More than $50 million of real estate is being auctioned online until Saturday, May 1, when the live auction will conclude the sale of these properties at the Park City Marriott hotel. Conducted by United Country – U.S. Auctions & Realty, the auction will begin at 5 p.m. The entire inventory can be seen at www.ParkCityLuxuryAuction.com.
Count Mrs. Fields’ former mansion in the mix of those being swept away in this wave of auctions. The 24,000 square foot home on 51 acres in Wolf Creek Ranch, one of the nation’s most elite developments, is up for sale – and at an unbelievable price. The bank is willing to take whatever they can get; at last check, the current high bid had climbed to $1.5 million online, though it appraised for more than $8.5 million less than two years ago.
The inventory of homes and land for sale also includes 61 acres adjacent to Mitt Romney’s former home in Deer Valley, complete with its own private ski lift, in addition to a 9,300 square foot beauty where Paris Hilton stayed while playing in Park City.
Franz Prossegger, a developer, originally listed his home for more than $8 million, and now the starting bid is $2,995,000. When asked why he chose to put his 8,300 square foot new home in Deer Valley (the site of a recent Hollywood movie) into the auction, Prossegger said, “I like the extra exposure the auction method brings. The right buyer will find this property and will get a great deal through the auction.”
The auction wave has swept even to the top of the Quincy Express lift at Deer Valley resort, where one of the best homesites in America is being sold through the Park City Luxury Auction, lot number 25 of Talisker Mountain Incorporated, a Red Cloud development. This lot is available for ski and mountain enthusiasts, complete with a Talisker membership, deep powder out the front door, and a meadow. Its estimated value is $4 million, but the opening bid will be $2,895,000.
In total five properties are being sold “absolute,” which in auction terms means “no minimum, and no reserve.” The seller has already agreed to sell the properties, regardless of the final bid price.
“These are tough times in real estate,” said David Lawson, a local real estate agent with Keller Williams. “I can see why sellers are moving to the auction for generating offers, and the buyers are getting incredible values. These are great properties at fantastic prices.”
The company conducting the auction sold more than $2.5 billion in property in 2009 alone. This may be tough times in real estate, but it appears the real estate auction business is booming. With around 100 auction offices throughout the U.S. and Costa Rica, United Country was named the No. 1 real estate franchise in July 2009 by Dun & Bradstreet, and just last week the national franchise company was recognized by The Land Report magazine as the No. 1 auction house in America for selling land (ahead of Williams & Williams, Schrader Auctions, Hudson & Marshall and J.P. King). Their Utah office, US Auctions & Realty, is heading up this event, which includes a national campaign to expose the properties to the right buyers.
United Country is bringing in some heavy-hitters to ensure a smooth event, including three state and national auction award-winners with a combined total auction experience of more than 100 years.
“We are in a very good position to bring outstanding property deals to buyers,” said Doug Free, president and chief executive officer of U.S. Auctions & Realty. “This auction in particular has world-class properties being offered well below their market value. If you like Park City, you’ll be interested in this sale on May 1. Now is the time to capitalize on the opportunity.”
More information about this event is available at www.ParkCityLuxuryAuction.com or 877-922-9720.