Bank of America to Auction 100 Homes

According to today's Desert Sun homebuyers are going to be able to vie for some of Bank of America's foreclosed properties in the Coachella Valley... without the competition from investors.

Homebuyers can avoid having to compete with investors in a special live auction on July 24 that includes more than 100 Bank of America-owned houses in the Coachella Valley and inland region.

The auction is exclusively for buyers who intend to live in the houses, organizers said.

Bank of America and Irvine-based real estate auction firm Real Estate Disposition Corp. will take bids for houses in Desert Hot Springs, Indio, Palm Desert, Palm Springs and elsewhere across Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

“It gives the bidders an even better first shot at these homes,” said Colleen Haggerty, a Bank of America spokesperson.

Properties will be open for inspection from noon to 4 p.m. July 10, July 17 and July 18. The auction will start at 9:30 a.m. July 24 at the Ontario Convention Center.

“This unique auction event will help turn these bank-owned properties into homes for many deserving families,” said Jeff Frieden, REDC's chief executive officer.

Bids start as low as $29,000 for a 2,225-square-foot house at 13-905 Panorama Drive in Desert Hot Springs, for instance, and are expected to sell at current market values. That property was previously valued at $390,000, Bank of America officials said.

Several factors were taken into consideration when selecting bank-owned homes for the live auction, Haggerty said.

Properties were generally in neighborhoods that have experienced some of the highest foreclosure levels. The foreclosed homes have never been listed or already have been removed from the market. They've been inspected, repaired and are ready for sale.

“By the time the auction happens, they will meet FHA-lending standards,” Haggerty said.

Buyers may be able to qualify for conventional or FHA financing, allowing them to purchase a home with as little as 3.5 percent down payments and nominal closing costs, Frieden said.

“We are trying to pave the road to recovery one house at a time,” Frieden said.

REDC has sold more than 360 properties to individuals and families at similar auctions that have excluded investors in California, Arizona and Nevada.

Nationwide, auctions have boomed, with the National Auctioneers Association reporting that $58.6 billion in residential and commercial real estate was auctioned last year alone.

Real estate agents who bring homebuyer clients to the auction can earn a 3 percent commission.

Information about the houses, property descriptions and photos are available at REDC's web site www.Auction.com/ie.

Nonprofit housing organizations and cities participating in the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Neighborhood Stabilization program also will be allowed to bid, officials said.

In a separate online auction, REDC took final bids for dozens of homes from Twentynine Palms to Indian Wells to Thousand Palms.

MIKE PERRAULT • The Desert Sun • July 4, 2010