MILLIONS of pounds worth of property went under the hammer when Romans staged a two-day auction event that included Basingstoke.

Romans launched its auctions division in 2002 and Basingstoke is now firmly on the map, thanks to last Thursday's inaugural event for the area, with further dates already booked for May, July, October and December.

There was standing room only at The Hampshire Court hotel, when about 150 people crowded into the room to see Simon Clayton (pictured right), Romans' director and auctioneer, bring the gavel down on 10 out of the 12 lots on offer.

Between the Basingstoke sale and the previous day's event at the Blue Mountain Conference Centre, near Reading, a total capital value of £5.6million was sold.

Over the two days, 27 lots were sold to bidders, which equalled a 77 per cent success rate from the catalogue.

A Victorian terraced house in Basingstoke town centre sold prior to the auction, while a bungalow in Old Basing, which had a price guide of £330,000, was withdrawn after failing to reach its reserve.

Mr Clayton said: "We were pleased with the amount of people who came to see what we do and delighted to sell so much.

"We were also pleased for our clients, some of whom got great prices.

"We'll be back on May 29 - the room is already booked."

Regarding buying at auctions, Mr Clayton said: "Now is the time to buy. Sellers' reserves are the most realistic for 10 years. It is a good chance for first-time auction buyers to get a reasonable price."

Basingstoke was chosen as a second venue for Romans when the Blue Mountain Conference Centre reached capacity. It will focus on Hampshire and Surrey.