New guidelines to be issued by the Real Estate Institute of Australia will outlaw rental auctions and ban the use of a rental price range in advertising.
Victoria yesterday become the first state to introduce the measures, described by the Real Estate Institute of Victoria as necessary to ensure that transparent and fair processes were in place when dealing with tenants in Melbourne’s tightest rental market in two decades.
“The REIV is conscious of the need for estate agents to deal fairly and honestly with prospective tenants, and treat them with courtesy, …

Foxtons has become the latest estate agency to attract the attentions of 3i, the stock market-listed private equity group. 3i is preparing to join an auction for the London agent this week, a month after its failed backing for a £970m management buyout at Countrywide.
Foxtons, founded by entrepreneur Jon Hunt in the early 1980s, had been looking at a flotation valuing it at between £300m and £400m. But interest from private equity and rivals prompted advisers Credit Suisse to conduct an auction.

The world headquarters of auction house Sotheby’s is now open to bidders. The 470,000-square-foot building (pictured), located on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, is being put up for sale by its owner, RFR Holding L.L.C.
A report by Lois Weiss in The New York Post today cited a probable sale price of somewhere near $500 million for the property, which was redeveloped on the site of the original, 1930s-era Sotheby’s headquarters by RFR in 1999-2000. According to the report, Sotheby’s net leases the building and has 16 years remaining on the agreement. …

Property on Richmond Lake will be auctioned off, city officials decided Monday.
The land, jointly owned by the county and city, is on the north-central part of the lake.
Last week, City Attorney Adam Altman met with the Brown County Commission to convey the city’s desire to sell the piece of property, after a short executive session to discuss the appraisal price and possible manner of sale, the county commission authorized Altman to act on behalf of the county to sell the land.
In 1937, the Lindboe family gave the piece of property, …

The auction is being conducted by Sperry Van Ness Fisher Auction Co. Inc., a Pompano Beach-based auction house. And it’s being held exclusively online, through Friday . All necessary information for potential bidders can be found at www.fisherauction.com.
“Auctions are a beneficial way to sell a property,” said Louis B. Fisher III, principal owner of Fisher Auction. “They transform surplus holdings into cash or earnings assets.”
Auctions are also great marketing tools that can help attract potential buyers. “An auction is a catalyst for motivating hesitant buyers into action, and they …

Sutton Kersh saw a 20% rise in the total revenue raised from its auctions last year compared with 2005, with sales totalling more than £37m.
Director, James Kersh, said:
“A large proportion of this increase can be attributed to the significant rise in the number of failed buy-to-let commercial and residential properties which are now being offered for sale at auction.”
Kersh’s next auction takes place on Thursday, February 22, at Liverpool’s city centre Marriott Hotel.

Press Release
Home sales are skidding into decline putting hungry buyers on the fast track to find a treasure trove of bargains at private foreclosure auctions. Foreclosed properties owned by lenders, known as real-estate owned (REO) can often be purchased at significant discounts because lenders want to sell the properties quickly to reduce carrying costs.
Hudson & Marshall, America’s largest auction firm of foreclosed properties, will auction nearly 250 foreclosed homes throughout Ohio and Pennsylvania for national lenders on March 5-10. The homes are valued from $5000-over $250,000 and come guaranteed with …

dailyindia.com he state-run National Textile Corporation (NTC) has decided to put four more mills in central Mumbai up for auction, a move that could push real estate prices through the roof.
The NTC’s proposed auction of four mills in Worli and Parel could raise real estate prices in central Mumbai because developers are expected to bid ‘higher than-market’ rate for the around 40 acres of prime land, freeing it for private developers in this ‘land-starved’ metropolis.
The state-run textile company has already raised around Rs.20 billion from its first phase …

Business Day Western Cape’s provincial cabinet has approved a “revolutionary” plan to dispose of the controversial Somerset Hospital site that will involve black economic empowerment entities.
The plan is to lease the 8ha site to the highest bidder, which will then have to take on board a consortium of preselected empowerment groupings approved by the cabinet.
Premier Ebrahim Rasool said empowerment companies willing to take part in the project would need to comply with set criteria drawn up by the provincial government and be willing to join a consortium of empowerment …

THE Venmore Partnership celebrated strong sales at its latest auction, with more than 76% of lots being snapped up.
Around 250 investors from across the North West attended the firm’s first auction of the year, where some competitive bidding saw sales top £4m.
And with lively competition across all sectors, a large number of properties sold for well above their reserves.
The auction, at Liverpool’s Marriott Hotel, got off to a quick start with the very first fetching £251,000, against a guide price of £175,000.
Auctioneer Phil Cassidy said the sale marked a promising …