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November 25, 2008

Fresh Rentals at 639 Fourth Avenue

Fresh is the adjective of choice at this building, on 639 Fourth Avenue at 18th Street. The adverbs that go with it, per their marketing campaign: architecturally, invitingly, entertainingly and luxuriantly. What's freshest about it, though, is that the condo building is offering rentals. The property is handled by The Developers Group, and their Web site shows 28 units for rent: one-, two- and three-bedrooms between $2,300 and $3,725. Perhaps a hefty sum for this location. Potentially swaying factors include doorman, valet parking, "floor to ceiling aluminum framed windows almost everywhere, Blizzard Caesar stone Quartz countertops, wide plank white oak flooring, and solid core interior doors." Anybody looked here and care to report? GMAP

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quite comical that 4th Ave and 19th Street can be listed as Park Slope.

Posted by: wasder at November 25, 2008 11:05 AM

what do they mean by convertible tho for a 2 bedroom? cuz a 2 bedroom for that price is nice, especially if it's "luxury". i pay 2400 now for a 2 bedroom proper in park slope and it's un-luxury.

people hate on 4th avenue, but i like it better than 5th and 7th. i like the slightly industrial feel to it. it reminds me of bergenline avenue and kennedy boulevard in jersey (that's not a bad thing btw hahaha).

or maybe i just love 4th avenue cuz a few months ago someone decided to dump a GIGANTIC pile of video games on the street! i was in heaven!

*Rob*

Posted by: PitbullNYC at November 25, 2008 11:10 AM

Aluminum framing is luxury?

Posted by: Heather at November 25, 2008 11:15 AM

i dont see where the luxury comes from?

also I cant afford those prices.

Posted by: Santa at November 25, 2008 11:18 AM

The "convertible 2 bedroom" for $2250 seems to be a 654 sq. foot 1 bedroom with 1.5 bathrooms.

It has a living room, so you could "convert" that to a bedroom by sleeping there.

http://www.thedevelopersgroup.com/Apartments/Apartment.aspx?webid=14086

Admittedly, your 2nd bedroom would have a kitchen in it, but that is a small price to pay for living in prime park slope -- especially in a building as Fresh as this one.

Posted by: northsloperenter at November 25, 2008 11:20 AM

also why do they have cc and tax along with the rent listed?

Posted by: Santa at November 25, 2008 11:21 AM

This is definitely Greenwood/ Greenwood Heights NOT Park Slope.
For rentals these look amazing. I guess they are luxury rentals....look at the kitchens!
I think this building was going to be a condo initially, the selling agents should have updated the website to remove the cc's and taxes.

Posted by: PHfamily at November 25, 2008 11:25 AM

Perhaps the high rental fees are due to the fact they are throwing in a free oil change at the Meineke next door and 10% off your next head stone at Supreme Memorials across the street...I can see a coupon book in the works.

Silly Developers Group.

Posted by: Action Jackson at November 25, 2008 11:33 AM

STARTING at $2225 means that they have 1 low floor (on 4th ave remember) 1BR apartment that maybe "convertible" to 2br but is still a sub 700sqft (by the developers ruler btw) 1br.

For REAL 2brs it looks like you are talking more like 3G for most (albeit a few come in at 2450 - but you have to wonder why)

I'd also bet that some or all utilities aren't included - so you have to figure that in as well.

Posted by: fsrg at November 25, 2008 11:42 AM

You can rent a pad at Novo cheaper, and actually be in Park Slope. Price drops coming soon.

Posted by: SnarkSlope at November 25, 2008 12:12 PM

Since this place blocks the view I would have had from the attic of my little frame house, I can imagine that any of these places above the 2nd/3rd floor will have amazing harbor and city views.

Seems like people are living there already.
Hopefully the first floor retail will be filled at some point.

It does seem odd to have this neo-brutalist building looking over our little civil war era and depression era shacks. I've grown to actually like it though- at least it's consistent in it's hukling gray shape and without bricolage style flourishes. In many ways superior to it's large condo/rental neighbors further north up 4th.

Posted by: Park Place at November 25, 2008 12:18 PM

could they have designed this building to look more grim?

Posted by: Inigo at November 25, 2008 12:19 PM

I love the little Civil-War-era shacks down there, Park Place, and offer condolences on your being hulked over. Seriously.

Posted by: Brenda from Flatbush at November 25, 2008 12:33 PM

They will never get these rents.

The only people who would remotely consider these 1-bedrooms would work on wall street - and we know that is over. Getting to midtown from this place is a 45-minute commute at least. You can live in Long Island City or Williamsburg for a similar rent.

There are some cute bars down there, but you're a solid 15-minute walk from almost everything.

Posted by: Polemicist at November 25, 2008 1:01 PM

I agree the rents are high, but this location is not isolated. There are two grocery stores, a couple of good bars, a bakery, a coffee shop, an organic market, and a fantastic wine store just up the street on Fifth Ave.

Plus, this building is right over the subway. Prospect to 34th Street is 30 minutes if you transfer to the express at Pacific.

I'm sure a lot of people in Brooklyn would pay high rent for these kinds of amenities when you consider the doorman and valet parking. Personally, I like my little "shack", but I can see that this building might appeal to someone, even at these prices.

Posted by: lemur11215 at November 25, 2008 1:27 PM

Who needs 2 bathrooms with only 1 bedroom? That seems like such a waste of living space to me. How often do you & your significant other (or guest) have to take simultaneous dumps?
There's no floorplan, so maybe it's a typo... can't tell.

Posted by: broadwayron at November 25, 2008 1:35 PM

Shacks is where it's at-

Save one now before they're all gone and turned to hulks.

Posted by: Park Place at November 25, 2008 1:35 PM

lemur11215

I take the R from Union Street to Pacific to get on the D to Rock Center a couple days a week when I don't bike. It's probably never been 30 minutes in my life.

We obviously have a different opinion on the retail, but you got to admit it's hardly as good as the rest of the area.

Posted by: Polemicist at November 25, 2008 1:39 PM

Having lived across fourth ave from these (next door to Paul Signs), lemme just say, 4th down there is super noisy. Traffic looking to enter the highway at prospect (left or right turns), tend to back up along fourth. The sound of truck hydraulic brakes opening and closing, gears shifting, etc., engines sighing, takes some getting used to! On the plus side you're super close to Home Depot! :-)

AS for the commute, It's probly 40 mins to midtown unless you don't have to wait long in the station. The local to Atlantic eats up a big chunk of time. Once you switch to the express, it's no more than 20 to midtown 34/42.

Posted by: LilBitOfLuck at November 25, 2008 2:00 PM

It's 2008. Every place in brownstone brooklyn is a quick walk to a fantastic wine store.

Sometimes I wonder if there's some kind of magic cheap wine at these stores that I am missing to make this actually worthwhile.

Posted by: Heather at November 25, 2008 2:12 PM

Wasder,

I agree. It seems to me that if your apartment has a view of the Prospect Expressway and the bay is to your left, you are not in Park Slope (not even South Slope).

Posted by: slopefarm at November 25, 2008 2:13 PM

Sounds like Polemicist is very slow walker. Thats why his commute is longer than everyone else and 15 minute walk 'to everything' from this building.

Posted by: Petebklyn at November 25, 2008 3:14 PM

I think you mean Polemicist is just slow.

To suggest that the only people who can afford a $2300 1 bedroom is a Wall Streeter, is pretty absurd.

I have friends who are creative directors, lawyers, doctors, development directors at not for profits, dancers, actors, etc.

All of which pay that much (OR MORE) for 1 bedroom apartments.

I have one friend who pays $3800 a month for his 1 bedroom in Hells Kitchen. He works for Esquire Magazine.

Posted by: 11217 at November 25, 2008 3:34 PM

$2300 for a legitimate 1br is very cheap for Manhattan below 110th St....and more or less market rate for Brownstone Brooklyn.

Posted by: fsrg at November 25, 2008 4:15 PM

Fascinating. Mr. Esquire magazine must be taking home at least $8,000 a month after taxes, or more than $160,000 a year. Is he also assistant publisher?

Posted by: mopar at November 25, 2008 5:27 PM

I don't know his title, mopar. He does ok.

160K is a hefty amount, no doubt, but I have many friends in their early to mid 30's who make close to that or above. I have another friend who works as a Development Director for a medium sized not for profit and he makes about 150K. I think you might be slightly out of touch with salaries in the city. These are not people in finance, but successful people who have worked hard.

You do realize that the starting salary for a marketing job (with about 5 years experience) with something like Macy's, Nordstrom, JCPenny, The Gap, etc is about 90K, right? My friend makes 75K as the manager of one of the Urban Outfitters in the city. She's 26. Gap managers make similar.

Posted by: 11217 at November 25, 2008 5:37 PM

"My friend makes 75K as the manager of one of the Urban Outfitters in the city. She's 26. Gap managers make similar."

For retail? Jeeze, I'm in the wrong business.

Posted by: Action Jackson at November 25, 2008 5:47 PM

My dear, if you have five years experience, it's not a "starting salary."

I'm not out of touch with salaries in the big city. I also work for a big publishing company. Only a handful of executives make more than 120K.

If you make 70K before taxes, 1600 a month is a stretch, and if you're making 80K, 2000 would be half your take-home salary. The $2300 one-bedroom price suits the working professional couple.

Posted by: mopar at November 26, 2008 12:18 AM

If you start at a new company, you could be 50 WITH 30 years working experience, and it would still be the starting salary at that particular firm, MY DEAR!

Posted by: 11217 at November 26, 2008 11:04 AM

11217 Dear,

You are proving yourself to be a bit slow, because you don't understand the meaning of "starting salary" as used by everyone besides you.

Posted by: the hwat at November 26, 2008 12:44 PM

11217:

Read my post again, I didn't say only people on wall street can afford the building.

Ask your friend about marketing. Market studies have two steps: identifying your market in terms of who can afford the product or service you want to provide and then of those people segment them based on the probability the product or service will appeal to them. It's not just a question of "can people afford it?". It's also a question of "what other choices do those people have?"

Why do people move to Park Slope? The architecture. The culture. The park. Commuting distance. I just don't think this building competes very well to many other rental properties in the neighborhood, especially at that price.

Population growth and/or superior product offering is what drives residential real estate. That means when a developer builds residential product, he thinks people will either "trade up" to his product or it will cater to new people who move to the area but don't have a home.

I don't think the population of Park Slope is going to increase much in the near term - so from where will the customers of this building owner come? My anecdotal evidence comes from my circle of friends in the neighborhood. No one I know would pay more per month to live over there, even to have a doorman and an elevator. I just don't buy it.

We'll see who is right soon enough though.

Posted by: Polemicist at November 26, 2008 12:49 PM

« Brooklyn Modern #2: Gut Renovated in Boerum Hill Last Week's Biggest Sales »

November 25, 2008

Fresh Rentals at 639 Fourth Avenue

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