Panama City Beach, FL (PRWEB) March 27, 2008 — Prospective buyers anxiously gathered on Friday, March 14 at Noon, at the Bay Point Marriott Resort in Panama City Beach, as Roebuck Auctions sold one of the largest land and property holdings in the area’s history.

The Charles Faircloth Estate Settlement auction drew an estimated 800 people, forcing many in attendance to stand along the walls and in the hallway. Bidders traveled from 20 different states, including New York, California and Washington, and several countries, for the opportunity to buy one or more of the prime gulf front properties owned by the late Faircloth.

For almost three hours, John Roebuck, founder of Roebuck Auctions, Chris Camp, owner of the Florida Division of Roebuck, and a staff of almost 30 people aggressively went to work on behalf of the Faircloth estate. In the end, close to 150 separate parcels in Bay County were auctioned bringing in an estimated $60 Million in contracts.

"While the country is currently experiencing a major housing slump, you would never know it based on the attendance and enthusiasm at this auction," said Roebuck.

Roebuck noted, "The centerpiece of the auction was an 8.1 acre gulf front development known as Legacy that boasts an incredible 860 feet of frontage on the Gulf of Mexico. Legacy, which has a Development Order in place for a 30 Story, 688 unit condo project sold for just over $30 million." Three other gulf front developments were also offered at the auction including The Breakers, a 1.8 acre development on Front Beach Road that achieved a high bid of $6.27 Million.

Camp, the auctioneer for most of the auction, also offered gulf front lots, townhomes, single family gulf front homes and luxury condominiums, including 10 units in the popular Treasure Island condominiums.

"The Faircloth family was extremely pleased with the professionalism and the marketing efforts that drew such a great crowd. They knew that they had made the right decision to use Roebuck Auctions over several other auction companies they had talked to," said Camp.

Camp added, "I couldn’t be happier with the outcome of this auction. The Faircloth family put a lot of faith in Roebuck Auctions to make this event a success and we had no intentions of letting them down. It’s always nice when your sellers are happy, but it makes you feel twice as good when bidders come up and thank you after the auction. Happy buyers and happy sellers…it doesn’t get any better than that."

"A nice touch to this event was the presence of the family pastor who blessed the auction. Also in attendance was one of Mr. Faircloth’s favorite charities, The Boy Scouts of America Troop 300. Thank you to all those who honored him by also donating to the boy scouts at the auction," said Roebuck.

Roebuck Auctions is a full service real estate auction marketing firm, headquartered in Memphis, TN with offices in Destin and Panama City, FL. Roebuck Auctions has been conducting real estate auctions throughout the United States for over 30 years. For more information please contact Roebuck Auctions, 850.654.6000.

United Built Homes, Being a Successful Real Estate Novice
Buying property for the first time is always thrilling ? it?s one
of those purchases that you?ll remember the rest of your life. When
you?re a novice, the memory can be a great one or a terrible, depending
entirely on how well you handle the purchase. To make sure you remember
your first purchase as a successful one, do your homework and move
carefully.

Before buying, think long and hard about why you?re buying ? is it for
your own use, or is it an investment that you intend to resell after
doing some renovations? Be sure you know your motivation and how much
you want to pay for the property itself. Remember, if you?re going to
be doing repairs after the purchase, you have to budget some money in
for that as well, so don?t overextend yourself on the property mortgage
and then end up not being able to afford the work you need to do.

Find out what the lowest and highest priced properties are in the area
you?re considering. Knowing the range can help you when negotiating on
a price. Also look at several different properties that are similar and
compare the similarities and differences. What extras are demanding
premiums, which ones aren?t?

You should also go into negotiations and closings from a position of
power. Learn what all of the terms mean that you will be hearing.
Escrow, title, mortgage insurance, options and a host of other terms
will come up. If you don?t clearly understand what the realtor or the
lender is talking about, you are working at a distinct disadvantage.
Knowledge is a powerful thing, and will give you the power to ask
questions and make it clear that you understand what?s going on.

Learn the actual procedure for the closing so that you aren?t surprised
by costs like inspections, escrow, realty and other fees. Be sure you
familiarize yourself with any local laws or ordinances that may affect
the property you?re purchasing as well.

When shopping for property, don?t simply go with a realtor. While a
realtor can be very helpful, you can save a substantial amount if you
by-pass this route because you won?t be paying the realty fees. Homes
that list as ?For Sale by Owner? are often being sold by homeowners who
want to sell quickly or are willing to negotiate and have passed on the
realtor in an effort to make some money despite having to lower the
price of their property. Also check the Internet, newspapers and local
Home Sales weeklies for listings.

Financing once you?ve settled on a property is also a minefield. Don?t
go with the first mortgage you?re offered. There are so many different
mortgage lenders now that you can afford to shop around. If you belong
to a credit union, talk to the mortgage officer there. Also talk to
banks and savings & loans. If you want to be sure you can purchase
a property at the best price and beat other interested buyers to the
punch, have your financing in place before you make your offer. Sellers
will go with someone who?s financing is guaranteed over an unknown
every time.

Finally, remember that buying and selling property takes compromise.
When you make an offer on a property, you?re likely to get a
counter-offer from the seller. Don?t dismiss it without offering a
compromise. Can you offer a better price if they are willing to closer
earlier? Whatever you can do to make the deal come together with both
of you happy is best.