The Louisville Courier-Journal reports that the remaining Louisville condos at the posh luxury condominium tower, Waterfront Park Place, will be auctioned. The 23-story Louisville condominium building has 15 unsold units that will be auctioned to bidders submitting sealed offers, according to the spokesperson for Waterfront Park Place, Barbara MacDonald. She reported that Eleanor Bingham Miller, who achieved sole control over the building in 2007, is eager to move on to other projects after her involvement of nearly ten years. "She is looking to move on," MacDonald said. "It's a pretty long period of time for any developer to be involved in a property." MacDonald said that she knew the auction would appear that the owner was desperate to sell the remaining Louisville condos in the building, but she reminded reporters that auctions are not an uncommon way to sell condos in Louisville and elsewhere. Waterfront Park Place's main glass tower at 222 E. Witherspoon St. was finished in 2004 with 77 condominium units. Twelve of these units remain unsold with the six-story "Terrace" addition having three unsold condos out of twelve. Sale prices for condos in Waterfront Park Place have ranged between $350,000 and $2.4 million, according to records on the Jefferson County property valuation administrator's online database. As recently as early November 2009, the Greater Louisville Association of Realtors listed seven of the building's condos for sale with prices ranging from $389,000 to $1.39 million. MacDonald said that the fifteen remaining condos up for auction would be sold in three groups with one "absolute" sale in each group, meaning that the developer will accept the highest bid for that sale with no minimum price. Are you interested in purchasing a Louisville condominium? Call Louisville Properties today at 502.744.9504 or visit their website for Louisville's best selection of condos....

The rise in home foreclosures and distressed properties around the country has created unique investment opportunities for prospective homeowners who are willing to take a chance on a house in order to save some money. After a lender has taken possession of a property and has failed to find a buyer, they may choose to sell the home through an auction house just to get some return on their investment. This Washington Examiner article explained some of the things that buyers should know about Louisville real estate auctions. By the time a home is offered at an auction, a buyer can be sure that there are no liens or financial problems associated with the property as the bank will have cleared the title on the home. Generally, auction houses host three types of auctions:

• Reserve auctions – The most common type of auction, reserve auctions involve sellers who have a minimum price in mind that isn't published. The seller can choose to accept, reject, or counter any bids on their property—even the highest bidder's offer.

• Absolute auctions – Absolute auctions are fairly straightforward. There is no reserve price on a property and a home is sold to the highest bidder regardless of the size of their offer.

• Minimum-bid auctions – In a minimum-bid auction, the seller publishes the minimum offer they are willing to take for the property and take the highest bid offered by buyers.

Although it is not mandatory for auction buyers to have a real estate agent assist them, it is a good idea to have one, especially for first-time homebuyers....