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PB Capital Corp. agreed to purchase The Watergate Hotel today for $25 million at foreclosure auction, after submitting the one and only bid (via The Washington Business Journal and Housing Complex). Developer Monument Realty, which had to abandon its plans to renovate the hotel after lending markets collapsed, actually owed $40 million to PB Capital, making the sale something of an indicator of these strange financial times. Monument co-founder Michael Darby was reportedly on hand for the auction, and put on a brave face for the BizJo: "Am I disappointed? In some ways yes, in some ways no. We knew this was happening. I’ve lost a lot of money over time, but that’s part of what we do."
Only Bidder Snags Watergate Hotel for $25 Million
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Instead of pissing away $200 million it doesn't have on a new convention center hotel, the city should just buy the Watergate, call it The Convention Center Hotel, and run 24-hour shuttle service.
Either that or name it the Richard Nixon Tranny Hooker Memorial Luxury Spa and Colon Hydrotherapy Clinic.
I thought I read that the opening bid had to be at least $1M. So why on earth did PB Capital Corp. bid $25M if they submitted the one and only bid? Something doesn't sound right. Maybe I should forget about it and just go back to selling my retarded monkeys on eBay. Excellent Transaction VERY QUICK PAYMENT Great Ebayer A+A+++++
I absolutely agree with you, and think it can be blamed on shitty reporting. I *think* that the $1 million was an earnest money deposit, and that bids opened at $25 million. That makes sense - if $1 million was the opening bid, it would have been theoretically possible(although unlikely) for someone to have bought it at that price.
They used an approach many auction bidders use--a swift slightly high bid cuts the legs out from any competition and prevents bidding wars that can drive the price up. Such a tactic requires quite a bit of knowledge about the competition and the market--what they are willing to pay and also what the value of the object/property is.
If the auction had ended differently, chances are PB would never see the $40 million they are owed. Another owner could easily go through any number of legal hoops including bankruptcy to wipe out the debt.
As it is, with PB paying less than they are owed, they essentially paid nothing, and now own an asset which they can now use to recover the remaining debt.
$25M seems way cheap. Kind of like the guy with the clunker in his hard, "You tow it, it's yours"
Y'know, that place would make a great homeless shelter/methadone clinic/low-security juvenile detention facility. And if someone accidentially locks all the doors and sets fire to the place, well, things burn, don't they? I'd be willing to show up with some smores and my acoustic guitar. Does anyone know the words to "We Built this City?"
Monkey plays the Mamba
Listen to the radio
Don't you remember?
We built this city
We built this city on rock and rolllll
I think "We Didn't Start the Fire" would be a better choice though.
What, no Rush covers?
Monk E. Rotica
Got his high bid through
And the space he now owns
He fills with monkey poo
No, his space is not for rent
To a tax-cheating gent
Or baby-eating malcontent
Or non-profits that misrepresent
Their profits
(Huh. I'm counting syllables and that should track, but the lines sometimes seem a little off. I guess I can't segue from word to word quite as smoothly as Geddy Lee.)
Y'know, that place would make a great homeless shelter/methadone clinic/low-security juvenile detention facility
Indeed, take that *50 grand in tuition paying* GW parents!
You stole my line!!!
Seriously, im surprised GW didn't buy it
Indeed. Would have made a great multi-use building, combining student housing, rehab facilities and date rape treatment and grief counselors...not to mention the law offices that could have opened up in that building to handle all date rape and drug arrests who would build all their defenses on the simplest of premises: Blame Marion Barry.
Plus the chinese food is pretty good there...
As someone who worked there at the end I can honestly say that the residents of the Watergate gate complex deserve nothing less than the above...
If it was not for these old farts with more money and time than common sense there would be a great building there now. They got greedy and in the end got nothing!
Exactly. Recently, even from the sidewalk on Va. Ave., the whole building started to "smell like Nana's house."
God, yes. I was in there years ago and the residential side smelled like Ben Gay and failure. I got trapped in an elevator with a bluehaired dowager. Nice enough lady but, christ, I started having old 930 Club flashbacks; that ripe aroma of stale sweat, B.O., vintage clothes, and rat pee. Don't want to be anywhere near the place when they bring the wrecking ball. That stank probably goes three inches into the cement.