An illustrative story — the situation repeats in many lofts; names and details are changed. Not a customer testimonial.

Mahmoud from Cairo, his first auction on Ghuzar. The bird: a Qatqati from a loft in Fayoum, starting price 1,500. His wallet held 600 — meaning he could bid up to 6,000 (the 10% deposit is frozen from the offer).

The last ten minutes: Mahmoud 2,200. Someone else 2,400. Mahmoud 2,700 — and he stayed highest. The clock counted down. 12 seconds before the end: the other party 2,800. The auction was extended by 30 seconds. Mahmoud 3,000. Extended again. The other party 3,100. Extended a third time. Mahmoud 3,300… and everyone went quiet. 30 seconds passed. The auction ended with Mahmoud highest.

Seconds later: a notification — "Auction cancelled — reserve price not reached." And the deposit came back to his wallet in full.

What happened?

The seller had set a reserve price of 4,000 — the minimum he would accept — and it is hidden from bidders by design (if it were visible, nobody would bid below it). The auction reached 3,300 so it was cancelled, and nobody lost anything: the deposits came back, and the bird stayed with its owner.

And the extension? That is anti-snipe protection: any bid in the last 30 seconds extends the auction by 30 seconds — so the win goes to whoever is ready to pay more, not to whoever clicked in the last millisecond.

How it ended

Mahmoud messaged the seller: "3,300 is my final number." The seller replied two days later: "3,600 and the ownership transfer in the app." They agreed, Mahmoud paid from the wallet as a direct sale, and the transfer was done.

Since then Mahmoud reads the auction policy document that appears before the first bid (he had tapped "Agree" without reading), and asks himself one question before bidding: "If there is a reserve price, am I prepared to reach it?"

The lesson: the reserve price is the seller's right and the extension is the bidders' right — both are written down before you start. Read part 6 of the guide before your first auction.

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