eating crow while getting reamed / Chelsea loft goes to 30% off

oh, to be a fly on the wall
Imagine, if you will, the following hypothetical dialogue:

Owner: "I’d love to sell, what do you think we can get?"
Agent: "If we start at $1,750/ft we should get a good deal"
O: "Wow! That would be terrific, since we paid $1,200/ft two years ago. Who else has gotten that price in the building?"
A: "Actually, no one. The two now in contract are under $1,000/ft and at about $1,150/ft. The one sale last year was just under $1,000/ft, but remember — you paid $1,200/ft the year before that!"
O: (to self) "WTF?" (to Agent) "well … if you really think we might get that …"
A: "oh yes, we definitely might get that. You gotta think big in this market"

6 weeks later
A: "our price does not seem to be working"
O: (to self) "d’oh!" (to agent) "ummm, yeah … what do you suggest?"
A: "I suggest bold action! Let’s drop the price somewhere in the range of 15-20%!!"
O: "(gulp) if you think that will do it …"
A: "are you kidding? that’s a huge drop"
O: (to self) "d’oh" (to agent) "ummm, OK"

4 weeks later
O: "haven’t heard from you in a while … how’s that bold action going?"
A: "(gulp) not so well … no offers. Yet. But …"
O: "But nothing. We’ll never sell at this rate. I am taking it off the market"
A: "but …" [click]

4 months later
A: "you know, we really can sell your loft if we price it for today’s market"
O: (to self) "d’oh!" (to agent) "ummm, yeah … what do you suggest?"
A: "I suggest bold action! Let’s drop the price somewhere in the range of 15-20%!!"
O: (to self) "d’oh!" (to agent) "ummm, didn’t we already do that?"
A: "yes, but it didn’t work then. You gotta think big in this market"
O: "ummm, that’s less than I paid for it … but, OK, if you think that will do it"

[to be continued …]

hypothetically, on the other hand
Though the facts about the listing history above are true, there is — of course — no way to know what the actual dialogue was between Owner and Agent. Perhaps the Owner insisted on the way-way-too-high starting point with the Agent accepting grudgingly and only on the condition of a large price drop in 30 days if necessary. The fact that the Owner has stuck with the same agent after 4 months off the market suggests the Owner does not hold it against the Agent. But somebody here must be eating some very large crow at this point.

strange times, indeed
While I have seen price drops of this magnitude in this market, I don’t recall any with quite the trajectory of this one. This loft essentially self-nominates (and wins!) the Manhattan Loft Guy too pushy …? thread. (In case you are wondering, the Owner bought the loft when it was claimed to be in triple mint condition and I see no significant difference in condition, in comparing the past and present listing descriptions, so this is not a case of someone over-valuing a renovation.) Stay tuned….

© Sandy Mattingly 2009