Housing market headlocks Hulk

The housing crisis was unkind to many property owners, regardless of how many World Wrestling Federation Championship belts they have.

Terry Bollea, better known as Hulk Hogan, may have experienced a flashback to his 1988 WWF Championship rematch with Andre the Giant as he closed the sale of his Belleair mansion at 130 Willadel Drive for $6.2 million.

Like the nine-minute long Wrestlemania III bout, Bollea's battle to sell his 17,000-square-foot Clearwater mansion was lengthy and ended in a bitter defeat, financially speaking.

Bollea listed the property, which was the setting of the reality show “Hogan Knows Best,” for $25 million in 2006, securing less than a quarter of that amount six years later, according to Martha Thorne, a Clearwater-based Realtor with Coldwell Banker who was the listing agent for the home.

Thorne tells Coffee Talk she has experience working with celebrity real estate, and that ensuring privacy for the individual involved is key in these deals. She declined to discuss the particular transaction.

However, Thorne says the property's place in reality television history didn't affect the sale price. “It doesn't make a difference at all,” she says. “The price is just indicative of the market.”