Up-and-coming California neighborhood has homes up for auction for as low as $100

$100 for a home? Get in line. 

Nearly 1,000 properties in fast-growing Riverside County — one of California’s hottest real estate markets — are heading to auction after owners failed to pay property taxes for at least five years.

Bidding for least 24 of the homes in Lake Elsinore and Wildomar in Riverside County will start at just $100, while the most expensive property on the list, a large commercial site, carries a starting bid of $4.5 million, SFGATE reported.

Riverside — the state’s fourth most populous county and one of its largest by land area — includes destinations like Palm Springs, fast-growing cities such as Menifee and I-10 corridor towns like Beaumont.

The Board of Supervisors approved Bid4Assets.com to handle the online auction in April, a site the county has used for years to offload tax-defaulted properties and recover unpaid taxes. 

A full breakdown of how many of the 946 listings were in the lowest price tiers wasn’t provided, but officials said many other properties will also listed at $100 or $500 — highlighting how steeply some starting prices have been cut.

If homeowners are able to repay the taxes before the auction, their property will be taken off the list of homes being offered.

The lowest-priced properties had their starting bids cut after failing to sell in earlier auctions, according to county officials.

Board Chair Karen Spiegel said the advantage of using an online auction site is that bidders can participate remotely, without having to visit the properties in person.

But some residents were skeptical about taking the auction online.

“Common, everyday people like me, that have to use other people’s Wi-Fi” should have “the option of using other avenues other than an internet bidding war … to regain their property,” Brad Anderson, a resident, said in public comments on the plan, the outlet reported.