Price Drop on Clinton Hill Renovation: 312 Greene Avenue

On the market since 2008, but the price continues to fall, it's the 3-family in Clinton Hill 312 Greene Avenue. Don't get me wrong, I've entertained many a fantasy of waking up in this neighborhood and bearing the long line of hipsters at Choice to enjoy their yummy coffee and bacon/egg/n'cheese on a grilled roll. But is this the place to do it?

When an agent first brought this property to my attention, she told me it was an immaculate renovation, and that I couldn't go see it unless I understood that the $1.5M asking price was absolutely non-negotiable. "Not a penny below $1.5," she told me. This was in the Fall of 2009, mind you. Needless to say, I didn't go see it, because I told her $1.3M's probably the top for this place. Now, here we stand, with the price at $1.3M, and we're probably still looking at an overpriced property. The pictures look nice, but my buddy who went to see it says that's the only nice unit, and that the rest are a very bootleg renovation. The rents, presumably, are there to justify this price. But that's worth taking a closer look too.

Zillow's price history for this property shows its slow slide from $1.65M. A familiar story in the post-2008 crash that left properties like this and 204 Clermont behind. Especially when you consider what our beloved 175 Greene Avenue closed at, this price becomes harder to justify.

Pro's: decently renovated place, decent stretch of Clinton Hill, decent price

Con's: check the renovation, check the rents, check the price

Ideally: if owner didn't want to sell, wouldn't they have taken it off the market long ago? There's probably room around the $1.2M 3-family loan limit to make something happen here, as long as the rest checks out.