Buying at auction
How to buy at auction
Let us guide you through the world of our auctions...
The Hôtel des Ventes du Crédit Municipal de Paris organizes around 80 public auctions a year: jewelry, watches, tableware, paintings, fashion, luxury accessories, works of art, musical instruments and even wines and spirits find buyers every week. Auctions are open to all.
Anyone over 18, who is responsible and solvent, can buy at auction in our sales room or online via our partner interencheres.com.
Before each sale, public exhibitions are held at the Crédit Municipal de Paris.
View items for sale
Catalogs are put online ten days before the auction. You will find descriptions of the lots offered for sale. Should you require further information on a particular lot, please contact us by e-mail at
. We also recommend that you attend the public viewing of the lots at the Crédit Municipal de Paris before the auction, if you are able to do so.
How to get to the exhibition
The auctioneers and their staff will be on hand to provide you with information about the items you are interested in, during the public viewing organized at the Crédit Municipal de Paris on the day before and/or the day of the sale. This public exhibition also enables you to get a better idea of the condition and details of the items on offer.
Bid
In the auction room, online, by purchase order or over the phone... Choose the auction method that suits you best.
During the auction, you can visit the Hôtel des Ventes du Crédit Municipal de Paris, 55 rue des Francs-Bourgeois, Paris4th. Lots are displayed in the order of the catalog and on the auction room screens. A hand gesture to the auctioneer signifies your bid. If you wish to bid a specific amount, we recommend that you announce it aloud. The blow of the hammer and the word "adjugé" transfer ownership of the item to the last bidder. The auctioneer then gives the buyer a tag, which he or she will be asked to wear when paying for the item, usually on the spot. The buyer can then take possession of his purchase.
You can buy at auction via the interencheres.com website, where sales are broadcast live. To take part in an online auction, you must first register for the sale on the Interencheres website. You can then follow the sale and bid in real time. In 2022, online bids accounted for 71% of total sales. You can also place a secret order on the Interencheres website, the amount of which will not be passed on to the auctioneer.
You can place a purchase order with the auctioneer or his staff. This order authorizes the auctioneer to represent you and carry out the purchase on your behalf if you are absent during the sale. The form is to be sent by email to the auctioneers: See the email with an ID document.
Information
An auction is binding on you. Once you have won a lot, you become its owner. An auction, whether online, in the auction room, by order or by telephone, is final and cannot be reversed.
Set and remove your object
Payment, in cash or by credit card, and collection of lots are made at Crédit Municipal de Paris (55 rue des Francs-Bourgeois, 75004 Paris), Monday to Friday, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, without appointment.
Payment is in cash. You can pay in cash (up to €1,000, including fees), by credit card or by bank transfer.
Lots will be delivered immediately after payment by cash or credit card. In the case of payment by bank transfer, the purchase can only be collected once the transfer has been made.
After 60 days from the date of sale, if the lot has not been collected, a storage fee will be charged as follows:
- 10 per lot per week for lots with a volume greater than 1 m3 ;
- 7 per lot per week for lots with a volume of less than 1 m3 ;
- 5 excl. VAT per batch per week for hand-held batches.