Thad W. Seligman, president/brokerage with the locally based NAI Horizon tells GlobeSt.com that the ideal customer is one who wants to dispose of a distressed asset, and wants to be assured of a certain date for the disposition. The first auction date will be May 1 of this year, and those who want to participate in the event need to submit their applications by February 28. Though the Phoenix office will be fielding mostly local properties, they'll be shown to a national audience, as will other properties involved in the process.

"My thought is that there will be a lot of properties in this first auction, and it should continue to grow from there," says Seligman, who adds that auctions will take place on a fairly regular basis.

NAI Global unveiled its plans last month for the program. Seligman says all NAI offices have the opportunity to participate, but it's not a requirement. Still, "this is such an advantageous platform for clients who have a need to dispose of properties and, in some cases, a note," Seligman comments. "I don't know of any offices I've spoken with that aren't participating in this."

The program offers three auction models. There is a web-based life auction, in which interested buyers can bid through the Internet and a sealed-bid auction which is more private. Then there is the "sealed-bid-plus," in which sealed bids are accepted, with the top three or four bidders brought to the Internet for a live bidding session. In other words, Seligman notes, something for everyone.

"PowerSale was launched in response to what's going on in the economy, especially among the number of lenders and institutions who have made loans," he comments. "It provides a good platform for the sellers looking for a different way to take a property to market."