By Laura Elder

Judging from e-mails and calls, a lot of people are abuzz about last week’s announcement that international real estate investment and services company Kennedy Wilson would conduct an auction in Houston next month of 27 beach-front condominiums at Palisade Palms on East Beach.

Causing the most buzz is the steep discounts on the units. Starting bids range from $125,000 to $375,000 for units that were previously priced at $299,000 to $1.4 million.

Palisade Palms is among the more successful condo developments on the island, unmarred by long delays.

Developer Falcon Group began building the two towers, which house 288 units, in 2005 at the height of the island’s building boom. Falcon Group was so encouraged by sales that in 2008 it was planning a third East Beach tower.

The third tower revelation came even as condominiums developers across the nation, particularly in glutted markets such as Florida, were taking huge financial hits. For several years now, developers in those glutted markets have been turning to auctions to unload units.

Officials with Falcon Group could not be reached for comment. The auction begins at 1 p.m. on June 6 at The Omni Houston Galleria. For information, visit PalisadePalmsAuction.com.

So, is this a good time to buy a condo?