Question about land auctions

I have been watching the recent land auctions and trying to understand just how they work and the role they play in the huge land flipping business. My main question is, if someone bids an insane amount for a sim while other sims are going for less, what happens to the person who overbid compared to the other auction winners? Must they now sell their land at a loss or hang on to it hoping land prices rise even though there are even more sims in the pipeline to be auctioned? What makes them bid so high in the first place while others walk away with a deal?

Sorry for all the questions but I am trying to better understand the current mentality of the land trade as it currently makes little sense to me.

There are several variables to why one sim will sell for more than the other. Take in account the rating, M or PG, then it might be waterfront, and if so, how much is waterfront, how flat is the land, no one wants mountainside. Topography is also a consideration, snow, green, lush, desert, rocky etc...

So the ones that go for more have something special about them compared to the other sims that auction for less. I guess that makes sense.

It depends what their plans are for the sim. If they plan to use it and/or rent it out, the price they paid is not that critical. If they do want to flip quickly, they made a big mistake and may have to take a loss. Especially if they paid over $3100, because land flippers like to get them for $2900 or lower and will keep the market base below what the expensive sim buyer needs it to be for a fast sale.

And yes, the sims with waterfront always go for a lot more, because they know they can resell waterfront for a lot more. The only other factors that really affect price is steep hills and snow. Those are harder to resell. Mature and pg price difference is negligible.