Condo Auction Bidders Happy, Owners Less So

Home buyers might once have suffered palpitations considering the sky-high price of real estate in Southern California, but Bob Davis didn’t even break a sweat Sunday when he raised his bidder’s card and heard the auctioneer holler “sold.”

“I’ve seen a bull sell for $250,000,” said Davis, 35, a heavy-equipment mechanic from Dallas, Tex. “So $67,000 for a place to live isn’t bad. Now you can buy a house fairly reasonably--where you don’t have to give your first-born son for it.”

Davis was one of more than 100 bargain hunters taking advantage of the continuing slump in the real estate market in the Antelope Valley by bidding on 62 unsold West Lancaster condominiums. The Pine Creek Village condos, which only a few months ago were advertised for sale at between $80,000 and $94,000 sold for as little as $62,000 on Sunday.

Many of those attracted to the auction were first-time buyers such as Mark Valenzuela, 29, of Reseda, who purchased a two-bedroom condominium.

“I’m still shaking,” Valenzuela said. “I was scared at first. For a young couple getting started this is the only way to get going.”

Pine Creek Village went on the market in April, but only 20 of 122 units had sold, setting up Sunday’s auction of 62 units, all of which came with fireplaces and mirrored wardrobe closets. In addition, there is a pool and spa in the development.

Real estate auctions have been around for years, but what set this auction apart from others is the $50,000 and $60,000 minimum bids for the two- and three-bedroom condos, said Aubrey Glaser, vice president of Kennedy-Wilson Inc. of Santa Monica, which conducted the auction.

Glaser said the prices were the lowest he has seen for new housing anywhere in Los Angeles County since the mid-1980s.

This month The Meyers Group real estate market research and consulting firm of Encino reported a recent slight recovery in new home sales in the Antelope Valley, but sales are still only about half of what they were during the 1988-89 housing boom. Prices of houses that do sell are at the lower end of the market.

“We see in areas like the Antelope Valley, strong development areas, where there is a large inventory of houses, prices are still falling,” Glaser said.

Real estate auctions are becoming increasingly popular to builders wanting to clear out inventories.

Kennedy-Wilson has handled 114 residential auctions across the country so far this year. This is their third auction in the Antelope Valley. The total earned from the sales Sunday was $4,244,000, raised in a single hour of furious bidding.

“The auction program has become a viable marketing tool,” Glaser said. “It’s a catalyst that the public feels they are getting the best deal possible and the builders feel satisfied they are getting the market price. It’s a ‘win-win’ for everyone.”

Everyone, that is, except the 20 Pine Creek Village owners who bought condominiums for $15,000 to $20,000 more than what they sold for on Sunday.

Gillian Bischofberger, 39, who purchased her three-bedroom condo for $94,000 in July, said, “Every bit of money that I have is tied up in this. To watch it go down so quickly is hard to take.”

“When we invested, we were led to believe this is a great place for investment--and now they pulled the rug on us,” said Ernie Alvarado, 35, who purchased a two-bedroom, two-bath condo for $80,000 in July.

Edna Schlee, a spokeswoman for builder Seltzer-Doren Inc. of Canoga Park said the company is a “private, very low-key company,” and declined to be interviewed.

Those who bought Sunday were feeling as though they got a bargain. “Now all we’ve got to do is find a place to put our horse,” Davis said.