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September 22, 2006
Open House Picks: Townhouses
Cobble Hill
227 Kane Street
Nancy McKiernan
Sunday 12-2
$2,300,000
GMAP P*Shark
Fort Greene
314 Carlton Avenue
FSBO
Sunday 12-4
$1,960,000
GMAP P*Shark
Beverley Square West
1410 Beverly Road
Mary Kay Gallagher
Sunday 2:30-4:30
$1,525,000 $1,395,000
GMAP P*Shark Archive!
Fort Greene
190 Clermont Avenue
FSBO
Sunday 2-4
$1,325,000
GMAP P*Shark
South Slope
452 Prospect Avenue
Corcoran
Sunday 1-3
$999,000
GMAP P*Shark
Bay Ridge
52 76th Street
Corcoran
Sunday 12:30-2
$799,000
GMAP P*Shark
Comments
Prospect house link is wrong. Connects to
52 76th St
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 12:04 PM
fort green link wrong also
kane street is gorgeous
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 12:06 PM
Actually most of them link to 52 76th St.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 12:12 PM
190 Carlton is actually 190 Clermont.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 12:20 PM
The correct link for the Beverly Road house is
http://www.marykayg.com/html/0451.html
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 12:22 PM
It will be interesting to see what happens with the 190 Clermont listing. I saw it towards the end of last year when it was with AH for $1.49, it was then listed by Corcoran for the same price, but apparently did not sell (although I thought I saw it on Corcoran at one point with the "in contract" notation). Although the location is a little iffy (too close to Myrtle Ave.) the house itself is nicely renovated, athough there is a bit of a design flaw with the bathrooms. They are both "en-suite" and have itty bitty teeny tubs - nothing like the traditional brownstone baths. Happy to see that the owners have finally come around to the fact that the house was priced too high.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 12:26 PM
the kane street house looks beautiful, but it's a little skinny. i'd love to see a floorplan. but for $2.3 i think it might actually be worth it. those state st townhouses are skinny, not in as nice of a hood and ugly and they're going for like $2.8. is kane a recent renovation?
Posted by: anon at September 22, 2006 12:33 PM
Holy Heck Batman I hope they get $2.3 for Kane St. My wife and I bought a 22 footer a block away for 330k less than 10 yrs ago.
Posted by: anon at September 22, 2006 12:34 PM
http://www.marykayg.com/html/0451.html
1410 Beverly Road
I saw this one in a FSBO open house, the detail are incredible.
I hope now that owner has switched to having realtor show the house, maybe owner will be able to get all the family members out of the house during the open house time. It's very distracting to have everyone still in the house while it's being shown, and don't think the house showed as well because of this.
Yes the house needs some work (like a new kitchen) but that is something that just takes some money and time. The thing that makes this house special is the full three floors worth of period details. If it could figure out how to fit this house in my budget, I would be strongly considering it.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 12:47 PM
I agree about the fab interior details - but that siding was a horrible mistake and I think the exterior (including the garden) really detracts from the interior. Curb appeal can't approach the house with the half moon arch and turret that sold next door.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 1:41 PM
"I called Mary Kay Gallagher about this house, and she seem a little insulted when I verified the price drop.
She claimed the house was worth the original price, and wouldn't be surprised if there was a bidding war."
What did you expect? "Curses! You caught us! Now I'm compelled to accept your lowball offer!" It's not like telling Rumplestiltskin you know his name.
Posted by: linusvanpelt at September 22, 2006 1:41 PM
Well, as one of people who bought Kane Street more than 26 years ago (for $144,000!!) when it was painted black & white outside, I can tell you that all the most recent owners appear to have done is re-"brownstone" the front & replace the railings. All the interior appears the same as the major rehab (from 2 duplexes to single family) that the family we sold to did.
A lot of that detail was always there, and we were the ones who first "exposed" the plank floors. In fact the fireplace inserts look like they haven't been painted since we put some of them in back then - same exact colors!!
This price, BTW, almost double what was paid for it less than 2 years ago, and almost 5 times what we sold it for a dozen years ago.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 2:11 PM
There are quite a few untrue statements just made.........
I absolutely spoke to no one about the house having been previously on the market........
I never mentioned bidding war....
that is not my style
I always respond to people and never leave them hanging.......
re the Rugby Road incident....
absolutely untrue!
someone out there is out to get me..I would really like to know what it is..
why don't you call me directly?
Posted by: Mary Kay Gallagher at September 22, 2006 2:41 PM
Good for Mary Kay! The problem I see here, and with blogs in general, is that anyone can comment without leaving there real name or anything substantial to identify who is leaving a comment. I realize that Brownstoner is not Amazon, but it's pretty shady to call out someone on their business practices and then sign the comment Anonymous.
Also, it would be a lot more helpful to see more posts that talk about the actual property, instead of the constant vague statements made about the broker.
Posted by: The Medway Sound at September 22, 2006 2:59 PM
I love the "my kids were heartbroken" line...that's laying it on just a little too thick to be believed...
But as the great quotation says "if you haven't got anything nice to say, come sit over here by me"
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 3:07 PM
How about fixing the links already?
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 3:10 PM
BHS has this listing for the same price as Kane only a few blocks away in Cobble Hill. But this one looks to be wider house and has rental income.
http://brownharrisstevens.com/detail.aspx?id=517248
Posted by: anon at September 22, 2006 3:30 PM
I would question Brownstoner's motives allowing this to continue as well...
It is clearly other brokers posing as "buyers"
Shouldn't those types of comments be taken down?
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 3:30 PM
That is why it is a Blog.
You take it at face value and move on.
I.E. My electrician did an amazing job but he did the worst job in my friends house. Take everyones opinions for what they are worth.
Get over it. Mary has a right to defender herself and she should have her clients with good experiences post here as well
Posted by: dan adams at September 22, 2006 3:32 PM
agree the comment about kids heartbroken sounds like drama princess.
Good comp from the BHS listing... wonder what block that one is on...is it still PS29 / if not could tip balance in Kane St favor for someone with kids.
Also some people here sound like having a tenant is terrible thing - others look at economic benefit.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 4:09 PM
In defense of Mary Kay I bought 2 homes thru Mary Kay and sold 2 homes thru Mary Kay.
She is an honest, trust worthy and extremely reliable person. I would not deal with any other Broker in the Ditmas Area but her.
She is also a heck of a nice lady..
Who ever times she comes to my house she always clean ups all those annoying papers on my front porch.
The only bad experience I had was that the buyer was a real pain in the you know what!!!
But, that is the nature of doing business...
Dan, I agree w/ you that you have to take these blog with a grain of salt!! But I also think that Brownstoner and other blogs do need to make sure that you Dan Adams is not posting 7x under a different name...
Posted by: Lin at September 22, 2006 4:12 PM
BHS listing in cobble hill is lovely house on clinton street but not very deep and next to empty lot being used as garage. about 2800 sq feet so good comparable, didnt see rental unit. mckiernan listing looks like better deal although skinnier houses always tougher
Posted by: anonymous at September 22, 2006 4:22 PM
what are the crossstreets for the bhs Clinton Street house?
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 4:34 PM
yeck. that house at 190 clermont is SO ugly! i saw it when it was with corcoran.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 4:48 PM
I just posted under the "just sold" thread in defense of MKG and I am going to repost here as well:
I have only had positive experiences with Mary Kay. In the end, I didn't buy a house from her (the market was very thin at the time), but I am now proud to say that I am her neighbor and she has never held the fact that I didn't buy a house through her against me. She has always been kind and helpful, generally a class act.
Posted by: Erin Joslyn at September 22, 2006 4:51 PM
it seems like everyone posting here tend to be very negative...on individual houses, brokers, etc. or maybe it just seems that way to me.
Posted by: anon at September 22, 2006 5:13 PM
Please re-read this Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 3:07 PM
" "But as the great quotation says "if you haven't got anything nice to say, come sit over here by me" "
I am still laughing at his post, it made my day!!!!!
Some truth to it....
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 5:23 PM
I am confused by the Clermont house - exterior looks wide, but that interior parlor pic looks very narrow . . .
Posted by: Anonymous at September 22, 2006 5:25 PM
I thought that too about Clermont, it's an odd effect.
Hey it's not just you, anon at 5:13pm. It's true, there are a lot of negative posts on all the threads on this site. It's fun to read critiques, that's fine, but rudeness is such a huge turnoff.
Posted by: anon too at September 22, 2006 5:35 PM
In general, blogs, messageboards, and BBS' are dominated with negative comments. It's the same on boards about televisions, hotels, restaurants, etc... It's not just this site. A large part of the 'blog/forum poster' set are the homebound/underemployed. Take it for what it is.
Posted by: Sassy at September 22, 2006 5:55 PM
thanks for the thoughts about negative comments...that makes a lot of sense.
Folks always seem to say: "oh, I went in that house and it's horrible and not worth x-amount." I've gone into every open house (in Ft. Greene), and the houses are never as bad as folks on this site say.
Posted by: anon at September 22, 2006 7:39 PM
"Good for Mary Kay! The problem I see here, and with blogs in general, is that anyone can comment without leaving there real name or anything substantial to identify who is leaving a comment."
"In general, blogs, messageboards, and BBS' are dominated with negative comments. It's the same on boards about televisions, hotels, restaurants, etc... It's not just this site. A large part of the 'blog/forum poster' set are the homebound/underemployed. Take it for what it is."
"I think it's all pretty funny."
i am a person who has been unfairly and visciously (yes, i said visciously, and i mean it) written about on internet blogs; i state that it is NOT funny. as a matter of fact, it's aggravating, if not downright hurtful. i won't reveal my identity, ( of course, brownstoner can check my i.p. address and, possibly, figure out who i am, though it's no big whoop) because i'm sick of the situation and it doesn't do anything but bring me down, and it's just excess noise that doesn't do me any good. don't get me wrong, i'm no big whoop, but thousands of people have read the nasty stuff that's been said about me, in relation to my business, my husband, and my personal life. i've been called a cocaine addict and a psycopath, lectured, scolded, and generally derided, and for no reason that has basis in fact.
it sucks. there is power in the written word, and don't discount the viral power of insinuations that lead to rumor. i have absolutely no idea whatsoever how it is that people in the public eye are able to handle this without going crazy. well, lenny bruce comes to mind ...
armed with the knowledge that a lot of the posted comments, on blogs in general, are utter bullshit, i am able to look forward to meeting ms. gallagher if i do decide to live in vic flatbush. those houses are tempting!
Posted by: anon at September 22, 2006 7:44 PM
anyone seen that one at 314 Carlton? I love Ft Greene. Best neighborhood around.
Posted by: anon718 at September 22, 2006 8:01 PM
I agree it's actually very hurtful, all the negativity on the internet. We always see reports over the past few years on the news about surveys that show most people are experiencing a dramatic increase in rude behavior from strangers they encounter in public. And I have to say, I really think it's the influence of the internet. People use the internet to vent their anger and hostility, and because it's "okay" on the internet to be rude, it blurs into real life making people more aggressive and rude in general. Well, it's NOT okay. It's tacky. And I'm always astounded when I see otherwise careful and concerned parents pushing around a stroller, and speaking in a rude way to strangers. Do they think their kids aren't going to grow up to imitate that behavior? I feel like such a little old lady these days! I'm in my 30's, I swear I am.
Posted by: anon too at September 22, 2006 8:12 PM
as a person in bay ridge the 52 76th street is a possible great deal if the inside condition is nice. this price is very low for an unattached house in prime bay ridge on one of my favorite streets in the neighborhood. this street only runs for 1 block and is tree lined on both sides. i would love to trade my attached house on 88th street for this. only negative is not ps 185 and is ps 72 instead. these houses tend to be small but trust me this is well priced. of course you have to like bay ridge, i for one am going to try to make the open house. and i am definitly not the broker.
Posted by: muletrain at September 22, 2006 9:10 PM
Hey Mr. B,
Thanks for showing range of open house!
QBorBK
Posted by: QBorBK at September 22, 2006 9:13 PM
Hey Mr. B,
Thanks for showing a range of open houses!
QBorBK
Posted by: QBorBK at September 22, 2006 9:14 PM
noticed one drawback on my glowing endorsement of house in bay ridge. only 16 x 35 which is a little short for these houses. however i will say my house is listed as 16 x 40 and is actually 16 x 53 on the first floor with prexisiting extention and upstairs has 3 small bedrooms and is only 16 x 37. so the house dimensions on my house are off!! plus some houses on property shark list the basement in square feet, mine doesn't causing the sf price to be high. i'm not quite sure why this is ,but have gone into smaller houses which are listed with more square feet.
Posted by: muletrain at September 22, 2006 9:23 PM
I like Mary K. Gallagher. If I was shopping around for a vicorian in the Ditmas Park are a I would definitely look her up. I was subletting a condo that she was selling a few years ago, and she was always very considerate and friendly.
Posted by: Yavel at September 22, 2006 9:42 PM
PLEASE fix the links....this is useless.
Posted by: betty broker at September 23, 2006 9:49 AM
Maqry Kay is good for cosmetics only
Posted by: Anonymous at September 23, 2006 10:06 AM
i just found out about this blog and decided to check it out. I am fasinated with the comments about Mary Kay Gallagher. I've known Mary Kay for many years. Back in the 70's nobody wanted to go near Victorian Flatbush. She became involved in Real Estate to save her neighborhood. she was the only broker who wanted to sell in the area and she was able to attract and convince young families with modest incomes to buy in an area that was considered dangerous.
Mary Kay saved the neighborhood along with the pioneering families who bought homes and then brought their friends to the area to buy.
Those who are critizing her don't know the history of the neighborhood and should do some research on the neighborhood in the 70's-- lots of crimes, people were nervous walking at night and from the subway etc etc. you certainly would never go near Prospect Park on the Parkside side in the evening and not many ventured there during the day. This has all changed. And Mary Kay and other community residents and activists can take credit for the change.
Now that the houses are sellling for high numbers other brokers have come in and have tried to trash her. I've dealt with some of those others brokers and I wouldn't trust them as far as I could throw them. You don't have to like Mary Kay, but one does need to respect her honesty. If anyone has an issue with her ethics and/or honesty, I strongly recommend that you take your case to court. Action speaks louder then words.
I do hope your blog focuses on the housing stock and not cater to people who have decided to dislike Mary Kay.
Thanks J.M.B.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 23, 2006 12:06 PM
"Offer made, and was told accepted, then waited forever for official confirmation."
We had that happen with two separate houses. In one case, the sellers accepted our offer but continued to show the house and look for a better offer (which they got); in the other case, it seemed the seller was not really selling at all but just finding out what his house was worth. It is very frustrating but what can you do? The broker was not MKG, either time.
Posted by: Rose at September 23, 2006 2:54 PM
Yes, this blog should not "cater" to people who "dislike" a broker someone else likes.
If you dislike a broker, please do not patronize this blog.
This blog is only for people who like brokers that other people like. There is no room for a difference of opinion on the internet.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 23, 2006 3:00 PM
Rose 2:54 you make a very valid point.
"Offer made, and was told accepted, then waited forever for official confirmation."
1st, Brokers works for the Seller and the Seller tells the Broker what to do.
2nd many people become very mad at Brokers when they lose out on a house, especially in your situation.
But back to point 1. The broker works for the seller and the seller makes the final decision.
So it's very easy to blame the broker because that's who you deal with and you have to blame someone, so why not blame the broker.
Posted by: AL at September 23, 2006 6:22 PM
I am a broker at a firm that competes with Mary Kay. I also was her customer looking for a house with her. She gives great service to her buyers. I think it's pathetic that there are clearly other brokers on here who use this forum to try to degrade other agents. Usually the agents who are extremely successful are the best all around. It is wishful thinking on the part of the few idiots out there in our industry to think that those of us who have made it in the business, and whose business thrives on referalls because of our excellent relationships with our past customers, are somehow inept. Dream on. It's a tough business. It takes a lot of work. Dig in and do the work and stop putting your competition down. It's a waste of time.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 23, 2006 7:28 PM
I'm sorry, why are we talking about brokers here instead of the open houses? did I miss something or are you people just obsessed? Get over it...there are good brokers and mediocre...let's talk about the houses!
Posted by: anon718 at September 23, 2006 8:05 PM
Uh... we're talking about the broker, because someone posted claiming she was the broker
Posted by: Anonymous at September 24, 2006 7:11 AM
I guess it's a double-edged sword, the way people rip apart properties on this site. On one hand - it's helpful, saving prospective buyers from wasting their time on overpriced properties and exposing flaws that may not be apparent. On the other hand, those that are jealous or have alterior motives create unwarranted doubt turning buyers off and this negatively impacts the market and all of our property values.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 24, 2006 7:15 PM
i went to see 314 Carlton today. it was real nice. definately one of the best I've seen in Ft. Greene
Posted by: anon718 at September 24, 2006 7:50 PM
Just wondering who went to see
1410 Beverly Road? What did you think of the house....?
Posted by: debbie at September 24, 2006 10:40 PM
To the poster above: you think people posting negative items negatively impacts property values?! You have a wildly inflated idea of the influence of "blog"
Posted by: Anonymous at September 25, 2006 7:07 AM
For all you doom and gloomers, I just found out that the house on Washington Park that was "overpriced" according to all the great pundits about two weeks ago sold after the first open house at, or just over, the ask. It's already in contract...
For those of you in the market right now beware a) the uninformed and b) those who are trying to talk down the market...
I've said it on this board again and again, new york is not the rest of the country with $175K median prices and when the wall of bonus money hits in Jan/Feb stuff is going to make another move particularly in Brooklyn as people continue to roll out of the Manhattan for the value that Slope/Greene/C'Hill continue to offer.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 25, 2006 7:57 AM
Amen.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 25, 2006 8:02 AM
Thank you Mr. Corcoran, I mean Anonymous 7:57. Duly noted.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 25, 2006 11:04 AM
Getting back to talking about the actual house.
If you checked that Archive link http://brownstoner.com/brownstoner/archives/2006/08/open_house_pick_77.html
that Brownstoner posted, you can see what I posed about 1410 Beverley Road when I went to the FSBO open house.
Posted by: Arsenic and Old Lace at September 25, 2006 1:33 PM
To Anonymous 7:07am, Of course it does! Talking badly about an area or street and announcing that someone would have to be an idiot to buy there will have a negative affect on that street. I don't think real estate works like a britney spears pr campaign, i.e. any press is good press.
I would not underestimate the power of the blog. They are going to change the structure of a lot of markets. The widsom of crowds is smarter than you.
Posted by: Anonymous at September 25, 2006 2:02 PM
Anon 11:04 - The Shark will tell right!
Posted by: Anonymous at September 25, 2006 2:29 PM
yawn
Posted by: Anonymous at September 25, 2006 3:50 PM
Actually, I didn't notice that Mary Kay and I were one and the same, last time I checked. I posted above, to report that I have only had very positive experiences with her, even though I did not buy a house from her but became her neighbor in the end. For the record, my name is Erin Joslyn. I am the author of the Victorian Flatbush website that has been featured on this site (http://home.att.net/~ebasics/Victorianflatbush.html). I have nothing to do with the real estate market. Mary Kay has done more than perhaps anyone to keep this neighborhood vibrant and thriving, especially through more difficult times in previous decades.
Posted by: Erin Joslyn at September 25, 2006 5:35 PM
which house on washington park?
Posted by: Anonymous at September 26, 2006 6:00 PM
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