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Monday, July 21, 2008
Buyers Bid for Condominiums
By Jackie Jadrnak
Journal Northern Bureau
SANTA FE — Some buyers had a look of stunned pleasure as they became owners of new Santa Fe condominiums Sunday.
"We totally didn't expect this. We thought there would be a million more people," said Grace Agnew, as she and Marty Dobyns waited on final paperwork for a 645-square-foot unit they bought partly as an investment, but mostly as a home for their 22-year-old son.
Trish Parker and Ben Coffey, who moved to Santa Fe less than a year ago, downplayed their chances of a winning bid before the auction started. "We didn't have a real good shot to begin with, because there's a bunch of Realtors here," Coffey said, but the two walked away with an 874-square-foot unit for less than $150,000.
What turned out to be a pleasant surprise for this couple was a stark reflection of the current downturn in home sales, both locally and nationally. With a total of 145 units built and only about 30 sold, The Alameda condominium development on Santa Fe's south side was looking for more residents.
Deborah Olson, an agent with Barker Realty, which has been handling sales of the condos, stressed that the auction was not a bank-forced sale. "They're trying to get the occupancy up, get some momentum going," she said.
Although 45 units were advertised, bidders got a list of only 20 properties in the order they'd be going up for bid. Those listed units were the ones that prospective bidders had registered as their choices, according to Rhett Winchell, president of Kennedy Wilson Auction Group, the company that handled the auction.
As the list dwindled, though, Winchell conferred with unsuccessful bidders on what size unit they were looking for, and 10 were added to the list and auctioned off.
The units ranged from 645 to 1,275 square feet, with original list prices from $199,900 to $310,605. Minimum bids were set from $120,000 to $199,000. Many sold for less than $10,000 above the minimum.