Another Secret Riverside Deal?

177 Riverside Avenue, rumored to be sold to a builder. True, not true, we'll find out soon.

177 Riverside Avenue, rumored to be sold to a builder. True, not true, we’ll find out soon.

This is pure rumor, but I’ve now heard it from multiple sources, so maybe it’s actually true; the former “Hatch” property at 177 Riverside Avenue has been sold, apparently to a builder. How much? I’d guess around $3.6M * for this 1.71 acres in the R-20 zone.

It comes with a vintage 1804 house, but, with a lot-size more than 3 1/2 times the required minimum size, that house will soon be placed into a (considerably younger) dumpster. Broker involvement also rumored…

Here’s what the tax card reveals about 177 Riverside Avenue (all publicly available information):

CRS Data Property Report for 177 Riverside Ave, Riverside, CT 06878-2212-2

* Let’s hope they got more than my guess, because I’ve deliberately estimated low…

 

Secret Riverside Deals

42 Gilliam Lane. When I was a kid, this was American Brands chairman, Robert Heiman's house. Now destined for the srcap heap.

42 Gilliam Lane, $3.760M. When I was a kid, this was our next door neighbor,  American Brands chairman, Robert Heiman’s house. Now destined for the scrap heap.

74 Club Road has just closed at $6,575,000.

74 Club Road has just closed at $6,575,000.

95 Club Road, reportedly fetching $6.75M+. This was the Steiger's house when I was a wee lad...

95 Club Road, reportedly fetching $6.75M+. This was the Steiger’s house when I was a wee lad…

I don’t mind direct deals as long as the seller’s getting a really good price. Here’s my breakdown on these sales:

(Keep in mind, these are all “land sales”, since it’s highly unlikely any of the existing buildings will be saved.)

42 Gilliam Lane: $3,760,000, 1.42 acres in the R-20 zone. This appears to be a true direct deal with no broker involvement, bought by a nearby Riverside neighbor. Its 1.42 acre size (part of which was purchased from the Fountain family in the 1980’s) makes it about 3.09 times the size of the legally required minimum lot size, so by my estimation, the property is worth around $4,500,000. The seller avoided a $188,000 commission, that’s good! But he left $552,000 on the table, that’s bad. Interestingly, the previous owner did pretty much the same thing, back in the 1990’s.

74 Club Road: $6,565,000, 2.2 acres in the R-1 zone. This one was also bought by a (very persistent) nearby neighbor, who began writing letters to the owners around six years ago. That diligence paid off, but the sellers were wise enough to bring in a bunch of brokers for selling price advice, so they didn’t get hosed badly. Could it have fetched more on the MLS? In light of recent sales, I would say yes, substantially more, but they did ok.

95 Club Road: $6,750,000 (reportedly), .97 acres in the R-1 zone, waterfront, almost entirely in the flood-zone. This “direct” deal actually had multiple bids, and there was plenty of broker involvement, but as far as I’ve learned, the buyers were to pay any broker’s commission. If that’s true, I’m especially impressed with these sellers because, at this price,there was no money left on the table.