down a million bucks, now pitching at a pre-2005 $625/ftaa

a little limbo action?
There’s a rather large Manhattan loft for sale at a new price that is $1mm less than the original asking price. When it came to market last Summer (happy birthday wishes are now in order) a smaller loft in the building had just cleared at about $850/ft. That one had been completely re-done; the market survivor has some restored classic loft features and (the obligatory) chef’s kitchen, but may not be quite up to the level of finishes of the one that sold 15 months ago.

The survivor has now had 4 price drops, the last (and smallest) coming after it took a few months off the market. Consistent with the overall size, the master suite is massive, while the 2d bedroom is equal to many "apartment" masters. The layout strikes me as a bit odd, as if adapted over time to changing needs. (The "dining room" is curiously remote from the kitchen, for example.)

I have a hunch that many potential buyers see a need to remodel, hence the market resistance leading to four price drops totalling seven figures, and a current ask of $625/ft. That $625/ft is lower than the price-per-foot of the only two lofts in this building that sold in 2005.

blame it on the neighbors (wrong, but feels good?)
Sellers must be frustrated. In the cold light of retrospect, they wasted a Summer, then a Fall, then a Winter at a series of wrong prices. (Perhaps they were distracted by the neighbors getting out at $850/ft just before they started their marketing journey ….) There may be more activity in the current market than during the First Quarter, but I don’t see the latest 4% price drop materially changing anyone’s approach to this listing. Tick, tick, tick …

© Sandy Mattingly 2009