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Beached Whales in Greater Boston

By Tom Acitelli
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By Tom Acitelli

Whales, like people, can sometimes get a little too ambitious, a little too inflated, and find themselves flailing for dear life on the shallow shores of fate. These are such whales (we're talking real estate whales, by the way; we would never make light of actual beached whales—tragic). They are recent Hub listings that either started out swollen or swelled in time, only to have the market's invisible hand plunge a pin in their bubbled asking prices.

These addresses have housed noted names like William Weld, Deval Patrick and Tom Brady (and Gisele Bundchen). And, we should note, some of them have happy endings, with the enwombing water of the market spiriting them back to relative safety. 'Tis the way of things in the Hub's higher-end market, after all, to chop your price before a still-hefty sale.


· Boston's Luxury Market: Hold the Champagne, Grab the Cava? [Curbed Boston]
· Our Whale Week 2013 archive [Curbed Boston]

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Eater maps are curated by editors and aim to reflect a diversity of neighborhoods, cuisines, and prices. Learn more about our editorial process.

46 Appleton Street

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The 5-BR, 3.5-BA townhouse with 3,500 square feet and pumpkin-plank floors dating from 1868 has been chopping its price steadily since November 2010. The listing began life at $4,460,000 and is now down to a reasonable $3,495,000.

46 Appleton Street, Boston, MA

21-23 Marlborough Street

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The grandiloquent duplex was listed for $5,900,000 in November 2011, but its price dropped more than $1 million to $4,800,000 by the time it sold in June 2012 (including a $400K one-off knock-off in March of that year).

21-23 Marlborough Street, Boston, MA

324 Warren Street

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This 5-BR, 5-BA, 5,500-square-foot manse in Brookline actually ended up selling for $900,000 less than it sold for in June 2005, trading in June 2012 for $2,900,000.

324 Warren Street, Brookline, MA

310 Beacon Street, #4

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Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen once asked as much as $10,900,000 for their 5,311-square-foot penthouse. They eventually settled for a mere $9,200,000.

310 Beacon Street, Boston, MA

Mandarin Oriental, #W11-B

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This 6,111-square-foot, 3-BR, 6-BA condo traded in February 2012 for $10,300,000, after asking as much as $12,500,000.

776 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116

15 Commonwealth Avenue

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It took more than 1,000 days for this 10-BR, 15,000-square-foot mansion to sell (in April 2012), its tag sliding along the way from a gobsmacking $20,000,000 to $12,500,000.

15 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA

Arthur Astor Carey House

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The 8-BR, 4.5-BA, 6,755-square-foot former home of William Weld when he was governor is down to $3,800,000 from an original September asking of $5,500,000.

28 Fayerweather Street, Cambridge, MA

"Governor's Mansion"

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Governor Deval Patrick and wife Diane listed this 6,880-square-foot Milton manse in June 2009 for $1,925,000. It went back on the market less than two months ago for $1,500,000.

75 Hinckley Road, Milton, MA

10 Marlborough Street

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Regular reads know we adore this townhouse with its 33.5 feet of frontage; 10 bedrooms; nine bathrooms; and elegant finishes dating from the tail end of the (last) Gilded Age. It’s tag, though, keeps dropping, sometimes by as much as $1M at a time, and now rests at $11,750,000 after more than 500 days on the market.

10 Marlborough Street, Boston, MA

Ames-Webster Mansion

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A deal for the 26,000-square-foot, 50-room, 28-fireplace palace is supposed to close in March, and may very well make it a private residence (it’s commercial now) and may very well then set a Boston home-sales record. It certainly took a while: more than 1,000 days. The mansion was once listed for as much as $23,000,000, but ended its time on the market asking $18,000,000.

306 Dartmouth Street, Boston, MA

Albert A. Pope Penthouse

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This 3-BR, 2.5-BA, 3,500-square-foot spread splashed onto the market in July 2011 for $7,200,000 (it had last traded way back in 1997). Its price has dropped to $5,900,000, often by leaps and bounds: twice by $500,000, once by $300,000.

219-223 Columbus Avenue, Boston, MA
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46 Appleton Street

46 Appleton Street, Boston, MA

The 5-BR, 3.5-BA townhouse with 3,500 square feet and pumpkin-plank floors dating from 1868 has been chopping its price steadily since November 2010. The listing began life at $4,460,000 and is now down to a reasonable $3,495,000.

46 Appleton Street, Boston, MA

21-23 Marlborough Street

21-23 Marlborough Street, Boston, MA

The grandiloquent duplex was listed for $5,900,000 in November 2011, but its price dropped more than $1 million to $4,800,000 by the time it sold in June 2012 (including a $400K one-off knock-off in March of that year).

21-23 Marlborough Street, Boston, MA

324 Warren Street

324 Warren Street, Brookline, MA

This 5-BR, 5-BA, 5,500-square-foot manse in Brookline actually ended up selling for $900,000 less than it sold for in June 2005, trading in June 2012 for $2,900,000.

324 Warren Street, Brookline, MA

310 Beacon Street, #4

310 Beacon Street, Boston, MA

Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen once asked as much as $10,900,000 for their 5,311-square-foot penthouse. They eventually settled for a mere $9,200,000.

310 Beacon Street, Boston, MA

Mandarin Oriental, #W11-B

776 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116

This 6,111-square-foot, 3-BR, 6-BA condo traded in February 2012 for $10,300,000, after asking as much as $12,500,000.

776 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116

15 Commonwealth Avenue

15 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA

It took more than 1,000 days for this 10-BR, 15,000-square-foot mansion to sell (in April 2012), its tag sliding along the way from a gobsmacking $20,000,000 to $12,500,000.

15 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA

Arthur Astor Carey House

28 Fayerweather Street, Cambridge, MA

The 8-BR, 4.5-BA, 6,755-square-foot former home of William Weld when he was governor is down to $3,800,000 from an original September asking of $5,500,000.

28 Fayerweather Street, Cambridge, MA

"Governor's Mansion"

75 Hinckley Road, Milton, MA

Governor Deval Patrick and wife Diane listed this 6,880-square-foot Milton manse in June 2009 for $1,925,000. It went back on the market less than two months ago for $1,500,000.

75 Hinckley Road, Milton, MA

10 Marlborough Street

10 Marlborough Street, Boston, MA

Regular reads know we adore this townhouse with its 33.5 feet of frontage; 10 bedrooms; nine bathrooms; and elegant finishes dating from the tail end of the (last) Gilded Age. It’s tag, though, keeps dropping, sometimes by as much as $1M at a time, and now rests at $11,750,000 after more than 500 days on the market.

10 Marlborough Street, Boston, MA

Ames-Webster Mansion

306 Dartmouth Street, Boston, MA

A deal for the 26,000-square-foot, 50-room, 28-fireplace palace is supposed to close in March, and may very well make it a private residence (it’s commercial now) and may very well then set a Boston home-sales record. It certainly took a while: more than 1,000 days. The mansion was once listed for as much as $23,000,000, but ended its time on the market asking $18,000,000.

306 Dartmouth Street, Boston, MA

Albert A. Pope Penthouse

219-223 Columbus Avenue, Boston, MA

This 3-BR, 2.5-BA, 3,500-square-foot spread splashed onto the market in July 2011 for $7,200,000 (it had last traded way back in 1997). Its price has dropped to $5,900,000, often by leaps and bounds: twice by $500,000, once by $300,000.

219-223 Columbus Avenue, Boston, MA