GREENPOINT — Developers of the Locale Condos in Greenpoint, who had decided to try an auction when sales weren’t moving, report that five condos sold at the auction last week in Downtown Brooklyn.
The Nov. 11 auction, conducted by Sheldon Good & Company at the Brooklyn Marriott, was the first such auction in the city in well over a decade, the developer, TreeTop Development, said.
Four of the 16 condos at 267-269 Kingsland Ave. were sold “absolute” (regardless of price) — as promised by TreeTop — and a fifth condo was sold with reserve.
The highest price attained for one of the five was $426,000, according to Adam Mermelstein, general partner at TreeTop.
Following the bidding, a number of buyers made offers on other condominiums, which TreeTop is considering.
“We are very pleased with the results of the Locale auction,” said Mermelstein. “It achieved two of our goals, one was making the offering plan for The Locale effective, since we succeeded in selling the requisite number of units to begin conventional sales; and secondly, focusing buyers on this property.”
Added David Maundrell, president of aptsandlofts.com, who is handling sales, “Even more noteworthy was the extraordinary response to the auction. More than 250 people were in attendance, confirming the continuing demand for high-end luxury residential condos in the city’s most burgeoning borough.”
Curbed.com, which covered the event, reported that, after the five sales, “the developer put the kibosh on the Sheldon Good & Company gaveling but invited private offers of $367,500 for fourth-floor units and $272,000 for all others.”
Curbed also noted that their reporter observed that six bids were made on additional apartments after the end of the auction.
According to Jeffrey Hubbard of Sheldon Good, “Given the enthusiastic response for this first opportunity to acquire newly-built luxury condos at auction in New York City, we anticipate other developers locally and nationwide will be following suit by utilizing the accelerated marketing process of an auction to generate sales and jump-start the sales process which can be very costly for the developer.”
