On March 19^th, I posted an announcement about the Ft. Lauderdale Luxury Real Estate Auction that was held on March 28^th.

Per Reports on March 29^th, 67 of the 99 Properties had no Bids at all.  This doesn't surprise me. You might recall that, in my previous posts, I've mentioned that Luxury Homes are very seldom scheduled for Absolute Auction and potential Buyers prefer Absolute Auctions.  Instead, Luxury Homes are usually scheduled for Reserve Auctions, where Bids have to meet a minimum bid amount.  In my blog posts and in talking to many people about the Luxury Real Estate market, I've indicated that most Luxury Homes (particularly those in the higher end of the Luxury Market) ARE NOT being "given away", despite some people's wildest fantasies. 

About the lack of Bids on the Luxury Homes in the Auction, a person who attended the Auction, was quoted in an Article and indicated that he feels Sellers will "... have to give them away now."  I disagree with his opinion as "giving them away" IS NOT the trend that I've noticed.  I comb through the MLS relentlessly looking at market activity, researching Tax Records, and engaging locally in the Ft. Lauderdale Luxury Real Estate market so that I can keep my little fingertips on the pulse of the market and so that I can provide ACCURATE data to Buyers and Sellers who are participating and interested in the latest on the Ft. Lauderdale Luxury Real Estate market.  In doing so, I've noticed that the majority of Luxury Homes that do not sell through Auction are either listed for sale again (mostly through Brokers, not as "For Sale By Owner") or are taken off the market.

Conversely, stats indicate significantly higher successful Auction results in the non-luxury home market.

As I expected, the Wilton Station Townhouses (click here for my announcement about the Wilton Station  Auction) included in the Auction as "Absolute" received the most bidding activity and "Five brownstones priced in the $500,000-to-$600,000 range all garnered bids, ranging from $230,000 to $275,000."    When the Sales actually close and are posted in the MLS, I will report back to you with their final sales prices.

1235 E. Lake Dr., a Ft. Lauderdale Waterfront Home which I had the pleasure of touring on February 27^th (click for my review of this Ft. Lauderdale Waterfront Home), which was scheduled for Auction, is stated to have received a Deposit and Offer from a Venezuelan Bidder BEFORE the property came up on the block.  This home is listed for $15,000,000 and if the Sale closes, I'll post an update to let you know.

Additionally, 1 Isla Bahia Drive, another Ft. Lauderdale Luxury Home which was scheduled for Auction is stated to have been purchased by a European Buyer 1 Day before the scheduled Auction.   Click to view the Video tour of this Beautiful Ft. Lauderdale Waterfront Estate. Per reports, the ENTIRE purchase price was wired into an Escrow account pending the close of the  Sale.  1 Isla Bahia has a listing price of $23,000,000 and the pending purchase price is rumored to be higher than $17,000,000.  If the Sale closes (yes, pending sales sometimes end up not closing), I will post an update for you.

A recent example of a Luxury home sale that didn't close was A. Rod's highly publicized Offer on Shaq's Miami House for Sale. In the end, A. Rod decided that he preferred to purchase another home and backed out of the Contract.