Parcel 045 103 047 is a 3.76 Acre lot in one of the last subdivisions (“The Bluffs”) done by the Developer (“Big Canoe Company”) in the gated community of Big Canoe, GA. It also has the interesting distinction of being the First Lot Sold in The Bluffs – for an unbelievable price tag of $500,000. The date of the sale was January 24, 2007 – just 5 days after the Developer exercised their powers of annexation in a Supplemental Declaration to the Big Canoe Covenants and Declarations dated January 19, 2007, making the subdivision a part of Big Canoe. Mike Rhodes for Big Canoe Realty signed the Warranty Deed.
The Buyer was a company called AMRO. AMRO had lots of brother & sister companies. AMRO, AMRO DIRT, CARTECAY PROPERTIES, ELLIJAY PARTNERS and many others. I remember these names from the 2009 time frame when I was investigating bank fraud (Pgs 1, 2, 5 in linked story) involving the now defunct Appalachian Community Bank. These companies bought insanely overpriced land, leveraging loans from Appalachian Community Bank, in a property valuation pump scheme. Due to my reporting, and others, that bank was shut down. Working with FBI & FDIC investigators, I turned over years worth of investigatory evidence I had compiled, and this further led to the arrest of 3 of the Top Officers of the Bank. 2 were convicted and sent to federal penitentiary. The 3rd was Tracy Newton, President of the Bank. Tracy was a uniquely treacherous individual who destroyed countless families. Rather than face prison, he took the coward’s path and committed suicide. I have repeatedly said, and will continue to say, that I feel no remorse for him. The stories of people I talked to back then – whose lives he destroyed – are forever etched in my brain. But I digress…. back to the story.
AMRO similarly leveraged Appalachian Bank for an enormous loan to buy Parcel 045-103-047 from the Big Canoe Company. IMMEDIATELY thereafter, using this recent “arm’s length transaction” to set an initial, incredibly high Appraisal Value for lots in this new subdivision….. the Big Canoe Company started selling lots. And sell they did…. within the next 2 months small parcels of dirt were sold for $350,000, $299,900, $284,900, and $249,900. The entire thing was an amazing bit of “coincidental timing”, which we should recap…..
- Property is pulled into the community via supplemental covenant.
- 5 days later they just happen to have a $500,000 buyer (before the property is ever listed for sale in MLS) for a 3+ acre piece of dirt that establishes this incredibly high appraisal point that banks can now use to lend on.
- Lots in this new Bluffs neighborhood immediately start selling at $250 – $350K; while only a few hundred yards away on Ridgeview – established view lots in Big Canoe were selling for only $112 – $119K just 2 months earlier in late 2006. (Reference Ridgeview Parcels 045A-038 & 046B-183)
This was quite a trick! To think that a single Lot Sale of $500,000, financed by a shady bank with a history of pumping property values for developers, could spur such a jump in property values.
But whatever happened to that original Parcel of Land, that started the property value escalation? It was washed clean through series of foreclosure and land swaps – finally landing under the ownership of Pickens County Properties LLC, a subsidiary set up by a bank holding company a little east of Greenwood, SC. Until recently on July 2, 2019 when it was finally sold for $44,000, a 91.2% drop in price from its illustrious peak of $500,000.
Now here is a curious question…… WHY NOW? Why all of a sudden after 12 years was this property suddenly sold for so cheap? It has been sitting there – held by this mysterious S.C. bank holding company for years, never Listed For Sale on the MLS System, and suddenly it is auctioned for a 91.2% loss.
The effect of this lowball sale could now possibly be used to DROP tax valuations on that subdivision land. Interestingly, the Developer is still stuck with 9 undeveloped lots in The Bluffs, valued on the tax rolls at $95,000 – $165,000 each. Lot Sales are currently collapsing, and Homebuilding in Big Canoe is down 51% year over year and getting worse. For a Developer it seems like a perfect time to have a Low Tax Valuation Comp when you are looking at entering a recessionary period, and your primary economic concern switches to lowering your holding cost.
From $500,000 to $44,000 this one Building Lot has played a pivotal role in setting valuations in the neighborhood. It seems that for now…. the high valuation party may be coming to a close.
Property Owners in the Bluffs have suffered the same fate that other Big Canoe Developer Subdivisions have previously suffered since initial sales…. collapsing lot values, and astronomical investment losses. Could the fact that Sales Promotions began in an artificially inflated price environment be the explanation?
PS… on a side note, regarding the Bluffs subdivision, it must be noted that while property valuations were being pumped sky high – the quality of the development was substandard…. the Developer didn’t even spring for high speed internet infrastructure, which 12 years later is a lingering concern for the property owners in that subdivision. Insult to injury it seems.
Next story we will show you how a similar initial property sale (interestingly, also exactly $500,000) primed appraisal values in the Choctaw Subdivision. There is also more on “The Bluffs” coming – a scam of amazing proportions.
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