House Joke of the Day

This house is an area which was following the Flatbush Victorian building boom (it was known as Vanderveer Park), and there were a lot of gorgeous houses built there, a few of which remain, as well as some knock out 1920s-30s Tudors. Sadly, a lot of these homes have been replaced by gleaming Mcmansions in recent years. The neighborhood is almost exclusively orthodox (I think mostly Sephardim). it is a very tightly knit neighborhood and it is pushing westward towards Amersfort Park, towards much more modest homes, such as this one. They have lots of kosher amenities along avenue J and Bedford, and even have their own very visible security patrol. Now, personally, it is not worth 1.4 million to me to live in this neighborhood in this house, but, and I'm not saying I know this for sure, but maybe it is to some orthodox families with close ties to this nabe. Sort of like the threads we've had before about Ocean Parkway neighborhoods around Avenue S... Just as thought.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 30, 2006 11:56 AM

What usually happens in this area is that the price is not for the house - but for the land and location. The house will more than likely be destroyed and a McMansion built in its place. You see alot of nothing houses getting huge prices - again for the land.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 30, 2006 12:03 PM

12:03 - exactly the point I was just going to tack on to me above post.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 30, 2006 12:05 PM

Oops - this house is West of Ocean Pkwy - I don't know why I was thining east of Ocean Ave.... This area was never part of Vanderveerpark... BUT, everything else about the orthodox desirability of this neighborhood holds water.

This area must have a name... Parkville? Isn't that what's just south of Kensington...?

Posted by: Anonymous at May 30, 2006 12:12 PM

I don't really know this hood but a quick look on property shark doing a comparables search makes this price look like it's in the ballpark.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 30, 2006 12:52 PM

Anon at 12:07 - there are orthodox jews living in parkville (as well as a thriving Pakastani community), in very ordinary looking homes like this, some of which are unrenovated, some of which are morphing into very tall and narrow McMansions. But I agree with you, it doesn't have the cache or desirability the east side of Ocean Avenue, hence the price does seem a bit high.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 30, 2006 4:18 PM

It's the "jew" tax.

Kosher restaurants, el al, houses near the shul. Always expensive.

Incidentally, the brooklyn orthodox community owns big (really big!) chunks of New York real estate yet live in humble houses in boro park.

Looks can be extremely deceptive.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 30, 2006 4:56 PM

Anon at 1:49 - I sort of agree with you on Mary Kay. She can be completely off-putting and is not exactly the most professional, user-friendly broker in the world. Having said that, please don't give up on the neighborhood just because she is difficult to deal with. I have now lived in the area she covers for a while and, other than my horrible experiences with her when looking (I turned away from houses I might otherwise have bought at first because she was so condescending, didn't return calls for periods, etc...), I love the area more and more each day.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 30, 2006 5:26 PM

It sounds like the sale price includes membership to an exclusive, private club.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 30, 2006 6:41 PM

How would a 2 family with a garage have a hard time selling for 1.4 in park slope?

Posted by: Anonymous at May 30, 2006 7:08 PM

I respect Mary Kay based on her standing in the community, and yet I also agree that she can come across as pretty rude. I decided not to make an offer on a house because of her attitude (she wouldn't answer basic questions about the house.) I kind of attribute it to her advancing age, because so many people assure me that she is a lovely person.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 30, 2006 9:34 PM

FWIW, I grew up not that far from this house, and I think something has been lost with all the tear-downs--a lot of houses in the part of Midwood I'm from were very spacious to begin with, surrounded by large lots, with small lawns leading to steps and open porches. It was a charming area that went on for block after block after block. Now there's all these garish brick mcmonsters with the same bland flower-free landscaping. And where I grew up, it's not because of large families--frum or not, the wealthier you are the fewer children you have. In fact, when the area was more secular, some pretty small houses were home to families with 4-6 kids, and these have been replaced by huge things housing families with only 1-3 kids.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 31, 2006 1:05 AM

Come on Folks, you won't make an offer on a house because your not happy with the Broker, you decided your not going to buy in an area because you don't like a Broker. Please, sounds more like maybe you couldn't afford the house or the house went for money then you could afford.
I never heard of something so stupid. You don't have to like the Broker, heck you don't have to like the Seller. You have to Love the House and the Area you are buying in.

Its part Love of the Home and the other part is Business. An in business we have to deal with people we don’t like. So please people, these all seem like excuses to me….

Posted by: Anonymous at May 31, 2006 7:10 AM

Sorry, but when you are a busy person and many houses are for sale in the area (all with their pluses and minuses (I am not rich enough to be able to afford perfection) and in the same price range), you give up on a house after the broker does not answer your questions/return your calls, etc... while other brokers are going out of their way to show you equally interesting houses in the same price range. Perhaps this would not be the case for you, but it is for many people. If the house was a very rare, hard to find, excellent condition house, etc..., you would probably still forge ahead, but for the average house, it isn't worth the hassle.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 31, 2006 10:05 AM

Bronwnstoner never said he was a Brooklyn real estate expert.

This is a real estate blog, not a class being taught by Professor Brownstoner.

Developerxx, you need to learn proper English grammar if you expect anybody who can read to take you seriously.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 31, 2006 11:59 AM

I too had a good experience with Mary Kay and her daughter Eileen. You can't get along with every one I guess.

Posted by: Anonymous at May 31, 2006 12:22 PM

Developerxx own lots of properties, but no talk so good...

Posted by: Anonymous at May 31, 2006 5:56 PM

" Also, some communities have "Eruvs" which permit carrying on the Sabbath, which would otherwise be forbidden. If this house is inside an Eruv (and I think it is), there would be a premium."

Can someone please explain what an ERUVS is?

Posted by: Anonymous at May 31, 2006 9:58 PM

Don't know the technical religious def, but it's a symbolic wall that extends the area of the house. On shabbat, orthodox jews can't do work, which includes carrying anything outside the house--not keys, not babies, nada. Some authorities permit the use of an eruv so women can push strollers, etc. There are requirements for the eruv, which I am not familiar with, but I know people used to use the old overhead telephone wires when they were araound. Now, some folks string wires.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 1, 2006 1:46 AM

Thanks, Anon 1:46.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 1, 2006 7:05 PM