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Auction House Overview

The Auction House (often abbreviated by players as AH) is one of the most important systems in World of Warcraft. This system allows players to trade there goods to other players in the game by bidding. The Auction House is a great place for players to earn extra gold, acquire new gear and trade goods, as well as a variety of other items. Some players spend so much time using the Auction House that they learn the secret to Auction House success. These players often dedicate large amounts of time, and sometimes money, in order to earn huge profits.


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Auction House
Locations

Currently players have access
to Auction Houses in the following locations:


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style="background-color: rgb(102, 0, 0); text-align: center;"> style="color: rgb(253, 253, 253);">Horde style="background-color: rgb(51, 51, 153); text-align: center;"> style="color: rgb(253, 253, 253);">Alliance style="background-color: rgb(255, 204, 51); text-align: center;"> style="color: rgb(253, 253, 253);">Neutral Orgrimmar Ironforge Gadgetzan Undercity Stormwind Booty
Bay Thudner
Bluff Darnassus Everlook Silvermoon The
Exodar Shattrath
City Dalaran Dalaran

Once you
have reached any of
the above listed cities, simply approach a city guard for more detailed
directions to the nearest Auction
House.

Auction
House
Interface

To use the Auction House simply seek out any Auctioneer in any of the above listed cities and right click on him or her. Usually there are 2-4 Auctioneers at any given locations, however, the Auction Houses can get crowded so Auctioneers may be difficult to see. This will bring up the Auction House interface. This interface will allow you to perform a variety of tasks, all of which are outlined below::

Browsing
the Auction
House

The Auction House interface will automatically bring users to the “Browse” tab. Here you may search the Auction House for any item your heart may desire. You may either choose to search for a specific item by name, level range, or rarity using the search tabs at the top of the screen. Using this feature will search the entire Auction House for any items that come close to matching the text provided.

If you truly want to simply
browse the items for sale on the
Auction House, or do not know the name class="caption right" href="/node/98994"> src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/98994/preview"
width="250">
of the item you are seeking, players can also search by category. Found
on the left side of the Browse tab players may choose
from a list of
predetermined categories. Click on any of these categories (i.e.
Weapon, Armor, Quest, ect) based on the type of item you wish to find.
Some categories will display sub-categories, these should be handled
the same way as a normal category, simply click on the sub-category
that best fits your needs and then press the Search button that can be
found at the top right of the screen. 

Once you have successfully
completed a search a listing of the items you searched for will appear
in the large right pane of the screen. Here players can view all the
items that matched their search criteria and also find out crucial
information about that item such as; item level, time left on the
auction, who the seller is, and the current bid and buy out price (if
there is one) of the item. Players may scroll through the listings
using the slider bar directly to the right, or if there are more
listings than can be shown on one page, players may also need to use
the Next and Prev buttons found under the Search button at the top
right
of the screen.

Bidding

If you find an item you are interested in purchasing, left click on the item and it will become highlighted. Once the item is highlighted the Bid and Buyout (if available) buttons at the bottom of the interface will light up. Choose the Bid button to place a bid on the item for the price indicated. If you wish to skip the hassle of bidding, you can choose to buyout the item.

The buyout option is only available if the seller chooses to set a buyout price on the item. If an item has a buyout price you may choose to buy it instantly at this price, without waiting for what might be a lengthy bidding process. Keep in mind, that while the buyout option is convenient, especially in a pinch, often times items can be purchased for cheaper prices by bidding on them.

Players who choose the bidding
route will most likely want to keep an eye on the auction in question
in case they are out bid by another player, or to simply check and see
how much time is left. To do this players will need to move on to the
next tab in the Auction House interface and the next section of this
guide: Managing Bids.

Managing
Bids

By clicking on the Bids tab at
the bottom of the Auction House interface players will be presented
with a whole new screen, but with much fewer options than the Browse
tab. Here players can view any items they have placed a bid on. As
shown in the picture to the right, the item will be displayed as well
as
the following for each item you have bid on:

  • Item Icon (including
    quantity)
  • Item Name
  • Required Level
  • Time Left
  • Buyout Price
  • Bid Status
  • Current
    Bid

The most important piece
of information found here are is the bid
status. The bid status will let the
player know href="/node/98993"> src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/98993/preview"
width="250">
right away if they are the current highest bidder on the item. If you
are not the highest bidder you have the option of rebidding on the
item, for the new bid price, by left clicking on the item then pressing
the red Bid button found at the bottom left of the screen. Players can
also buy out the item at this time for the listed buyout price, or they
may simply decide to let the item go by doing nothing at all. The bid
status will also let the player know if the auction has been cancelled
by the seller.

The auction length is another
key piece of information for bidders
as it lets the player know how long is left on an auction and in turn
how long they have left to bid. Currently the auction lengths are as
follows:

  • Short - Less than 30 minutes.
  • Medium - Between 30 minutes
    and
    2 hours.
  • Long - Between 2 hours and
    12
    hours.
  • Very Long - Between 12 hours
    and 48 hours. 

Now that we understand how to
search for, buy, and watch items we
are bidding on it is time to conquer selling, which will  take
place in the
final tab in the Auction House interface; Auctions. 

Creating
Auctions

The final tab in the Auction
House interface is the Auctions
tab. It is from this tab that players
can create and manage their very own auctions. Players wishing to start
an auction should first drag the item (or stack of items) from your
inventory to the box located under “Auction Item”
in the top left of the screen. 

Once you have placed an item or a stack of items in the box you will be able to choose how large the stack size will be and the number of stacks you wish to sell. Now it is
time to set a price for your item(s). Enter the price you wish the
bidding to start under “Starting Price”, and if you
wish to allow a Buyout Price place that amount under “Buyout
Price”, however, adding a buyout price is completely
optional. The Buyout Price and Starting Price can be the same or
totally different, but the Buyout Price cannot be lower than the
Starting Price. href="/node/98992"> src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/98992/preview"
width="250">

Once the price has been set,
move further down the left pane where you will have the option to set
the duration of the option. Use the drop down menu to choose from one
of the options here (12, 24, or 48 hours). After the duration has been
set it will be time to post the auction by clicking the red
“Create Auction” button at the bottom of the left
pane. A Deposit fee will be charged when the item is posted. This fee
is based on the length of the auction combined with the vendor value
with the minimum fee being 1 Silver.

Also from this screen players
can keep track of any of their current auctions. As seen in the picture
to the right, when an auction has been created it will be displayed in
the larger black box to the right of where the auction was created.
Here you can view important information about the auction including:

  • Item Icon (including
    quantity)
  • Item Name
  • Time Left
  • High Bidder
  • Current Bid

If your item sells, this fee
will be refunded but the Auction House will still take a cut of your
profit to the tune of 5% of the total sale price in faction specific
Auction Houses and 15% in Neutral Auction Houses. If the auction ends
without any bids, the fee is lost. Any money gained from an auction
will be mailed to the character who created the Auction via in-game
mail.

Neutral Auctions Houses

Unlike Auction Houses found in Horde or Alliance cities Neutral Auction Houses are found in what are to be considered “neutral” zones. This means they are accessible to both Horde and Alliance and both factions may place items up for sale in them. This is an excellent way to get items that are hard to obtain for your faction. It should be noted that usually prices in these Auction Houses are much higher.

Tips and Tricks

  • Most players would
    prefer to
    buy items in complete stacks, unless the item is only used in a few
    recipes, or very few of the item are needed
  • Setting a buyout price
    is a
    good idea. While it may seem more
    beneficial to allow players to bid on your items, they are more likely
    to be bought at a better price and more quickly if a buyout price is
    established.
  • Keep a careful eye on
    what
    you are buying. A typical trick of scammers
    in the auction house is to list an item for 55 Gold when 55 Silver is
    closer to the correct value. This is done in the hopes that an
    unsuspecting buyer will buy the item and not notice the difference.
  • Just like in hotels in
    real
    life, weekend prices on the Auction House
    will usually be much different than prices during the week.
  • If you are selling goods
    commonly used by raiders, learn when most
    guilds on your server begin their raids, then place your items up for
    sale shortly before this time. This way your auctions are available for
    any raiders looking for last minute supplies.
  • Auctions still countdown
    during realm downtime!
  • Once you have committed
    a
    bid on an auction there is no way to retract
    it. If you are the highest bidder you will be obligated to pay for the
    auction, unless you are outbid before the auction ends or the seller
    cancels the auction.

Useful Addons

  • href="http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/auctioneer.aspx"
    target="_blank"> style="font-weight: bold;">Auctioneer
    - Tracks auctions and items
    by doing a complete scan of the
    Auction House.
  • style="font-weight: bold;"
    href="http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/postal.aspx"
    target="_blank">Postal
    - Allows for more control of your mailbox.

To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our World of Warcraft Game Page.

Last Updated: Mar 13, 2016

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