If advertising and local buzz has anything to do with it, all of the 11 units up for auction in the Chilali Lodge in Ketchum should sell like hot cakes. The auction, which is scheduled for February 19th has been highly publicized by the auction company who will be holding the sale.
Accelerated Marketing Partners has created quite a local buzz by widely publicizing the acution in local newspapers and through online media as well as through the local real estate brokerage community.
Union Bank, who owns the units, has hired Accelerated Markteting Partners to handle the sale in hopes of getting half of thier total inventory of 22 off thier books.
The cheapest condo up for auction is a 1,600-square-foot, one-bedroom unit with 1.5 baths. The minimum bid is $295,000, From there, the units range in size from two-bedroom to three-bedroom condos. The highest minimum bid is $795,000 for the three-bedroom, 3.5-bath condos of about 2,500 square feet. The pricing for these units is pretty attractive at the opening bid prices. $183 to $316 per square foot is quite low compared to current market rates for similar units.
If bidders are conservative, prices could remain low. It will be interesting to see how high the bidding goes for these units. In today’s down market I don’t anticipate a bidding frenzy that will drive prices too high. I am guessing Union Bank is hoping for a bidding frenzy that will drive prices higher. Do I hear $350,000?