HUD to sell homes in open bidding online

Looking for alternatives to conventional home buying? The Department of Housing and Urban Development will hold its first online auction to sell up to 4,000 homes nationwide that it acquired through foreclosure. The auction will be Feb. 27 and 28 and will involve open bidding, which will allow participants to revise their bid prices.

The auction format is a departure from the way the agency has been selling HUD-held homes on the Web for several years. Buyers typically submitted sealed bids, and the properties went to the highest bidder.

The auction is part of HUD’s effort to increase consumer awareness. Beginning today, the properties will be listed on the HUD website at www.hud.gov. Interested buyers will be able to call up the properties by state, look at neighborhoods and comparison shop before submitting their bids Feb. 27 and 28. All properties will be sold on an “as is” basis, without warranty or guarantee.