Forte only 37 percent sold out after two years

After attempts to market units in bulk failed at the Forte tower at 230 Ashland Place in Downtown Brooklyn, Manhattan-based developer the Clarett Group and partner Goldman Sachs are in the process of negotiating with the project’s construction lender to transfer control to the lender. The 108-unit, 30-story condominium development is still only 37 percent sold despite being on the market for two years and German-based Eurohypo Bank, which holds $41 million in debt on the tower, is exploring its options. Sales in Downtown Brooklyn dropped 42.8 percent during the second quarter from the same time last year, according to a recent Prudential Douglas Elliman market report. And although units at Forte will remain for sale, sources say investors are likely to be unwilling to pay more than $350 per square foot for the units, which previously sold for an average of $681 per square foot. [Crain’s]