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Homes in flood-hit neighbourhood sold at auction in High River, Alta.

Feb 17, 2017 | 9:30 PM

HIGH RIVER, Alta. — More than two dozen homes in High River, Alta., have been auctioned off as the provincial government looked to unload some of the property it purchased as part of flood mitigation plans.

Online bidding on the 26 homes deemed salvageable had launched with opening bids of $50 each but a number of the sales surpassed the $100,000 mark.

Auction winners will need to relocate the buildings from the Beachwood Estates neighbourhood where they now sit.

The province purchased 94 homes sitting on a flood plain in the aftermath of the historic flooding that swamped Calgary and much of southern Alberta in 2013.

All of the salvageable homes sold to undisclosed buyers with prices ranging from $28,050 for a 1,775 square foot home to $250,050 for a 2,560 square foot home with an attached garage and deck.

Jodi Dawson with the Town of High River told CTV Calgary that the Beachwood Estates neighbourhood will be cleared out to make room for the river.

Fouad Elkardy of Custom Homes by Aurora visited the area on Friday with plans to bid on several of the residences.

“They’re beautiful houses,” said Elkardy. “They’re big houses. Some of them are easy to move and some of them are going to be a challenge to move.”

Elkardy predicted there would be a disparity in the prices the homes would sell for.

“The low (prices) are for the ones that will be very challenging to move. It will take a lot of work to move them so the price could go from $100,000 to $200,000 to move them because you have to take the house apart.”

Megan Goddard made the drive to Beachwood Estates to check out a possible buy on a home.

“I think we would prefer a bungalow, that’s kind of what we’re looking for, and there were a couple of those but some of the two-storey homes look lovely,” she said.

According to McCann Building Movers, the cost of relocating a house normally falls between $40,000 and $80,000 depending on the size and weight of the home as well as the distance of the move.

(CTV Calgary)

 

Ryan White, CTV Calgary, The Canadian Press