The now somewhat famous Clock Tower triplex apartment by developer David Walentas at 1 Main Street in Dumbo is cutting its asking price to $19 million after struggling to find a buyer since 2009.
The three-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bathroom penthouse, which first hit the market in 2009 for $25 million, more than twice the highest amount ever paid for a Brooklyn home, is dropping its price to $19 million following an earlier price cut to $23.5 million in April 2011, Asher Abehsera, managing director of residential properties for Two Trees Management, told The Real Deal. The listing will come online with its new price tag later today.
The cut in asking price comes after a high-profile fall season for the property, which was chosen as Esquire magazine’s bachelor pad and played host to various celebrity and charity events towards the end of last year.
“The Esquire events definitely brought a lot of interest to the property,” Abehsera said, though no one has committed to buying just yet. “We’ve showcased [the apartment] to the world, it’s been out there and we’ve had some excellent press.”
Abehsera said Two Trees had decided to drop the price to widen its net of potential buyers. The move to $19 million wasn’t methodical he said; it rather appealed to the psychology of buyers.
“It’s under $20 million,” he said, “so it opens up a new market potentially. Once you get above $20 million in ask, most people won’t even look. At the end of the day everything comes down to price at some point. People are intimidated to ask what you might accept and we want to get more people into the property.”
Abehsera declined to comment on how long he would let the asking price fall, saying simply “no further than what it’s worth.”
In marketing the apartment, brokers Sabrina Kleier Morgenstern, mother Michele Kleier, and sister, Samantha Kleier Forbes of Gumley Haft Kleier, may aim to capitalize on the new tech status of the surrounding neighborhood, Dumbo.
“A gentleman already came from Silicon Valley [to look at the apartment,]” he said. “He was probably one of the most successful people in the industry.”
Michele Kleier added that the apartment had already seen interest from multiple celebrities.
“All it takes is for one person to fall in love with it,” she said. “Lots of people have fallen in love with it already but just haven’t been able to afford it. It’s a new year, a new price and hopefully a new deal.”
The Clock Tower, originally a factory built in 1914, was remodeled into luxury condominiums by Walentas’ Two Trees Management. The 7,000 square-foot penthouse features a 14-foot-high glass clock face on each wall of the main living area, 16- to 50-foot ceilings, and an interior private glass elevator.