Novelist Robert Rosenblum and his wife have lived in the red-brick townhouse at 225 West 11th Street for 24 years, and now that they feel it's time to move on, they're having a little trouble letting go. They want to see the house where their children were raised fall into the hands of someone who will do the same. They also want that person to be an artist, or maybe a community leader like Barack Obama. And they don't want any major changes or gut renovations, and they would prefer the buyer not sell the house for at least 15 years. And oh, by the way, the asking price is $8.35 million, which is nearly nine times what they paid for it. A bit demanding? Hey, if our historic Village townhouse possessed the rare front and rear garden combination, we'd go on a power trip, too!
"My idea is to find someone who deserves the house and can feel what is here," Rosenblum tells the Times, and we wonder if that applies to renters as well, because the house's owner's triplex was seeking nearly $12,000 per month earlier this year. Is this discrimination? "There's no age, occupation, religion or race that would disqualify anybody from being a potential buyer for our house," Rosenblum's wife, Constance Simo, said. "It just has to do with their intention." Ha! They admit it. They're intentists!
The couple paid $985,000 for the house back in 1986, and they've already turned down prospective buyers that hinted at flipping the house and replacing the rear facade with glass. What's crazier, the list of buyer demands, or the fact that the Village probably has enough townhouse-hungry millionaire activist artists to lead to a bidding war?
· Wanted: Buyers Who Are a Lot Like the Sellers [NYT]
· Listing: 225 West 11th Street [CORE]
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