The City of Lockport announced over the weekend that it will be holding its yearly tax-foreclosed properties auction next week and being served on the platter are a bevy of residential units plus some repossessed commercial buildings and two undeveloped residential lots.

City treasurer Michael White said that some 23 residential units would be the target for sale by foreclosed properties seekers as he assured that would-be buyers should be getting some real value for their money.

From a wide array of 16 single-family homes, 4 duplexes and three apartments, chief building inspector Jason Dool said that the prospects were good enough for those keeping a lid on their budget.

Dool said that with some home improvement initiatives following the consummation of the sale, purchasers occupying most of the properties should be a breeze though he admitted that some units may require overhauls but that would mostly depend on the priorities and predilections of the new owners.

White said that the same procedures would apply as in previous auction offerings of the city, where bidders would be required to plunk down 20 percent deposit and settle the 10 percent allocated for the auctioneer during the bidding session.

In order to seal the deal, buyers would have to pay up the outstanding balance incurred within the next 30 days.

White warned that bidders with previous property tax issues and were involved in foreclosure cases and code issues since 1990 would not be allowed to participate on the auction as he reminded that investigation would be undertaken prior to the finalization of the sale.

He stressed that bidder must strictly follow the rules or face the prospect of forfeiting their initial bonds as he gave assurance that auction authorities would carefully scrutinize the buyers’ records before giving their go ahead to the deal.

Also, Dool revealed that the properties would be opened for inspection by prospective buyers during working hours of Monday and Tuesday and bidders would be accompanied by a building inspector to discourage possible pilferage of fixtures from the properties, which plagued several units last year when the inspection tours were opened to the public.

Dool suggested that serious buyers of the auction offerings would need to appraise the properties first hand in order for them to get a clear idea on the amount of repair needed to render the property of their choice quite habitable, as he stressed that the inspection tours offer the appropriate opportunity for that.

He assured though that buyers who would end up with substantial code issues on an acquired property would be given a year to upgrade the unit to city code standards as he explained that this is being done to ensure that new owners would not be overwhelmed by the specter of work required for the rehabilitation.

The city government had committed that a fraction of this year’s auction earnings would be allocated to the demolition projects lined up by city administrators this year, where three abandoned houses on Elms and Phelps streets were scheduled to be flattened by fall.

Dool said that this would be the first instance that the city government had reserved funds for its demolition works and according to him, the initiative would be sustained in the succeeding auctions to come.

White revealed that bidder registration for the evening action would commence at 5pm Tuesday while actual bidding would start by 6:30pm and for advance appreciation of the properties, prospective buyers could avail of the catalog at the treasurer’s office or simply access www.auctionsinternational.com.