Long Island land auction that sought to raise $34M sees scant buyer interest

An auction earlier this month at a Hyatt Regency in Hauppauge that saw developer Robert Toussie seek to unload more than 230 residential parcels in Suffolk County and raise a collective $33.5 million was halted due to a lack of buyer interest, Newsday reported. Only about 30 people were present when auctioneer David Constantino of Maltz Auctions began soliciting bids at an event that initially claimed to have 360 registered attendees. An hour into the auction, only two properties had sold, according to Newsday. Properties in the portfolio were located in Babylon, Brookhaven, East Hampton, Huntington, Islip and Southampton. In the end, less than a third of the 124 parcels that first hit the auction block were sold. A second tranche of 112 properties were never bid upon. “You know, auctions are hit or miss,” Toussie told Newsday, admitting he was perplexed by the overall lack of interest. “But this is a learning experience for me, and I’m enjoying it.” Toussie, who now resides in Florida, was once one of the largest private landowners on Long Island. [Newsday]