House of the Day: 74 Lincoln Road

seven bedrooms and a garage a block from the park and the express train? If it's really renovated, that's a pretty good price.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 1:31 PM

no.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 1:36 PM

This house is over valued by about $500-600k. It will never appraise for anything higher then the $600's.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 1:45 PM

Well, from someone who has actually seen the house (shocker on brownstoner!) for those who truly love old houses it's worth going inside because the photos on the listing don't even begin to show the details in the house. Lots of stained glass and leaded glass. Dramatic ornate fireplaces in both great hall and DR. Original light fixtures, original doorknobs. I had no idea, looking at the outside of these large but simple looking craftsman era houses.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 1:50 PM

Good luck, 1:45 at getting ANY house in Brooklyn near the park for $600K! Dream on. Try Brownsville. Some people missed the boat and are really in denial.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 1:59 PM

I saw this at an open house awhile ago. It is lovely. The layout has issues, but the big problem is location. Personally, it is still overpriced by 300K. But it is all a question of what you want and what you can live with.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 2:05 PM

It's a gorgeous house, but huge.
Seven bedrooms gives one pause.

It's a lovely house though for someone with the means to pay for the upkeep and the heat.

I'll stick with my 3-bedroom co-op.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 2:13 PM

flatbushwhacker, the "location problem" is code for "black people"

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 2:24 PM

I disagree, 2:05. The rooms were spacious. Plenty of closets. The layout was absolutely ideal for adding a parlor floor powder room. Unlike most houses where you have to lose some of the DR or kitchen to do that. Here there are two pantries off the kitchen so you get a powder room AND to keep a pantry to boot. Some with suburban tastes prefer an open layout for the parlor floor living room, but a double-parlor is pretty common in this era house.

As for location, once inside or in the backyard it feels very private and quiet despite the apt building next door. And of course the house IS priced for that location already. If this size house was on Maple Street where other large freestanding houses are found in Lefferts Manor, or on a corner on Bedford, it would be $1.5 million. The location isn't completely ideal but not so much it lowers the value by half a million. That reasoning is a bit dumb. I think it's priced just right, now. It was a tad high before.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 2:25 PM

Flatbushwaker

Don't you understand that there are BLACK people on Flatbush! With locs and funny accents and such. That's why the house is overpriced and why the location is an issue. You've got to do better at deciphering the code-words on Brownstoner if you are going to be a regular commentator. Next, people are going to quote crime stats to justify their displeasure with the location, even though Brooklyn is part of NYC, the safest big city in the country. But it is a stunning house. If I could afford it.... But I'm stuck in my 3B condo in Clinton Hill

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 2:26 PM

its right next to an apt bldg, that can be a dealbreaker for mmany

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 2:27 PM

Wrong side of the park for that price.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 2:29 PM

Oh no.....NOT AN APARTMENT BUILDING!

My heavens, what is this? New York City?

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 2:31 PM

stfu 2:31

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 2:35 PM

OK 2:25, so go buy it. For my money, that I earned, 1.3M is far too high for this house in this location. As I said in my first post, it is a question of what you want and what you can live with. I'd be comfortable spending 1M on this, but no more. But by all means, since you think it is such a good deal, you should buy it.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 2:44 PM

2:29 - if it were on the other side of the park, it would be well over $2M for a free standing house with parking, in good condition. You are about 4-5 years behind the times. However, I do agree that if I were looking for this kind of house in this price range, I would probably opt for Victorian Flatbush, where I would also be close to the park but surrounded by other such single family houses. I do think this is lovely though and isn't far off on the price.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 2:46 PM

Another thread where it's obvious how many older Brooklyn folks have never left the state.

600K? That's how much a nice house in Nebraska costs.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 2:48 PM

I live a block from here and walk by this house every day. IMO, the problem with this house's location doesn't have anything to do with race - it's about NOISE. Not just noise from people hanging out on the street (although there's a lot of that), but also bad traffic noise, both down Lincoln Road (a fave of fire trucks, ambulances, and people testing out their new pipes on their rice burners) and on Flatbush (trucks, buses, you name it, they're all racing around blowing their horns). Also, unlike Vic Flatbush, the houses and yards surrounding this one are not well preserved or maintained. This is a beautiful house, but the price isn't just about the house itself. I already live in and love the area, and I think it's overprices by $150K at least.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:02 PM

Have all of your forgotten that you live in NYC and not Iowa City? First Brownstoner runs scared from a bunch of 14 teen year-olds and then people start complaining about noise from people on the street. Really?! Man, I miss the old New York not this water downed, everyone’s scared of their own shadow (sometimes people get robbed, deal with it) and adverse to noise.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:11 PM

brooklyn is a borough, not a state

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:11 PM

actually, brooklyn is a state

a state of mind, that is

bkln represent

-phil.t
cobble hizill

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:13 PM

I've been in this house a number of times and it is gorgeous.

How fortunate for the neighborhood the naysayers stay away. Let them rant, PLG is one of the best kept secrets in terms of Brooklyn neighborhoods.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:19 PM

brooklynnative - it's spelled dreadlocks (I'm not trying to harp on you in a trolly way, just pointing it out). Anyway, I like dreadlocks, but not corn rows (that is a trolly statement)

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:20 PM

"whitey's racism"??
"so typical of whites"??

Brooklynnative, racism against caucasians is still racism, you ass.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:20 PM

I talked many times before about the race monomaniacs on here - it is the spectacles that they see the world through. Everything is racist against their race. It is a pathology.

Corn rows are for girls.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:23 PM

Actually, 3:02 is an half-Latina, half-Asian mother of three who couldn't care less about whether her neighbors are black or white - but definitely doesn't think paying 1.3MM in a down market for this house, which is an outlier on the block in terms of preservation, where it's difficult to get a good night's sleep, is a brilliant idea. But hey, don't let me interrupt your whites-bashing party with any inconvenient facts.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:24 PM

3:11pm...Completely agree. Does everyone forget this is NYC? I was walking around the park and overheard two women saying how shocked they were to find that their neighbor was robbed walking her dog in Prospect Park at 10pm. What?! Guess what the thief robbed her with...a piece of wood!

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:24 PM

Brookyln Native is Dave.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:26 PM

fo shizzle my nizzle
brrroklin hizights waddup
holla at me

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:36 PM

I completely agree with the posters reminding us that this is NYC. It is ironic that one of the worst insults often used on this blog is that something, or someone, is "suburban" and yet when you read these blogs, folks are complaining about the presence of apartment buildings, streets with traffic, noise from parties, proximity to commercial blocks, etc etc -all typical suburban complaints.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:37 PM

people who dont think noise shouldn't be complained about = idiots who are trying way too hard to be "bkln cool"

-livelong newyorker, unlike most of yall

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:41 PM

dave != grammar police

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:46 PM

dave how many screens today?

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 3:48 PM

3:41...I'm sorry I woke you up. I forget you go to bed at 7pm.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 4:11 PM

3.24 sounds hot.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 4:12 PM

This house is way over valued in it's asking price. You have comparable sales within a 1/2 mile selling for considerably less. This deal well never get funded by a bank in today's environment unless it has a purchase price of $700k or less. Unless some foolish buyer put down 50% down payment this deal will never close.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 4:31 PM

So basically what some of you are saying is that anyone who does not want to spend 1.3 million for a house that is:

A)surrounded by apartment buildings
B)on a corner with lots of noise from people hanging out
C)next to a major thouroughfare with lots of traffic noise
D)in an area with a relatively small number of basic amenities

is a flaming racist and/or does not have a true appreciation of New York and should move to the mid west. Do I have that right?

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 5:02 PM

5:02, i'm glad you understand the brownstoner mindset.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 5:08 PM

yes! Go west young man.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 5:12 PM

this is such a pointless discussion. the house is overpriced and will drift for some time before someone with that kind of money is ready to make a move. the economic indicators are worse every day. citi is slashing even more i-banking jobs. buying a single family home that is this big is like buying a hummer as your daily driver. who needs 7 bedrooms in an area where you will have to send your kids to private school for $25k per year each? That's $150k for 6 kids per year ($2mn present value at 3%). back when you could actually buy this for $600k (when, 2 or 3 years ago?) and heating oil was a fraction of today's cost, it might have made sense. not today. this is an overpriced, specialized product with a very limited target that is dwindling every day. also, why couldn't this be $600k? there are gorgeous brownstones in bed/stuy for $600k now. you don't have to go to Indiana to find that.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 5:57 PM

There are very few gorgeous, renovated brownstones for 600k anywhere in bed stuy right now, particularly not a block from an express stop (and none of them are near prospect park). 600k will buy you a 3-story fixer-upper. There's a 23 story condo building being put in a block from this building. There are recent comps within 3 blocks of this place, on maple and midwood and rutland. Clearly somebody thinks the neighborhood is worth investing in (including me.)

Yes, the public schools in PLG are bad, but judging by the spelling on these boards, very few of you went to decent schools.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 6:31 PM

Also, Heather Ditmas Park is only one and two stops or five minutes away by train from here. Ditmas is a lot nicer though with good public schools. Ditmas is doesn't have much as going on as far as amenities but it has more going on than this end of Flatbush.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 10:11 PM

6:03.Buyers such as yourself are continuously hoodwinked by brokers. You are comparing landmark status blocks which have brownstones and limestones all in unison. These blocks are surely some of the nicest block we have in Brooklyn. With that said,it does not mean that houses two-three blocks away should be considered to having the same value. The three rules in real estate is location, location, location. Do not forget that. On the blocks you mentioned if you go over to the east side of Rogers Ave and the value of homes are about 30-50% lower in value.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 11:04 PM

it's a nice house, but is it true that there is an...apartment building...nearby?
Buildings with elevators just give me the creeps. I don't wanna be near them.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 11:04 PM

Heather, take it from some one who has seen that block this decade--in fact, this month--you probably don't want to live there. The neighborhood has problems, for sure, but this particular location has serious issues that most of Lefferts Manor does not. Anyone who has looked in the area knows to avoid the corners by Flatbush and Lincoln, Rutland, Fenimore, and Hawthorne--they have serious loiterer and drug dealer issues and are incredibly loud around the clock. I'm sure residents will say that isn't so, but just go visit any warm evening and see for yourself--I have.

Posted by: guest at June 23, 2008 11:44 PM

"Ditmas Park is only one and two stops or five minutes away by train from here. Ditmas is a lot nicer though with good public schools. Ditmas is doesn't have much as going on as far as amenities but it has more going on than this end of Flatbush."

Well, one thing, Ditmas doesn't have the park. The park is huge as a factor. And it's the very thing that will help this neighborhood overcome its issues in the coming decade. Nobody is building a 23 story luxury condo in Ditmas, are they? It's because of the park that's happening. Secondly, not all of Ditmas is near the B/Q. Only a small part of it is and the rest is a drive or a long walk to it. Lastly and most importantly for somebody with $1.3 million to spend let's think about how much this house would cost in Ditmas Park -- try 2 million.

It's always such a silly thing when people say stuff like, "why would you buy a small house in South Slope when you can get a bigger one in prime North Slope?" Duh. Do people really think COST of houses don't drive anything in terms of where people will start to migrate? Of course it does. Get a grip on reality and show a little more intelligence.

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 12:17 PM

"IMO, the problem with this house's location doesn't have anything to do with race - it's about NOISE."

I was on Union Street one afternoon in Park Slope the other day and was just dying at how loud that street was. Then I turned onto 6th ave walking along and PS 282 was letting out, the traffic was all backed up and buses lined up and gahhhh, so loud again.

You will never escape noise in NYC in the major brownstone neighborhoods around the park. They are busy places.

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 12:22 PM

12:22 people are not talking about traffic noise. Yes this spot gets a lot of traffic noise from Flatbush, but the issue being raised here is about street noise (people hanging out, playing music, car radios, drug dealers, etc.). Some people are OK living next to that, but many aren't--and it is definitely not a given of life in Brooklyn. Union and 6th does not have that kind of noise--nor does Lincoln and Bedford, a block from this house.

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 1:51 PM

I disagree that Union & 6th isn't as loud as this. Union and especially that corner is unbelievably loud with the buses and trucks and the fire engines and the cars.

But whatever, okay, again for the simple minded, price of a 7BR house on 6th Ave and Union: $2.5 million minimum. Price of this house: $1.3 million.

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 2:19 PM

1:51 - actually, traffic noise is a big part of the problem with this location - as is the noise of people hanging out on the street, along with music and TV from apartment windows both next to and across from this house. It's a busy corner in a lot of ways. Nothing wrong with that - lots of NYers love their noise and can't stand the country 'cause it's too quiet and it scares them. But if I were spending 1.3MM on a house, I'd want to be able to sleep with my windows open without wearing earplugs. My experience of the Union/6th Ave. area is that it gets noisy during the day, but is much quieter at night - quite different from Lincoln and Flatbush. But maybe a deaf millionaire will come along and make the seller's day.

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 2:34 PM

Owner here. Have lived in this house 12 years. It's actually very quiet; in the evenings. Music and loiterers were a problem some years back. The apt building on corner muffles noise from Flatbush.

This site is the ultimate ying and yang; great publicity, but with a good public flogging.

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 2:40 PM

I can confirm what the owner says. I've been inside the house. It's a big deep house set back from the street. You do not hear that much noise from the street or a half-block away on Flatbush. And in the rooms in the back of the house you hear none of it.

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 2:55 PM

Put it in context. We owned a coop on a prime, named, North Slope block and I always had to wear earplugs because of the kid upstairs. I'd rather have occasional street noise for a few months in Summer than hear on every day of the year stomping, falling, running and screaming above me. Neighbor noise is the worst of all bar none, and this house is blessedly freestanding.

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 3:01 PM

Owner: I saw your house saw at an openhouse and it is lovely. Congratulations on a nice job. Personally I have no problem with some traffic noise (or kids walking above me) but I've lived with people hanging out on street corners near where I live and that noise is unbearable (for me). I did a walk by of your house recently on a Friday night and "music and loiterers" seemed to definitely still be a problem. For me, that is a deal-breaker. I'm sure there are people out there who won't be bothered by it.

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 3:25 PM

So what you're saying 3:25 is some like some kind of noise but some don't. Wow. What an insightful statement.

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 3:52 PM

Owner again. To 3:25, thanks for the nice comments on the house. Am not doubting that you could see music and people outside on a Friday summer evening. But one night or three, doesn't make for an empirical sampling. You're welcome to come over and hang on the porch, anytime. Email me offline danshickler@aol.com

A sampling of 30 summer nights may find 2 or 3 to be loud; and usually not for too long of a time period. Friday and Saturday nights will predictably be the loudest.

I enjoy being part of the larger community, with all its vibrance, activity and diversity.

The trajectory of the nabe is one towards an ever-improving quality of life.

As amenites continue to return to Lincoln Road, and Flatbush, as supported by an imminent critical mass of socioeconomic changes to the demographics in the apartment buildings, the challenges of which you speak, will fade, and finally, the location may be viewed as an actual asset, with 2 minute proximity to the subway platform and restaurants and 3 minutes to the park.

Why do I have to defend my neighborhood to a neighbor?

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 4:06 PM

I'm not a neighbor, that was a different poster who commented on the noise of the location. And I'm not 'attacking' the neighborhood--I'm attacking (if I must use that word) the exact location of your house. Your account of how often the noise is a problem does not jive with what I've heard from other area residents (all of whom have warned me against buying close to Flatbush). But I will indeed make a point to swing by every weekend this summer and see (or hear) for myself.

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 9:37 PM

Owner again (last time I hope :)

I can only vouch for my corner (Lincoln, about 150 feet E of Flatbush, as obviously, I live here. Can't vouch for noise at these corners: Maple, Midwood, Rutland and Fenimore.

If you don't live here, and aren't observing the day to day, week after week, year after year, don't know how people can have credibility on frequency, and decibals, of noise. As I type, it's dead quiet, at 9:59 pm, on a Tuesday night, and has been all night.

Un, or vaguely substantiated heresay is alway difficult to deal with. Have we no due process?

I can understand the perception of noise, certainly, along the Flatbush corridor, but it seems rash and unfair to impugn all houses in our neighborhood near it.

Posted by: guest at June 24, 2008 10:01 PM