Howard Michaels, chairman of the Carlton Group

Real estate investment bank the Carlton Group has launched a mobile platform that allows users to bid on properties from their phones, according to Howard Michaels, the company’s chairman. The platform works in conjunction with the company’s auction Web site, Carlton Exchange, which underwent a revamp late last year. The software is the first of its kind in the industry, said Michaels, who hopes that the program will streamline the buying process. “It makes the buying of distressed assets [easier] for the investor,” Michaels said. “It’s a trading platform for investors to meet motivated sellers.” The national mobile system will allow users to not only bid 24 hours a day, but also to access its database of loans and properties. And with billions of real estate loans reaching maturity, Michaels said it’s a good time to make the buying process easier. “We’re the busiest we’ve ever been,” Michaels said. Comments

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Howard Michaels, chairman and CEO of the Carlton Group

With the volatile real estate debt market, now is certainly an interesting time to become further entrenched in the industry — so says Howard Michaels, the chairman and CEO of the Carlton Group, which recently launched the Carlton Exchange Web site where investors can auction off real estate loans. Michaels sat down with the New York Times to discuss his firm’s new site and some of his most memorable deals. Michaels said that, given the current market climate, now is an ideal time to launch the auction Web site. “The banks will get more exposure for their assets, the bidders can go to a central location to see what’s available,” Michaels said. “But it’s not an auction in that it has to be sold right away. It’s more like the Multiple Listing Service you have for homes.”