A trip to a Schlitterbahn water park has been a family ritual for Texans for generations and earlier this year you could have bought a piece of that Americana at auction … if you had a $20 million cashier’s check in your pocket!

In May Schlitterbahn Corpus Christi was purchased by the International Bank of Commerce (IBC) for $20 million in foreclosure. IBC, the only bidder that day, didn’t actually have to fork over a check as the bank was the lien holder.

Upper Padre Partners, LP, original developers of the project located on North Padre Island, failed to make a $16 million payment on the 2015 loan so the property slipped into foreclosure.

The good news for Texas families is the water park not only stays open in the vacation destination area but IBC is spicing things up with the hiring of Wolfgang Ebenbichler in a bid to turn the resort into a world-class culinary stop.

The Austrian has worked his magic at such venues as Caesar’s Entertainment, Grand Opryland, Starwood Resorts, and the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort.

“We are firmly committed to supporting the local fishing and farming community,” Ebenbichler told the Corpus Christi Business News. “I personally believe that the diversity of the Corpus Christi area should be reflected in both our menus and presentation. Our menu will celebrate Corpus Christi’s history and embrace its amazing future.”

Most people that show up at foreclosure auctions in the Houston area are looking for more modest properties though there are eye-popping homes that get to auction such as the River Oaks home, valued at $9.75 million, that went into foreclosure.

The highest bidder could walk away with a 15,000-square foot home complete with an indoor swimming pool, wine cellar and a second catering kitchen.

While the Houston area hasn’t had a Schlitterbahn water park hit the courthouse steps for auction, there have been iconic properties that went into foreclosure such as the First Pasadena State Bank. The 12-story building erected in 1962 was Pasadena’s favorite landmark. Sadly it went to foreclosure in 1990 and, believe it or not, the property has sat empty since then becoming Pasadena’s most famous eyesore.

In June you could also have bid on the Park Towers that included the Edwards Greenway Grand Palace 24 movie theater. The property had just undergone a $16 million renovation in 2017 but was in foreclosure this summer.

If you want to grab a piece of Houston history or a property in Corpus Christi at auction, check out our user-friendly reports and tools at Foreclosure Information & Listing Service.