Brooklyn house easily tops auction minimum

Semi-detached brick house with driveway and two-car garage at 50 Tapscott St. (Source: Kings County Public Administrator)

At Tuesday’s estate auction by King’s County Public Administrator Bruce Stein, the last was first in terms on the amount of its winning bid — $1.45 million, 62 percent above the minimum opening bid.

The object of spirited bidding by some half dozen hopefuls, the property at 51 Havermeyer St. was the last of 10 houses on the block.  Its minimum was $890,000.

The winner was a man who

Estate auction of Brooklyn houses set for Dec. 18

2343 60th St., Brooklyn, is on auction block. (Source: Kings County Public Administrator)

Ten Brooklyn houses are to be auctioned on Dec. 18 by King’s County Public Administrator Bruce Stein.  It is the first such estate auction by the city in that borough since last June.

The properties, which were owned by individuals who died without wills, have minimum bids ranging from $175,000 to $890,000.

At 51 Havermeyer St., a three-family attached row house is the property with the highest opening bid.  With 3,525 square feet of living area and annual taxes of $3,910, the brick house was owned John Krantz.

Also on the block

True bidding war erupts at auction in Brooklyn

State Supreme Court Building in Brooklyn, where auction was held.

At an estate auction in Brooklyn that raised $7.225 million for New York City, a mixed-use Bay Ridge building went 76 percent over its minimum price of $1.6 million in a heated bidding war on Tuesday.

Not only was the competition for the property marked by the drama of late entrants bidding well into the final rounds, apparent handshake deals among the hopefuls and rare bursts of applause, but the auctioneer for Kings County Public Administrator Bruce Stein mistakenly called out the wrong paddle number when declaring the building sold at $2.82 million.  He then started to re-open bidding.

“You said it was sold!” many who attended the auction shouted as the actual winner strode in consternation from where he was seated in the back row toward the front of the courtroom in State Supreme Court, Brooklyn, where the auction was held.

City plans to sell Brooklyn properties at auction

Brooklyhn Borough Hall

King’s County Public Administrator Bruce Stein has scheduled the auction of 16 Brooklyn properties on May 22.  It is the first such estate auction  by the city in that borough since last June.

The properties, which were owned by individuals who died without wills, have minimum bids ranging from $275,000 to $1.6 million.

The following properties are scheduled to be auctioned:

Officials set minimum auction bids different ways

Surrogate's Courthouse in Manhattan, site of public administrator auctions.

Auction aficionados are well aware that each of the public administrators in the city’s boroughs holds auctions usually three or four times a year to unload properties of owners who died without a will.

Every time I publish a post about an upcoming auction along with the minimum bids, I can count on Internet chatter to the effect that the apartments and townhouses going on the block don’t add up to bargains. To commenters, the minimum bids invariably seem too high.

I got to wondering how the public administrators decide on the minimum.

Public administrator won’t disclose winning bids

This is about all I got from the Office of the King's County public administrator, and only from the Web site.

I admit it: I failed

Because I couldn’t get to yesterday’s auction of estate properties by the King’s County public administrator, I thought I’d call today to get the results for the edification of my readers.

Good luck!

First, I spoke to a nice seemingly young woman who gave her name as Christina. After putting me on hold, she said that she could provide the information if, for some reason, I faxed a written request.

Uh oh.  The first sign of trouble.

Here’s your chance to bid on a Brooklyn property

Co-operative building at 160 Columbia Heights, Brooklyn.

The King’s County public administrator is auctioning off 17 properties with minimum bids ranging from $50,000 for vacant land to as much as $1.8 million for a townhouse.

The auction will take place on May 4 at 2 p.m. in State Supreme Court, 360 Adams Street.  But you have to be there by 12:45.

Inspection of the properties will be May 1 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and May 2 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

If you’ve read this far, you doubtless would like to know the properties and opening bids.  Here goes: