The bids go on for Eaton Ferry Marina

Turn-about is fair play it seems, at least when it comes to foreclosure bidding.

Richard Courser, owner of Stonehouse Timberlodge in Littleton, placed another bid in the ongoing foreclosure sale auction being held to dispose of Eaton Ferry Marina.

His bid, $3,108,000, was filed with the Clerk of Superior Court in Warren County on Sept. 27, the last day such an upset bid could be filed, trumping a $2.96 million bid placed on the property by Morningstar Group Inc.

Courser was the man who originally walked away from the public sale auction held on the Warren County courthouse steps Sept. 5, when his bid of $2.7 million topped all other bidders at the sale.

His Sept. 5 offer was the fifth, and final, bid placed on the property that day. He had opened the bidding with a $500,000 offer, but that quickly escalated when another bidder offered $1 million.

BB&T offered $2.4 million, Courser countered with $2.5, BB&T topped that with a $2.6 million bid, then Courser placed the final offer at $2.7 million.

Under federal bankruptcy law, any other bidder had ten days form the date of the sale to visit the courthouse and place another bid, provided the new offer was at least 5 percent greater than the standing one.

On Monday, Sept. 17, the final day of the open bidding period, Attorney William O. White Jr., of Wellman, White & Wilson, LLP, of Roanoke Rapids, placed a $2.96 million bid.

With that action, a new ten-day open bid period began, and on the final day of that period Courser upped the ante with his new offer.

Morningstar, or any other person or agency, now has the option to place another upset bid. The deadline for such action is Oct. 8.

The sale is part of the Chapter 11 Bankruptcy proceeding filed in court in January 2006 on behalf of Eaton Ferry Sales and Service, Duane White Land Co. and Ronald Duane White.

According to William White, no relation to Duane White, the land and buildings there had two liens place on them, one to BB&T for $465,000 and one for $1.4 million to Wachovia, at the time of the sale.