It's time to make up a bunch of awards and hand them out to the most deserving people, places and things in the worlds of Hamptons real estate, architecture, and dining. That's right, it's time for the Second Annual Curbed Awards! Today's topic: 2012's Biggest Discounts
Initial Asking Price: $40,000,000
Sold For: $13,750,000
After inexplicably thinking this 2.2 acre Water Mill property would fetch anywhere close to $40M, reality came calling for former Doubleday Publishing CEO John Sargent to the tune of a $26.25M discount. The February transaction earns the dubious distinction of being this year's most discounted sale. [LINK]
Initial Asking Price: $40,000,000
Sold For: $24,650,000
Never one to bite his tongue, Jerry Della Femina placed the blame for this $15.35M discounted sale squarely on President Obama's class warfare stoking economic policies. It had absolutely nothing to do with the residence being outdated and overpriced. Nothing at all. [LINK]
Initial Asking Price: $18,500,000
Sold For: $8,750,000
After languishing on the market for close to five depressing years, 24 Ocean Avenue finally changed hands earlier this month. The almost-$10M discount provided Curbed commenters with yet another opportunity to call out area brokers' (and Dan's Papers, oddly) sometimes questionable pricing strategies. [LINK]
Initial Asking Price: $18,500,000
Sold For: $8,500,000
In what was most likely a land deal, the former Wainscott home of the late Stuyvesant Wainwright II (a US Congressman) traded for $10M less than its initial asking price. Considering the home boasts almost five acres and 600 feet of frontage on Georgica Pond, we think the buyer didn't pretty well on this one. [LINK]
Initial Asking Price: $17,900,000
Sold For: $11,000,000
At first glance, the $6.9M Tory Burch was forced to cut from her Meadow Lane estate in order to find a buyer doesn't seem that odd for the area. However, the stinging starts once you remember that the designer originally purchased the place from her ex husband for $22.5M. Ouch. [LINK]
Initial Asking Price: $12,000,000
Sold For: $5,760,000
While almost everyone agrees that the initial $12M asking price on former Real Housewife Kelly Bensimon's Further Lane home could only have been a plea for attention, we've got to give the reality star some credit. Instead of letting the place languish for years, she chopped the price three times in order to land a buyer. [LINK]
Initial Asking Price: $14,500,000
Sold For: $7,000,000
A gorgeous design and stunning views weren't enough entice to a buyer for 88 Surfside Drive when it hit the market over two years ago. It was only after pricechop #5 (and another $1.95M discount) that the home changed hands last April. [LINK]
Initial Asking Price: $12,000,000
Sold For: $6,000,000
At one point, this four-bedroom listing was one of Amagansett's priciest...but what a difference 3 years makes in the world of Hamptons home prices. The seller was forced to shave off 6$M in order to make a deal on 5 Beach Plum Court. Meanwhile, its next door neighbor is still waiting for its invitation to the big dance. [LINK]
Initial Asking Price: $57,000,000
Sold For: $25,000,000
For a while, it was looking like this exchange was going to unseat Marc Rowan from atop the list of biggest sales for 2012...but it was not meant to be. When the 14.6 acre Wainscott property finally closed, it was revealed the sellers settled for a still impressive $25M. [LINK]