Three homes sell for combined $2.13 million in Albert Burney auction

PENSACOLA, Fla. (March 10, 2009) – Three homes – two in Pensacola, Fla., and one near Savannah, Ga. – sold for a combined $2.13 million in a pair of auctions held March 5 and March 7.

The bank-ordered auctions attracted bidders from nine different states, according to Warren Ward, president of Albert Burney Auction Company, which managed the sales.

"The mortgage crisis and the economic turmoil are, unfortunately, resulting in more and more lenders finding themselves in the position of being forced to market properties that are in various stages of default. And because of the declines we are seeing in real estate prices, there is a great deal of uncertainty in many cases as to the fair market value of the properties. As we found with these sales, a well-promoted auction can get them sold, because the bidders establish the market value through competitive bidding,” said Ward. “My understanding is that the high bids we received on these properties were higher than previous offers the lender had received, and that reflects the competition created by the auction process,” he added.