Is 14th Street cursed? Probably not, but that hasn't stopped most Curbed commenters from trashing any new development on the traffic-choked artery, and units in those new developments from lingering on the market awfully long. But the times they are a-changin'. 14 West 14th Street (right) debuted on the market with a big hurdle to overcome: The developer decided to sell only about a third of the units, making financing for buyers impossible ... until a lender was found. Prices were cut, and now a tipster writes, "It looks like 11 of their 12 listings are already in contract. I guess all the talk about this place being poorly located next to the welfare office was just talk. I am a little surprised. Did people finally decide that this part of 14th is a nice place to live?" We asked ninja-like 14w14 broker Rob Gross to give us an update on the building:
Due to an overwhelming positive response from buyers and brokers, we exceeded the sponsor’s original mandate of only selling 8 out of 30 units and now have 11 deals fully signed and another contract out on one of the Penthouse Units. The combination of dropping prices to approximately $1000psf for most units, finding a bank with competitive rates that would lend on the project, and offering really beautiful and efficiently designed units made this project a resounding success. Lately, as the market has stabilized, we have received offers above asking price and demand has far outstripped supply. The developers have opted to take the remaining units off the market for now and retain them. I am confident that if we were to release all the units at current pricing, we could sell out the building in record time.So is 14th Street finally getting some love? Longtime albatross The Prime recently sold out, and as The Real Deal reports in its State of 14th Street Address, old friend Loft 14 has seen a surge in sales as well. The not-so-secret ingredient in all these cases? Price cuts. Or maybe not? The Prime's fourth broker told TRD she broke the curse using other means:"I changed the light wood [flooring] to a very dark wood, almost black," said Miller. She also brought in all-new furniture and redesigned the Web site using new photographs of the units. "And then we adjusted pricing. I didn't think [pricing] was the key, though it helped."So yeah, the building's sales were either driven by 25% price cuts or, um, dark wood.
· Goodbye all-cash, hello financing [Real Deal]
· 14 West 14th Street coverage [Curbed]
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