69-St-James-Place-0909.jpg69 St. James Place, a charming four-story brownstone in Clinton Hill, finally closed yesterday for $1,400,000. Versus the most recent asking price of $1,500,000, this sounds like a pretty standard discount. But the house actually started out on the market in June 2008 with a price tag of $1,995,000, and then suffered death by a thousand price cuts. Unfortunately, it looks like another example of a property (or owner) who was living in the past and couldn’t face reality. If the seller had just come out with an asking price of, say, $1,700,000 at the start of things, chances are the outcome would have been much better.
House of the Day: 69 St. James Place [Brownstoner] GMAP P*Shark


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  1. this was a circumstance of bad timing, bad luck, and a little stubborness. the owner happened to get a great temporary job abroad last summer – he had just purchased a country house and he knew he could get a good price for this gorgeous home and was in no hurry to do so (especially in that a similar place around the corner on busy lafayette with an ok reno had just sold for $1,995,000), but he happened to put it on the market just as the market & economy collapsed – then his position abroad became permanent, so suddenly there was pressure to sell now rather than wait – but because he refused to take some of the lower offers that came in at first he ended up much lower than he could have. 1 family set up and old kitchen/baths notwithstanding, someone got a great home on a great block for a great price.

  2. I haven’t read the previous comments but I must say, the original asking price of $1.9million on St. James in June last year was a bit off the Richter scale. Corcoran seems to like to price properties too high to begin with…and then the properties sit on the market.

    Briefly glancing above I see a lot of arguing back and forth regarding “iffy” this and that. I’m not sure any of these areas discussed are iffy. I would estimate that the naysayers’ perception of a social reality is “iffy”. That’s really the main issue.

    What’s my new tagline?…oh yes!:

    ***Someday bid half off peak taglines***

    There we go!!!

  3. Minard–I know you didn’t say the block was iffy. I was responding to BBB, who was trying to lump you in with himself and say that the block is currently iffy. I am sure that there were some vacant houses some years ago as there were in many places in Clinton Hill.

  4. wait a second guys, i wrote that i have not been by in years and the last time i went by there seemed to be some vacant houses and the like. I did not say the block is iffy now, a lot can happen over the course of a few years. This house looks terrific to me.

  5. Nobody looking at the two blocks could possibly say the block on Vanderbilt is “nicer”. It is noisy, the houses are far less attractive, not to mention the industrial buildings on the East side of the street. The location is better situated for the retail strip on DeKalb so that is why its an equally appealing sales proposition in my mind. But the actual block of St James is FAR prettier and nicer physically. And no I don’t live on the block but in the neighborhood, and clearly I do take umbrage at the neighborhood being called iffy.

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