Although I’ve been quoted before, I was pretty pleased when a reporter from the New York Times called the other day to ask for details about the auction of 54 units of Riverdale’s Solaria development.
Naturally, I was disappointed when I unearthed the piece, buried as it was in the “New York” section of yesterday’s newspaper, and saw no mention of me. Those are the breaks, I know, from my long experience in journalism and public education.
That said, I was amazed that the publication omitted any sign of skepticism when it reported that 21 of the condos were sold at the Nov. 22 auction. Covering the bases, the reporter quoted the auction company (as I have in previous posts) as if REDC were a reliable source (as I have not). In addition, no mention was made of the abysmally low bids that were made.
There is no way to be certain how many of the 21 buyers failed to obtain mortgages or, more cynically, how many of the winning bids were accepted by the developer, Joseph Korff.
I checked Streeteasy.com and the broker database (OLR) the other day, and the vast majority of the apartments are showing as permanently off the market, which is a fiction. They are not showing either as sold or available.
Some 10 or 12 of the condos appear as active listings, with one of them turning up as recently under contract. Aside from the one under contract, the listings may be the same as those that I vaguely recall prior to the auction. Either way, the listings are undeniably irrelevant.
A reader emailed me last week to say that the individual who answered the telephone at the sales office was “coy” in response to his questions.
If anyone has better information than I do at this moment, I’d love to hear from you and share what you know with other readers.
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Share This PostMalcolm Carter
Licensed Associate Real Estate Broker
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Charles Rutenberg Realty
127 E. 56th Street
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