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Colin Powell Axiom 'Go with 40-70 % Knowledge, Then with Your Gut' Drives Nov. 12 Sunshine State Auction by Tranzon, Canadians See 'DEALS' in American Uncertainties

Tranzon Driggers, with its Wednesday, November 12 live auction of up to 31 single-family homes in the vacation destination ofFort Myers, Florida, is heeding Powell's advice.

"This is a situation where a lender inNew Jersey wound up acquiring the loan from aColorado entity on properties they never expected to have in their portfolio. Most of the homes are brand new, never even lived in. The lender hired us to expedite the sale to clear this from their books which is a boon for any investor looking to invest excess capital in something other than the stock market or someone in the position to accelerate their dream for a second home inFlorida," says Walt Driggers, president of Tranzon Driggers and TMA member.

The homes are divided between theCape Coral andLehigh Acres neighborhoods ofFort Myers, a popular vacation spot for families, college students and "Snow Birds" - those from northern climes who often make the move south permanent upon retirement. At least one-third of the homes will go to the highest bidder that day regardless of price.

Canadian entrepreneur Tom Doerner, along with other well-heeled countrymen, find today's American real estate deals in the Sunshine State especially alluring considering the expanded buying power of the Canadian dollar against a weakened U.S. market.

Doerner, president of WatServ (Waterloo Managed Software Services), a software company outside ofToronto inKitchener has made several trips south of the border to invest in property, combining rounds of golf with making the rounds of properties for sale.

Sometimes he even heeds Powell's advice, fueled by a combination of enough knowledge and gut instinct to make a bid sight unseen.

"I've 'Googled' some properties and looked at them from space. I know they aren't next to a swamp and have enough knowledge about them, the area, to make a bid," says Doerner, whose new acquisitions include several properties in Cape Coral.

Just as he's been successful with WatServ, he's seen his instincts for a good deal steer him straight.

"A number of my friends have also bought property inFlorida, although one of them was afraid of hurricanes, so he bought inArizona. But that's why there's insurance, and I know many of these homes have been standing for 100 years and they'll stand for 100 more," says Doerner.

The Canadian banking system - more rigidly controlled than America's - in tandem with Canadian frugality, stringent bankruptcy laws and a higher "shame factor" for debt have our neighbors to the north better positioned to take advantage of the U.S. real estate market, although as Doerner points out, "Canadians wants to see the American economy make a swift recovery, because what happens to you ultimately affects everyone." "Cash is king," says Hal G. Byer, a senior vice president of Libra Securities inLos Angeles, CA. "If I had a lot of liquidity right now as an individual, I'd be buying property."

Jeffrey H. Aronson - on the luncheon panel of speakers at the TMA annual conference along with others including Judge Robert D. Drain, who is overseeing the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy case inNew York - says, "It's a great time to be investing: buy on the way down...values are exceptional ... there is no liquidity, only a handful of capital and everyone else is selling."

Aronson is a co-founder and managing principal of Centerbridge Partners, L.P., a private investment firm focusing on private equity and distressed securities investments. Billed as a "Lender Blowout," the single-family homes offered in packages of five at the November 12 Tranzon event may be viewed by logging on to the Tranzon web site at www.tranzon.com The auction will be conducted live at 6:30 p.m. (Eastern) at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 13051 Bell Tower Drive,Fort Myers, FL 33907. This will be augmented by an on-line version held simultaneously over the Internet via www.BidSpotter.com

Interested bidders must register in advance and are required to bring cashier's checks in the amount of $5,000, plus be prepared to provide 10% of the balance of the deposit by personal or business check when they obtain the winning bid.

For more information, contact Walt Driggers at Tranzon Driggers, (877) 374-4437 or via e-mail at wdriggers@tranzon.com

Tranzon Driggers, headquartered inOcala, FL, is a full-service real estate auction company and a member company of Tranzon, L.L.C., which is based inRichmond, Va. Founded in 2001, Tranzon L.L.C. has 15 independently owned and operated member auction companies that collectively have more than 21 offices coast-to-coast. Other upcoming major Tranzon Driggers auctions include the November 20 auction inGulf Shores, AL ofBon Secour Village, a multi-million dollar mixed use project on the Intercoastal Waterway with a deep-water marina and county approval already in place for certain future developments.

     Media Contact:
     Liz Chuday
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SOURCE Tranzon Driggers