Published: April 8, 2012 Updated: April 9, 2012 12:02 a.m.
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A Phoenix man plans to auction off a house he bought for $80,000 one cent at a time, with the maximum bid set at $5,000.
Arizona real estate investor Todd Talbot said he paid $80,000 for the house in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale and spent another $20,000 fixing it up. The total value, he maintains is $125,000.
Under Talbot’s “penny auction” plan, potential buyers can bid one cent at a time up to a maximum of 150 bids apiece. The lucky winner will get the house for $5,000.01, plus the $150 he or she spends to buy a “seat” to the online auction.
How can Talbot sell his house for a mere $5,000?
“I make my money on the sale of the auction seats,” he said. Talbot said the auction won’t take place until he sells 1,000 seats.
By selling a thousand seats at $150 a seat, he should — wait a minute. That’s $150,000!
That’s a return of 50% on a $100,000 investment. Not bad.
Talbot acknowledged that his penny auction has “an element of both auction and raffle.” His lawyers say it’s legal, he said.
The event is part endurance contest as well, with the bidding going 24 hours a day for days on end. The bidding ends when a minute elapses without a new bid, or when the price hits $5,000.01.
The auction could begin this week.
Penny auctions have become popular for iPads and other consumer items. Talbot thinks his sale will be the first penny auction for real estate.
Read more …
Arizona real estate investor Todd Talbot said he paid $80,000 for the house in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale and spent another $20,000 fixing it up. The total value, he maintains is $125,000.
A house that Arizona real estate investor Todd Talbot bought at a foreclosure sale for $80,000 will sell for $5,000 or less -- provided that Talbot can get 1,000 people to pay $150 apiece to take part in his "penny auction" plan.
PHOTO COURTESY OF TODD TALBOT, TEXT BY JEFF COLLINS, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
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How can Talbot sell his house for a mere $5,000?
“I make my money on the sale of the auction seats,” he said. Talbot said the auction won’t take place until he sells 1,000 seats.
By selling a thousand seats at $150 a seat, he should — wait a minute. That’s $150,000!
That’s a return of 50% on a $100,000 investment. Not bad.
Talbot acknowledged that his penny auction has “an element of both auction and raffle.” His lawyers say it’s legal, he said.
The event is part endurance contest as well, with the bidding going 24 hours a day for days on end. The bidding ends when a minute elapses without a new bid, or when the price hits $5,000.01.
The auction could begin this week.
Penny auctions have become popular for iPads and other consumer items. Talbot thinks his sale will be the first penny auction for real estate.
Read more …
- House On Sale For One Penny — Inside Edition
- Todd Talbot Auctioning His Arizona Home For One Penny — Huffington Post
- Arizona House Auctioned for a Penny — ABC News
- Penny Auctions For Real Estate? A Good Way To Pay A Lot For Nothing — housingdoom.com
- Homeowner puts his four-bedroom, two-bathroom Arizona property up for auction — at bids starting at one penny — Daily Mail
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