Hat tip to The Oregonian’s real estate reporter Ryan Frank for his coverage of this story. Despite being ushered out of the main auction room by Accelerated Marketing, his Front Porch blog gave the world near real-time insights into what was going on behind the scenes.

After more than a month of anticipation, guerrilla marketing and widespread media coverage, the Atwater Auction is in the books. Westport Capital Partners, the business entity that wields controlling interest in the condominium development, appears to have netted more than $19 Million in sales.

Having sold 40 out of the available 41 units at an average price of approximately $299/sf is not particularly good, but it’s not bad either. As reported on PortlandWatefront.com, the aggregate sales for the South Waterfront – including John Ross, Meriwether and Atwater Place – averaged an asking price of $325/sf and a sales price of $310/sf for the past three months.  Atwater Place is considered by some to be the more upscale property between the three developments in the South Waterfront and was expected to fetch a premium.

Mark Edlen, of Gerding Edlen Development, has a residence in the Atwater. Mr. Edlen and his partner Bob Gerding, who recently passed away, are credited for many of Portland’s sustainable developments – including notable projects in The Brewery Blocks such as Whole Foods, The Gerding Theater, The Henry and M Financial; The Cyan; The Ardea, John Ross, Atwater Place and The Meriwether.

Attention now turns to the 100+ units that remain unsold. Will the auction establish a floor for prices going forward or will Portland’s economic woes continue to erode home values? At $300/SF, Portland’s waterfront still has relative pricing power, albeit lower than expectations at the peek of the market.

Related posts:

1. Atwater Condos On The Chopping Block
2. BREAKING NEWS: Vestas Likely To Pass On South Waterfront HQ
3. Your 400k House That Is Now worth 200k May Not have Been Such A Bad Deal After all