Property Auctions appoints auctioneer Lucy Crapper

BTG Eddisons Property Auctions has appointed experienced auctioneer Lucy Crapper to its Sheffield team. The move further strengthens the firm’s auction offering following the unification earlier this year of auction businesses Pugh, SDL Property Auctions, Network Auctions and Sheffield-based Mark Jenkinson.

The combined business is now the UK’s second largest property auctioneer by volume, offering around 400 property and land lots for sale each month at auction.

Lucy joins with almost two decades of auction experience, predominantly in Sheffield and South Yorkshire, and was previously associate director, auctioneer and head of northern auctions at Blundells and Countrywide UK, where she launched and grew the firm’s auction division, heading auction sales activity across the north of England.

Lucy will now conduct auctions across BTG Eddisons Property Auctions’ full range of sale formats, overseeing bidding on residential and commercial properties, land and development opportunities.

Lucy grew up accompanying her father, the late Patrick Crapper, a well-known Sheffield auctioneer and surveyor, on Saturday visits to auction properties, gaining an early insight into the fast-paced auction world.

“I owe much of my passion for auctions and my rostrum skills to my father, who taught me not just the mechanics of auctions, but how everything really works in the auction room,” said Lucy.

“There are still relatively few female property auctioneers in the UK, so I’m very proud to be one of them.”

Lucy first took to the rostrum in 2007 and has built extensive experience across the sector, selling everything from residential homes and commercial assets to more unusual lots, including a wartime fort in the Humber estuary.

She added: “Being an auctioneer is a very traditional role and in many ways the fundamentals haven’t changed for hundreds of years. Even when Covid forced a move online, the core appeal of auctions remained the same: property transactions completed quickly, transparently and with certainty.

“The shift to digital formats has made auctions accessible to a wider audience, opening up the market to more buyers and sellers.”

Alongside her professional work, Lucy is also an ambassador for Sheffield Children’s Hospital Charity, where she regularly conducts fundraising auctions.

She said: “I already know many of the BTG Eddisons Property Auctions Sheffield team well and I’m really looking forward to joining at such an exciting stage in the firm’s growth.”

Andrew Parker, auctioneer and partner at BTG Eddisons Property Auctions, said: “Lucy brings exceptional experience to the business, as an accomplished auctioneer on the rostrum as well as having successfully built and led auction operations at a senior level.

“We are really pleased to welcome her to the Sheffield team as we continue to expand our national auctions platform.”