A national real-estate company sold a Northeast El Paso home -- and has deals pending on two others in town -- as the result of a novel Internet auction conducted April 20 to 23.

"I think we got off to a rip-roaring start," said Toni Stewart, vice president of marketing with the Austin real estate company Keller Williams.

The auction of six El Paso homes was conducted on homesbyauction.com, a Web site sponsored by Keller Williams. They ranged from pricey West Side luxury homes to more-modest models in the Northeast and on the East Side.

Altogether, the homes received 55 bids. The only one that sold in the auction was a house at 3401 Nations, Stewart said.

None of the others attracted bids in excess of the "reserve price," the minimum price the seller was willing to accept. That hasn't prevented buyers and sellers from further talk.

"We have two buyers who are definitely interested, changing their bids and working on contracts right now," Stewart said.

Local agents Danny Pivarnick and Steve Hicks of Keller Williams are preparing for a second auction in mid-May.

"Once we get buyers educated to the process, we should do a lot better," Hicks said.

The El Paso auction was Keller Williams' first since test-marketing the system about a month ago in Denton, Texas, Stewart said. There, the company sold eight houses by Internet auction.

"We're now prepared to take the Internet auctions into 40 to 60 U.S. markets. I think our next ones will be in Pennsylvania," she said.

Although there is no charge to buyer or seller associated with the auction, it is controlled so that not just anyone with a PC can submit a bid. A home buyer must make bid through a real-estate agent who is registered with the Web site.

In fact, real-estate agents play a big role in the process. The seller must rely on a Realtor to list the home on the auction site. The seller must also consult with the agent to set aside time when prospective buyers can inspect the house.

Of the 15 El Paso Realtors registered to do business on the site, nine are with the local Keller Williams office.

Patricia Robles of Los Robles Realtors is one of the outside agents registered on the site, but she did not participate in last week's auction.

"I had a call from a client who was interested in the home (at 6640 Grand Ridge) for his sister. He saw an ad in the newspaper and asked that I investigate," Robles said.

Robles registered with the site but did not enter the auction because the house was too small for her clients' needs.

Robles is not convinced Internet sales are the wave of real- estate's future.

"From everything I read, Internet sales are relatively few. Everyone might look at the Internet to explore the options. But the majority of sales are still basically the result of hard work on the part of seller, buyer and Realtors," she said.

Information on homesbyauction.com. however, claims the auction is a valuable tool because it simplifies the negotiation process for both buyer and seller.

"The traditional real-estate transaction lends itself to high emotion. After all, this is a large financial investment for both seller and buyer. It's understandable that each party can bring its fears and apprehensions to the negotiating table," according to the Web site.

"The homesbyauction.com process limits anxiety by simplifying negotiations. In a traditional home sales, you would review an offer on your home, submit a counter-offer to the buyers and go through subsequent negotiations. After you have agreed on the terms of the contract, then you have the property inspected. The results of the inspection might send you and your buyer right back to the negotiating table.

"homesbyauction.com encourages sellers to complete inspections and other processes prior to the auction. As such, prospective buyers have access to copies of inspections, documentation of repairs already completed and other information to help them decide how comfortable they are with purchasing the home.

"This makes for more fact-based negotiation instead of an emotional scene and will put buyers in a better position to make an educated and therefore solid offer."

The Web site urges buyers and their Realtors to monitor the online auction until it ends.

"You will be notified by e-mail if a bid is submitted which replaces your bid as a high bid," the instructions say.

Joe Ramos, whose house at 1629 Charles has been on the market about a year, hopes the Internet auction will attract more attention to it. It will be in the lot being offered in the next El Paso auction in mid-May.

"I think it will increase exposure, because the auction is a new thing. A lot of people will talk about it and get into it," Ramos said.

Ramos likes that auction is controlled by real-estate agents and that buyers must be pre-qualified for mortgages before submitting bids.

"It's not just anyone who can get in there and mess around with the bids. It has to be someone who's serious about buying a home."