Private Investment Venture Snags All Foreclosed Properties in Macomb County for $4.9 M

By Veronica Grecu, Associate Editor

Former yacht dealer and millionaire Bill McMachen and an unnamed partner snapped up all foreclosed properties in Macomb County at a public auction held last week at Freedom Hill in Sterling Heights. For $4.9 million or an average of $7,500 per property, the two buyers acquired an unprecedented lot of almost 650 properties, including 403 residential properties and a large commercial building, The Huffington Post reports.

This is McMachen’s first real estate business deal and while some voices criticize him for buying the properties for the minimum bid before any of the 285 bidders had a chance to offer higher prices, county officials agree that the investor put an end to 12 years of auctions for unwanted assets. Also, the deal allowed the county to collect 100 percent of unpaid taxes for the sold properties.

According to Business Insider, McMachen and his partner have no plans to rent the properties. Instead, they want to resell some homes to local investors and donate others to families who otherwise wouldn’t afford to buy one.

In June 2012 there were 7,057 new foreclosures in Macomb County and one in every 529 housing units received a foreclosure filing across the entire state of Michigan, according to RealtyTrac data. Macomb County ranks third statewide in new foreclosure activity, with 1,023 filings.

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Image courtesy of www.realtytrac.com