A REAL FIND IN THE VALLEY BIG HOUSE ON A GREAT BLOCK ... GOING ON THE BLOCK.

Byline: Kerry Cavanaugh Staff Writer

Ladies and gentlemen, get your paddles ready.

Bidding will start just after noon, at 12:05 today, on a rarity in this hot real estate market: A three-bedroom, two-bathroom house in affluent Woodland Hills up for auction with no minimum price.

In the past week, the 1960s-era ranch house at 22142 Tiara St. has attracted hundreds of wannabe homeowners - secretaries, police officers, young professionals - who think the auction might be their one shot at affording a house in Woodland Hills.

And in a neighborhood where homes sell for $750,000 to $800,000, dozens of potential buyers hoping for a good deal have registered for the sale.

So, let the bidding begin. Who's ready at $399,000? Who's gonna go $550,000? $600,000?

Premiere Estates Chief Auctioneer Todd Wohl wouldn't say what he thinks the price will be when his gavel falls and he yells ``Sold,'' but he's expected to start the bidding under $400,000, a price not seen since 2002.

Frustrated with the real estate market, in which the median price for a San Fernando Valley house is $600,000 and homes often sell for far more than the asking price, some shoppers are forgoing open houses in favor of auctions.

``You might get a little better price,'' said Viren Jain, who was checking out the Tiara Street property with his wife and baby during an open house Friday. He's been house-hunting for five months.

``I'm trying the traditional ways, but maybe I can get a fair price at auction if not too many people show up.''

What would be a fair price? Probably $500,000 or below, Jain said.

Real estate auctions are common in the Northeast and South, but Californians tend to rely on agents to negotiate a price.

San Francisco Realtor Vince Malta, president of the California Association of Realtors, said shoppers turn to auctions when they feel they can get a better deal.

``If the market is a very hot-paced market, then you're going to see more and more auctions. If the market is a slow market, then there's no reason a property may sell for less than a property sold the traditional way.''

Auction proponents, such as Wohl, believe buyers might find that the auction process presents less guesswork and less stress, especially in the current market when properties rack up many offers and sell for more than the listed price.

``So many people are frustrated with the listing process today. You have offers taken and made and sold in the first couple of hours,'' Wohl said.

``In the auction process, everybody knows how everyone else is bidding. Everything is completely out in the open. They know exactly what's going on and how much they have to bid.''

But some in the business warn that auctions rarely mean rock-bottom prices.

``We're at an auction. Are you going to let me buy it for half-price? Am I going to let you buy it for three-quarters of the price?'' said Chuck McAtee, president of Pacific Auction Exchange Inc.

Add in the emotional aspect of buying a house with the adrenaline of a fast-paced bidding war, and buyers often push up the price. McAtee recently auctioned a house in Ontario for $720,000 - $45,000 more than the seller anticipated.

That's why Mike Krause, a kitchen remodeler and real estate investor, is sitting this auction out.

``You're going to get Joe Homeowners out and they'll drive up the selling price.''

That'll make it too expensive for an investor, like himself, who would remodel the house and resell. After checking out the Tiara Street house this week, he figured it will sell for around $600,000 at auction. Then the buyer must pay a 5 percent premium to the auction company, so add on $30,000 if the winning bid is $600,000.

Even if he built a new kitchen and new bathrooms and landscaped the yards, he could probably only sell it for $725,000 - not a big enough margin for an investor.

Wohl agreed.

``This is not a home with granite countertops or Jacuzzi tubs. This is a home with a lot of potential. It's an opportunity to get into the market, to live in the home and fix it along the way.''

Kerry Cavanaugh, [phone]

kerry.cavanaugh(at)dailynews.com

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2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) Potential buyers are hoping to bid hello to a bargain at the auction on the three-bedroom ranch house in Woodland Hills.

Gus Ruelas/Staff Photographer

(2 -- color) Marshall Montgomery and Susan Holland tour the property on Tiara Street in advance Friday.

Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer