Bid4Assets' First Online Sheriff Sale With Montgomery County a Huge Success

Pennsylvania's first online sheriff's sale increases participation 1000%, prevents COVID-19 spread

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Nov 10, 2020, 07:00 ET

NORRISTOWN, Pa., Nov. 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Online auction site Bid4Assets.com made history, working with the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office to host the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's first-ever online sheriff sale. The online nature of the sale eliminated COVID-19 social distancing concerns and dramatically expanded both the number of bidders and the percentage of properties that sold to third-party buyers. The majority of bidders were located in Pennsylvania, but the sale included several bidders from New York, New Jersey, Delaware and California.

"Our goal in transitioning online was to maintain normal operations while supporting the safety of auction bidders, attorneys and our staff," said Sean Kilkenny, Montgomery County Sheriff. "Our live auctions typically bring about a 10-12 serious bidders, so we were shocked to see our first online sale generate 113 registrants. We sold about 4x the usual number of properties to third-party buyers. This minimizes REO properties in our county and maximized excess proceeds that defendants can claim. This was a win-win all around."

Montgomery County's sheriff sales had previously been placed on hold in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The county will continue with online sales and resume their normal schedule, with properties already online for their December, January, February and March sales. There is no cost for bidders to register on Bid4Assets and view properties, though a deposit will be required to bid on properties. Auctions can be viewed at any time at www.bid4assets.com/MontcoPASheriff

"Montgomery County was a great partner in this process," said Jesse Loomis, Bid4Assets' CEO. "When we help a county take their public auctions online, our goal is always to understand their process and mirror it online as closely as possible. That fact that we were able to grow participation tenfold and our services come at no cost to the county demonstrate just how powerful this concept is. I expect many more sheriffs to follow in Montgomery County's footsteps over the next year."

While the sale began with over 250 properties, a flood of postponements reduced the number of properties available for bidding to 37. A total of 781 bids were placed and 16 properties sold for a total of $2,523,061. Prices ranged from $65,539 for a row house in Norristown that had been listed for $90,000 earlier in the year to a 4-bedroom home in Lansdale that sold for $279,000 and has a Zillow estimated value of $373,098.

About Bid4Assets Bid4Assets (http://www.bid4assets.com) is an online auction site based in Silver Spring, Md. The privately held company auctions distressed real estate for the federal government, sheriff's offices, county tax collectors, financial institutions and real estate funds. Since its inception in 1999, the company has sold more than 125,000 properties nationwide and grossed over a billion dollars in auction sales.

Media Contact:

Jon Amar

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SOURCE Bid4Assets Inc.