Daft Property - Irish Property News

Fire-sale auction draws bargain hunters... So many people turned up for an auction of distressed properties in the Shelbourne Hotel today in Dublin that it had to be suspended amid Garda concerns for safety. Some 80 lots, ranging from a Ballsbridge mews to a collection of cut price flats in Portlaoise, are being offered to the highest bidders. The majority of properties are being sold by receivers and include homes in Dublin, Wicklow and Galway as well as small commercial buildings and shops. Such was the interest in the sale that crowds spilled out of the hotel and onto the street. Proceedings had to be suspended for several minutes while non-bidders were asked to leave the main auction room. The venue has seating for 350, with standing room for an additional 500. One lot, an apartment in Portlaoise, was sold to a bidder who was forced to stand on the pavement on St Stephen's Green due to overcrowding. To ease pressure on the hotel, the entire auction is being broadcast