If you’ve been following the story so far through 2016, or even over the last few years, you knew this was coming.

I’m not sure of the right terminology – bankruptcy, foreclosure, receivership, power of sale, but however you want to explain it, all of Urbancorp’s properties are being sold right now, “subject to the prior approval of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.”

Let’s take a look at the properties, how they’re being sold, and just as a brief refresher, we’ll look at Urbancorp’s demise…

I would pat myself on the back if I didn’t hurt my back picking up a case of Gatorade this morning.

Seriously – am I that old and fragile?

I have the body of a 90-year-old man.

I’m worried if I break a hip, I’ll never recover…

My back-patting is warranted, given my feelings about the condominium developer, Urbancorp, and my warnings that date back to the very beginning of this blog in 2007.

Over the next few years, I received dozens of emails and phone calls from prospective Urbancorp-buyers, many of whom thanked me for my time and opinions, but went ahead with their purchases anyways.

One of those projects was “Val Homes” which came crashing down last year.

I feel for all those folks, but at the end of the day, they chased the dream of getting rich.  They played with fire, and they got burned.

I’ve chronicled Urbancorp’s demise since it unofficially started in 2015, so now that they’re selling their properties under bankruptcy, I figured I’d keep telling the story.

If you’re interested in a refresher from the start of 2015 when things started going awry, here’s a timeline with seven articles outlining the major events that got us to this point:

January 27, 2015 – Urbancorp cancels “King’s Club” condo project

June 3, 2015 – Urbancorp refuses to give back deposits on Val Homes project

March 31, 2016 – Urbancorp complaints to TARION result in a “warning”

April 4, 2016 – Urbancorp’s bonds plunge in value on the Tel Aviv stock exchange

April 17, 2016 – TARION threatens to revoke Urbancorp’s registration

April 22n, 2016 – Urbancorp files for bankruptcy

May 3, 2016 – the CEO of Urbancorp files for bankruptcy.

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And now, the firesale begins.

No less than five of Urbancorp’s projects are now up for sale.

All five are listed for $1, with bids to be submitted by August 16th, 2016 at 5pm.

Now because of the archaic rules that exist via the Real Estate Council of Ontario, I cannot provide the address of these properties, or the name of the owner.

So here are the listings, which are easily found on www.realtor.ca:

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The first four properties all say “proposed development,” so the buyer is looking at raw land, where the applications have been made, and the architectural drawings have been done.

Had these been “approved developments,” the price would be higher in the end.

I respect the fact that the listings all say, “Property Not Being Sold At $1.00.”

I’m sure somewhere out there, a wide-eyed, would-be buyer is getting his or her Loonie all polished up.

It almost forces us to ask whether or not those $800,000 semi-detached homes, which are listed for $599,900 with a hold-back on offers, should contain the phrase, “Property Not Being Sold For $599,900.”

Another point worth mentioning – the listing brokerage is offering $1.00 commission, simply because to be on MLS, you have to offer some form of compensation.  But the buyers will have to compensate the buyer-agents on these sales, which is also detailed in the hidden Broker’s Remarks.

More information about these properties is available, but you’d have to contact the listing brokerage directly, and sign a confidentiality agreement.

In any event, the sale price will be a matter of public record, so I’ll be able to provide it after these lots are sold, and after they’re closed.

Unless the Competition Bureau beats CREA before then.  But that’s probably not going to happen…

Have a great long weekend, everybody!