Winning bid $4.75M
The foreclosure auction for White Oak Development ended with a $4,750,000 bid placed by Overmountain Trace Holdings, LLC.
The final bid was placed on Feb. 27, with no further upset bids made by the required date of March 8.
The 941.93-acre subdivision located in the Green Creek Township was sold at auction on Feb. 1. Tryon Equestrian Properties LLC placed the sole bid of $3,675,130.34. Within the first 10-day upset bid process, Overmountain Trace Holdings placed a bid of $3,858,886.86, which was upset by Tryon Equestrian Properties at $4,500,000 prior to Overmountain’s final bid of $4,750,000.
Overmountain Trace Holdings was created as a limited liability company on Feb. 8, according to the N.C. Department of the Secretary of State. No officers are named, but the principal office is given as that of attorney Lora Baker, located at Feagan Law Offices in Columbus.
Feagan also represented White Oak Development Partners LLC, which originally developed the property.
Roger Smith represents Tryon Equestrian Properties LLC, which was named as the mortgagee/secured party.
White Oak Golf and Equestrian Community was originally developed by Irish partners Gene Kinsella, Austin MacHale and Leonard Kinsella.
The development includes a golf course designed by Arnold Palmer, with nine holes completed so far. The developers also had plans for an equestrian center.
The foreclosure was done on a $3.2 million loan White Oak secured in order to pay for sewer lines to the development from the City of Rutherfordton, according to Justin Kinsella, representing White Oak Development Partners. In an email from Feb. 19, Kinsella said the loan was acquired in 2008 after the partners had expended approximately $40 million of their own money on the development of the property.
Kinsella said during the auction process that White Oak has paid significant money in taxes to Polk County and a majority of the costs of a water line to the development that Polk County owns, as well as to Rutherfordton, which owns the sewer line.
Overmountain Trace Holdings will have to pay Polk County approximately $104,000 for the property taxes owed for the development before the deed to the property will be transferred. Before water service from Polk County will be provided to the development, a balance of $141,260 will also have to be paid to Polk County for the water line.
White Oak has paid the county more than $243,000 for the water line. Developers still owed more than $115,000 when the county sued and a judge ordered developers to pay $141,260, including interest.
A recent email to Kinsella asking if the original White Oak partners are associated with Overmountain Trace Holdings had not been returned by press time.
Baker was also not available as of press time for comment.