Some were dressed for business. Others were dressed like they were out for a weekend at the mall. But in the end they were all there for the same purpose — a chance to purchase real estate in Southern California — Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties in particular — at a “bargain” price.

Thanks to aggressive advertising all over the region and ample coverage on local news programs, the Real Estate Disposition Corp. (REDC) drew an estimated 1,800 potential homebuyers and investors to the Los Angeles Convention Center recently in the sort of frenzied buying environment not seen since the boom days of foreclosures of the early 1990s.

In all, 92 properties were auctioned off in around five hours. The source of those properties — various lenders who just wanted to get those foreclosures off of their books.

“Some of these are new REOs. The banks are not putting them on the market with a Realtor first. They are sending them right to auction,” said Rob Friedman, chairman of REDC. “Sellers want to speed up the process.”

This is the first time since the 1990s that Friedman has felt the market is right to bring back his auction company. And the business is growing all the time, as REDC has scheduled auction dates in various parts of the country, not just California.

This auction was the second of three REDC held over two weekends. The first, in San Diego, drew an estimated 1,200 bidders. The day after the Los Angeles auction Friedman took his group to sell properties in Riverside and San Bernardino counties and drew a another crowd of more than 1,000.

For members of RealtyTrac looking for all potential sources to purchase properties at bargain prices, real estate auctions are a possibility. And RealtyTrac members also have the advantage of finding these properties earlier in the foreclosure process, when they have the opportunity to work out a deal without having to compete directly with hundreds of other bidders.

As was quite evident at the Los Angeles auction, deep discounts are not available across the board at REO auctions. Many buyers were glad to have the winning bid even if it meant saving only $10,000 to $50,000 on REDC’s “previously valued at” number. More seasoned investors were sitting on their hands, waiting for the right time and the right property to come along where the discount was steep enough to make the investment a worthy one.

A veteran of all types of auctions over the years — real estate, cars, furniture, etc. — Friedman stressed the importance of careful homework prior to an auction. That homework includes inspecting the property of interest, reading over all the legal documentation (provided on the REDC website ahead of time), and coming prepared with the price you’re comfortable with paying for that property. Don’t get emotionally attached to any one property, Friedman cautioned. Sometimes you have to attend a number of auctions to find that one good deal.