MINOT, ND—Thousands of oil workers now make their home in the once desolate land of western North Dakota, and with many more thousands set to join them in the next few years, development opportunities have also increased. And on December 17th, the New York-based Sheldon Good & Co., a real estate auctioneer, will hold an auction for Egan Crest, a site located at 6252 Highway 2 between Williston and Minot. It has more than 70 acres, a 30-unit employee housing facility and enough infrastructure to support the immediate construction of 88 additional units.

Geologists tout this region, known as the Bakken, as the next Saudi Arabia. The United States Geological Survey estimated on April 30 that the region had 7.4 billion barrels of oil recoverable through hydraulic fracturing of the underground shale formations, a 27-year supply at the current rate of production, and about double what the agency estimated in 2008. Thousands of wells have already been drilled and as the fracturing, or “fracking,” technology improves, the amount of recoverable oil will probably increase.

This is SGC's second auction in the Bakken region this year. In July, the company auctioned off a 30.9-acre site in Watford City named Bakken Residence Suites, a high-end employee housing rental facility with 91 units that sold for $9 million.

“The owners in both cases understand that real estate auctions present an optimal sales method that maximizes the price and establishes true market value,” says John Cuticelli, CEO of SGC. “The flexible expansion plan at Egan Crest makes it an ideal investment opportunity. This is an area ripe for development thanks to the ongoing oil and natural gas boom in the region.”

Located 45 minutes west of Minot, about $7 million in start-up and infrastructure costs has already been invested in Egan Crest. All the existing units have full kitchens, furniture, three-quarter baths, two private bedrooms with full-size beds, flat screen televisions with satellite service, wireless Internet, side parking and security service.

Federal Reserve officials anticipate that the region will add 7,000 to 10,000 more jobs per year. In addition, the region currently has 17,000 unfilled jobs.

The purchase of a Bidder's Information Packet is a requirement in order to register and submit an offer. Bids must be delivered to SGC's main office at 488 Madison Avenue, Suite 201, New York, New York, 10022, by 5pm EST on Dec. 17th.

Instant Insights /

Properties Up for Auction in Fracking Region

Related Stories

Recommended For You