Vick Dogfighting Mansion Fails to Sell at Auction

Fox News ^ | December 16, 2007

[Zakeet]

SURRY, Va. — Maybe it was the inescapable mind's-eye visions of the brutality inflicted on dogs in the rugged wooded area behind the fence. Or maybe it was the glare of the media spotlight.

Something kept Michael Vick's former dogfighting headquarters from selling at auction Saturday, disappointing a real estate developer who has about $500,000 tied up in the place.

"I didn't see the people in the crowd I thought we needed," Wilbur Ray Todd Jr. said after rejecting the only serious bid — $747,000, the property's assessed value for real estate tax purposes.

Todd said he thought the 15-acre country estate in rural southeastern Virginia was worth at least $1 million, even without "the celebrity factor." He now plans to list the house for a more conventional sale.

Facing financial ruin, Vick sold the property to Todd for the bargain price of $450,000. The disgraced NFL star has lost millions in endorsement deals and will lose the final $71 million of his Falcons contract. He also might have to repay the team nearly $20 million, and he's being sued by three banks for allegedly defaulting on nearly $6 million in loans.

[Snip]

Todd spent about $50,000 sprucing up the place, which had been trashed by burglars and looters. People arriving for the auction noticed the most recent addition: a front-yard flag pole, with a Falcons flag rippling in the cold wind.

"It was the finishing touch," Todd said.

A container for donations to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was placed at the front of the driveway, and a small concession stand offered burgers, hot dogs and drinks, with proceeds going to the SPCA.

[Zakeet]

If he can't do better in a conventional sale, Todd said, he has other ideas for the property.

"We've talked about a bed-and-breakfast," he said. "All the bedrooms have their own bathroom, and we could incorporate the kennels in the back: Bring your pet."

[Always Right]

So he paid $450K for it and rejected a bid of nearly $750K??? He obviously got the property at a good price, but is being a bit greedy.

[randog]

Yeah, but he dumped 1/2 million into it, so he needs a million+ to break even.

[muawiyah]

LOL.

[Always Right]

That isn’t what the article said. It says he has $500K tied up.

[freedomlover]

he dumped half a 100,000 into it as I read the story

[bcsco]

Yeah, but he dumped 1/2 million into it, so he needs a million+ to break even.

That's not how I read it. The story says he has about $500 thousand invested; the original $450 + another $50K he spent to fix it up. That's the $500K they say he has in it.

[randog]

Oops, you’re right—500K total. My bad.

[Caipirabob]

The whole situation is sad and disgusting. A man makes a miracle deal due to his God-given athletic ability. Finds himself earning mega millions, enough to lift his whole family and all of his friends out of poverty. Then he goes and brutally tortures animals risking all of it while entertaining his thug cohorts from "da hood". Finally he destroys himself by committing the felony of lying to the Feds even after he knows he's busted. His former "friends" trip over themselves to provide evidence against him.

Suddenly it's all gone. All of it and the only light he sees is filtered by steel bars. The only comfort he has is his soon to arrive cell-mate, who the guards tell him is named "Orenthal"...

Tragic.

[sirchtruth]

...but is being a bit greedy.

Ya, think! I think the place will never sale for more than the taxed assesed value. Todd let the best oppotunity slip right through his hands.

[a real Sheila]

why does he need a million+ to break even on a $500K investment?

[rawhide]

Todd said later that the $250,000 profit he would have made simply wasn't enough. "By the time you pay a commission and taxes, it gets eaten up real quick," he said. If he can't do better in a conventional sale, Todd said, he has other ideas for the property. "We've talked about a bed-and-breakfast," he said. "All the bedrooms have their own bathroom, and we could incorporate the kennels in the back: Bring your pet."

He is a little bit greedy I say.

[a real Sheila]

I also don’t understand why he needed to take out $6 mil in loans when earning the kind of money he was earning.

[JEC]

Excellent writing. You’ve made my day.

[randog]

He probably took the loans before he had the money. The banks loaned him the money based on his NFL contracts (future earnings) and ended up getting burned.

[Welsh Rabbit]

The disgraced NFL star has lost millions in endorsement deals and will lose the final $71 million of his Falcons contract. He also might have to repay the team nearly $20 million, and he's being sued by three banks for allegedly defaulting on nearly $6 million in loans.

I knew his financial situation was a bit bleak now, but I didn't know it was this dire. He and his brother both really blew it by sticking with the ghetto culture when there was no longer any reason to. Sad, but it was entirely their own doing.

[Ditter]

A mansion on 15 acres should bring a million dollars unless it is so incredibly tacky that it would have to be completely redone. That could cost another million right there.

[Mr Ramsbotham]

Why not open a whore house?

[Welsh Rabbit]

unless it is so incredibly tacky that it would have to be completely redone

There's a pretty good possibility. I have no idea what the place looks like, but I'm pretty sure the decorating tastes of Vick and his boyz are not compatible with anyone in the market for a mansion on an estate.

[CPOSharky]

This is terrible. Let’s get a congressional bailout for the poor developer and the banks that loaned vick money. Oh, and throw some money at the Falcons also for losses on their contract. /S