Selling a farm
Methods of sale for a farm: negotiation, deadline, tender and auction compared
Doug Wakelin, Rural/Lifestyle Sales Consultant, Property Brokers Te Awamutu
Short answer. Most NZ property is sold by advertised price, deadline sale or negotiation. Tender and auction are used when the vendor wants a competitive process. In a tender, offers are written and can be conditional. At auction the highest bid over the reserve wins and the sale is unconditional. Which suits a farm depends on the property and the market.
The four methods compared
| Negotiation or advertised price | Deadline sale | Tender | Auction | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| How it works | Buyers offer at any time. The vendor negotiates through the agent. | Marketed for a set period with an end date. | Buyers make written offers before a deadline. | Public sale. The highest bid above the reserve wins. |
| Conditional offers | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Agreement used | Standard sale and purchase agreement | Standard agreement | Tender document | Auction agreement |
| Vendor's choice | Accept, reject or negotiate | Accept, reject or negotiate | Usually not bound to accept the highest or any offer. Up to 5 working days after close to decide. | Reserve price set in advance and confidential |
| Often suits | Hard-to-price or slow-to-sell properties | Where the vendor wants a clear timeline | A farm with a wide pool of interested buyers who need time for due diligence | Properties with strong, ready buyers |
| Watch for | Slow-moving enquiries | Offers before the deadline | The vendor's conditions, settlement date and who's included | Buyer can't make it conditional, so due diligence must be done first |
Source for the table: Settled.govt.nz, understanding the methods of sale, checked 2 Nov 2026. The "often suits" row is general commentary and isn't from that source.
Good to know
- Pre-auction offers. If the advertising says "unless sold prior", the vendor may accept an earlier offer.
- Vendor bids are allowed only in certain cases and must be called out as vendor bids. Dummy bids are illegal.
- Multi-offer. Once there's more than one written offer, the agent can run a multi-offer process and the vendor can accept, reject or negotiate with any of them.
- Mortgagee sales are run to the lender's instructions.
Example
Doug's Marokopa Road grazing property is being offered by tender, closing 4pm Monday 30 November 2026 unless sold prior (PB listing, checked 2 Nov 2026). The Corcoran Road, Te Pahu block was listed at a stated price plus GST (if any) (PB listing).
If you're deciding
- Talk to your agent and solicitor about each option and the costs, including marketing.
- Think about your timing, your risk appetite and how many buyers might be interested.
- Think about how an overseas buyer would fit in. See overseas buyers.
Check before you rely on this
General information only, not legal advice. Check with your solicitor.