctioneer speaking to you in a language you don’t understand. We do this every day; however, some people may only do this once in their life. So, I explain the process from start to finish, let them know what terminology will be used and when, and then answer any questions they may have. This ensures they have more clarity on the experience and makes them quite relaxed and excited, hopefully encouraging them to bid accordingly.

Conor Patton Bayleys Real Estate, Winner of Premier Division

Why did you get into auctioneering?

In my early days as an agent, I attended our auction days and was quickly drawn to their fast-paced, dynamic, and ultimately result-driven nature. I began to look at them as the best bits of what we do in real estate, condensed into this wonderful window of activity, dealmaking, emotion, negotiation, and spontaneity. I went to a REINZ auctioneering course run by John Abbott and was instantly enthralled by it all. From there, it was a steady progression to gain the trust and confidence of colleagues to begin calling auctions, as well as learning and honing the other skills required for all the elements outside of auction day.

What is your advice to auctioneers across the country in this current market?

Patience. We need to be patient with buyers and sellers at auctions — a lot of the time, that fever tempo isn’t there. We are often required to move things along steadily, which is also true with mid-auction negotiations. These take a bit more time, but ultimately that time is incredibly well spent if we can get the deal together there and then for both sides. We also need patience with the agents or offices we work with. Some agents are dabbling in other methods of sale as the fear of an auction not selling on the day has risen. We need to be steadfast, composed, fact-based and results-focused.

How does using humour and wit impact the auction experience?

I have seen time and time again where a buyer says they are ‘out’. However, if you can make them laugh, or even smile, they will very often bid again. Ideally, it’s a genuine ‘in the moment’ situation, rather than staged one-liners — sure, a few of those in the arsenal are handy to have, but the great moments are always the real ones.

Generally, humour and the ability to relax a room is important, as nervous buyers don’t feel they can give it their best shot if they don’t feel comfortable.