Saddle up, New Yorkers. It’s time for a real estate little ride.
The destination is 29 Downing Street, a 1829 carriage house in the West Village currently listed for sale for $13 million.
The reason for the ride is because while it is rare and fun and unusual to have historic properties on the New York real estate market, the owners of this carriage house have been trying to whip up interest in their 185-year-old building based as much on nostalgia and promise as anything concretely relating to market value.
“29 Downing Street is already the best looking building on the block, call it Moxie’. If this building doesn’t turn into one of New York City’s gems, it won’t be my fault,’’ writes the property’s owner, John Bennett.
Granted, it’s tough to arrive at comparables for such a unique property, especially a 25-foot-wide carriage house built on land once owned by the third U.S. Vice President Aaron Burr that’s now being marketed as a “blank canvas on which to restore or recreate the life of your dreams.”
As you can see, the yarn about this property is a long one. So long, in fact, that Bennett went to the trouble to create an entire website expressly to help inform potential buyers about exactly why he thinks 29 Downing Street is worth $20 million, so therefore a bargain at $13 million.
“I feel the need to inform potential buyers of 29 (Downing) what their potentials really are, both in investment and in life style. I can tell you from my first hand experience what I believe to be possible, but in no way am I an engineer nor an architect, so on that count, I can guarantee not, just believe. You will, in turn, be given an opportunity to bring in your architect to guarantee your choices. I am just giving you the perceptions of a vision,’’ Bennett writes.
That website is different from the new 29 Downing Street website that boasts of the property’s unique qualities. You can never have enough information, it seems.
Actually, a year ago, Bennett listed the 3,500-square-foot property he and his wife have owned since 1977 for $12 million. But this being New York, and Bennett believing this carriage house is a treasure that requires the right buyer who will recognize this incredible chance to own a class of building that no longer exists in New York, he has re-listed the place for $1 million more.
The listing notes make it clear: 29 Downing is special.
“Featured in photo shoots for major magazines and major fashion brands, purchasing this special home means you will be purchasing a property that you cannot find anywhere else in the world. You’ll be purchasing a completely unique piece of art, one of Manhattan’s certified treasures, and in the historic district of one of the world’s most famously sought after neighborhoods.”
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