Lakeside marina and restaurant on the auction block
Lakeside Marina and the attached restaurant are going on the auction block.
The property, which includes 500 feet of shoreline, a dock with 136 boat slips and a 3,024-square-foot restaurant, had previously been listed for approximately $5.5 million.
The property had garnered interest at that price but no takers, according to J. Craig King, CEO of Alabama-based J.P. King Auction Company.
Now, the property’s ownership group has made the decision to enlist the help of the auctioneering firm to find a new buyer. The company sells high-value properties all across the U.S. and abroad, and in the last several years has sold several properties in Montana, including a waterfront parcel just a few doors down from the Marina in Lakeside.
King said the auction process was appealing for people who have had a hard time finding a buyer on the traditional local real estate circuit, and this property fit that description. A wealth of amenities and qualities added enough value to garner a high price tag, but just how much it could fetch can take a long time to determine on the open market.
“The auction process is extremely valuable for properties that are hard to value,” King said. “It helps set the true value and it will expedite the sale in a more timely manner,”
King said four partners have owned the property for a long time and each of them are looking to move on from the investment. According to Flathead County property tax records available online, the lot is currently owned by MED Residential LLC.
King said his company is initiating a marketing campaign that will include listing ads in national publications like the Wall Street Journal and online commercial real estate sites like Loopnet.
The company is hopeful the campaign will draw a diverse array of bidders.
“This marina has a lot of potential,” King said.
It costs $25,000 to register for the auction, and bidders who do that well in advance of the July 31 auction will get access to information compiled by the auction company, including photos, copies of contracts and titles. Unsuccessful bidders will have their check returned upon conclusion of the auction.
“We encourage people to pre-register so they are getting all the updates and things as we are going,” King said.
King said their company had already received a number of inquiries about the property, even though they had yet to post significant information online.
“We’re working now to get the website and the photographs and all the things that will be going up on the website rather quickly,” King said.
He also said that though the winning bid will subject to approval by the ownership group to make sure it was high enough to meet their demands, he has little doubt that it will be an issue.
“We fully anticipate that the property will be sold,” King said.
When they sold the waterfront condominiums nearby a couple years ago, he said they had bidders from half a dozen different states and from Canada.
Registration is also permitted on the day of the auction. A clerk will be onsite to handle the $25,000 checks until the conclusion of the event. It is currently scheduled for 11 a.m. on July 31 at the property.
More information and registration information can be found at www.jpking.com/properties/7135-highway-93-lakeside-mt-59922/#.
Reporter Peregrine Frissell can be reached at (4060 758-4438 or pfrissell@dailyinterlake.com.