Here along the Pensacola, Navarre and Perdido  Key Beaches 

Oceanfront and Boating / Riverfront condos and condominiums are selling briskly   

Take a look at what happened at a recent local oceanfront and beach condominium auction  

Perdido Key Area ...  A driving rainstorm didn't stop bidders from buying 44 condominium units for more than $13 million at an absolute auction that attracted more than 1,000 people to the Crystal Tower condo complex Saturday afternoon.

Amid wall-to-wall umbrellas, more than 500 registered bidders from 20 states came to look for a deal or at least catch a glimpse of the condo-buying fever.

The lowest condo unit sale prices were $275,000 and the highest condominium purchase price was $350,000, which included the 10 percent buyer's premium added to the bid amount, according to the National Auction Co. based in Gadsden.

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"My brothers and I had not intended to go that low," said Collier Merrill, the developer of the 170-unit Crystal Tower on West Beach Boulevard. "But we wanted to move some product and in an hour we sold 13 million dollars' worth."

The Merrill family had planned to sell 30 units at absolute auction or with no minimum bid, and instead sold 44. They kept about 20 for rentals, Merrill said.

"Considering the weather, we had a lot of people come out," Merrill said. "There was a lot of buzz about it and it's a nice product with good amenities."

The developer held back about 70 of the 170 units when presales were released in 2004. At that time, the units were selling in the high $400s to high $600s, according to agents and the developer.

The 20-story complex is not on the gulf-front or on Little Lagoon, but does have water views and an enclosed, air-conditioned skywalk across the road to a private beach club and swimming pool.

Vernon Jackson of Daphne had hoped to buy a unit for $225,000, but was happy to get one for $250,000. While he plans to live there full time, he admitted he didn't know how he was going to explain his sudden purchase to his girlfriend. It took him less than 10 minutes to walk away an owner.

The auction started an hour late, at about noon, thanks in part to the heavy winds, lightning and battering rain. But it was mostly due to the long line of folks waiting to register to bid. The bidders were required to bring $10,000 in certified funds for each condo they bid on, according to William Bone, president of the National Auction Group. The auction staff ran out of forms and auction paddles and scurried to make some temporary forms.

Four condo units were sold before the auction started, Bone said. The bidders came from as far as Reno, Nevada; Texas, Chicago, New Orleans and even a buyer in Georgia who made his successful bid via the Internet.

About a dozen disgruntled, would-be bidders demanded and received their checks back after the auction start was delayed.

"They must not be serious bidders," Bone commented. Pointing to the crowd, he added, "This was a huge win for every developer on the Northwest Gulf Coast. It demonstrates a pent-up demand."