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June 15, 2009

House of the Day: 3 Monroe Place

3-Monroe-Place-0609.jpg
This Greek Revival house at 3 Monroe Place in Brooklyn Heights is a beauty but the fact that it's a three-family house probably narrows the pool of potential buyers, particularly those who want to buy in the Heights. The ground-floor owner's duplex looks very charming indeed (though someone dropping close to $4 million for a home will probably expect a slightly grander kitchen). As lovely a house and great a location as this is, we just don't see how they end up getting close to the asking price of $3,800,000, do you?
3 Monroe Place [Corcoran] GMAP P*Shark





Posted by Brownstoner at 1:12 PM | Comments (28)
Categories: Brooklyn Heights, HOTD

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Comments

If the house is delivered vacant, there is no problem. The renovation back to a single-family house is no biggie. If it is delivered with tenants, especially older tenants that canot be displaced, then I would not give you half million for it.
Times are too hard to f---k around.

Posted by: sam at June 15, 2009 1:27 PM

"Many noteworthy details will be shared with you on your private showing."

Because we haven't included them in any of the photos which we don't think is necessary to generate initial interest. MORON.

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at June 15, 2009 1:31 PM

Hey Brownstoner there is a house across the street from you and it's on the market. What's it going for??

The What

Someday this war is gonna end...

Posted by: Return of The What at June 15, 2009 1:34 PM

Kitchen photo appears to be the 4th floor rental... odd ....

Posted by: BH76 at June 15, 2009 1:35 PM

Wow where to start:
Why are the taxes $14K a year?
and why only 4 pics on the website if this house is soooo famous?
Does the picture of the kitchen belong to the Owners duplex, because if it does, that stove is as small as an Easy Bake Oven?

and again , someone tell me WHY OH WHY is this house priced close to 4 million?

Posted by: gemini10 at June 15, 2009 1:36 PM

This has got to be THE WORST WEBSITE LISTING for a house anywhere near this price point.

Good job Corcoran.

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at June 15, 2009 1:46 PM

Taxes are $14K because it is a three-family $3M+ house in Brooklyn Heights! Can't blame the broker and current owner for that!

Posted by: BH76 at June 15, 2009 1:48 PM

Nothing spectacular here except for the location...not worth anything close to asking in fact minimun $1.5millions OFF.

BTW MrB you think this a beauty really? Eye of beholder right?

Posted by: pierre de taille at June 15, 2009 1:53 PM

Clay Lancaster's book dates to 1961 not 1979. Additionally, this house appears in the frontispiece, not the cover.
The house on the cover of the 1979 second edition is 111 State Street. You can lie about real estate, but not about books. Especially venerable books such as "Old Brooklyn Heights".
Be aware that this house is next door to the corner house known as 100 Clark Street. That building was a terrible rent-controled dump of a place(of course originally it was a magnificent Greek-revival mansion). Last year the Department of Buildings vacated the house and partially demolished it due to a large bulge on the Clark Street facade. Now it is wrapped up in some kind of plastic wrap and its future is dubious to say the least.

Posted by: Minard Lafever at June 15, 2009 1:57 PM

For $3.8 mm I get to sleep in the basement and have a tenant bouncing around on my living room ceiling?

Posted by: Boerum Hill at June 15, 2009 2:04 PM

Thanks Minard. There's no way in the world I'd ever spend any money to buy anything with the prospects of the building next door being torn down. We have seen what that can lead to.

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at June 15, 2009 2:04 PM

"If the house is delivered vacant, there is no problem..." Posted by: sam

Um... the problem is the 3.8MM pricetag. If a buyer is taking on a renovation project the price has to reflect it.

Maybe if the rental income for the apartments is 20k a month each.

Posted by: Bklnite at June 15, 2009 2:07 PM

F'ing beautiful. I love the open, beam-soffit layout that exposes all three windows in one room.

$2.8M average reader appraisal. Peak Park Slope price for a beauty in the heart of Brookyn Heights. Yes, the market is plummeting indeed. Those who would have moved on this are now looking in the UWS. Everybody gets a neighborhood upgrade. Or two or three.

***Bid half off peak comps***

Posted by: Brownstones Half Off at June 15, 2009 2:14 PM

They have to be kidding with this one. No pictures, horrific layout for the owner's duplex - one bedroom on the garden level with the kitchen and dining room, the other on the parlor floor with the living room and family room. Both bathrooms also appear to be en-suite which is terrible when you entertain

Plus the rentals are also crappy looking (if the kitchen is anything to go on in that pic) and the kitchen appears to act as a pass-through from the living room to the bedroom. I know kitchens and bedrooms are close in smaller apartments but walk through the kitchen directly into the bedroom isn't exactly going to appeal to renters and sure isn't going to get the kind of rents you would expect for a house priced like this

Posted by: 90210 at June 15, 2009 2:23 PM

I'm waiting with gleeful delight to purchase a block of Brownstones for the 1880 price of $1000 in the form of 4 British sovereigns.

Posted by: Joe from Brooklyn at June 15, 2009 2:29 PM

No one would buy this for the current layout. They'd buy to convert into a single-family. The necessary structural alterations actually aren't too bad.

But that's meaningless speculation since as MF points out, this is next to the biggest eyesore in the Heights. This was listed either to float a trial balloon (if someone's willing to pay a lot, why not take the money to get away from the pain next door) or because the seller REALLY needs to sell now, which will require a big discount to comps. I don't think the market in the Heights is yet at $575/square foot for a house, but who knows what will happen here.

Posted by: NorthHeights at June 15, 2009 2:31 PM

OK...For all of you really interested in fine antique victorian furniture, this is the best place in the country...and, they are having a sale. i've never seen them have a sale like this before.

On page 2 that walnut secretary reduced from $8,250 to $4,500 is a real beauty...

http://www.southamptonantiques.com/so/so-1.html

They are in MA, not L.I.

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at June 15, 2009 2:33 PM

This broker is the worst! We used her to find a place to rent a couple years ago and she was the epitome of sleazy, slimy and dumb. I feel bad saying it, but I think that may be why this is such a ridiculous listing. I am shocked that she's selling $4mil houses and not still renting out $1800 floorthroughs.

Posted by: BoerumGuy at June 15, 2009 2:33 PM

Who would want to live next to that house on the corner that fell/is falling down. (It was already partially demolished, but I think there is still a floor or two there. Does anyone have any more recent info since the stop work order against the DOB from tearing the whole thing down?)

Even if you forget the question of whether there is any structural damage to the retaining wall between the two houses, at some point the residents are going to have to deal with a year or two of serious construction next door. Yuck.

And I say this as someone who really loves that block and would be thrilled to own a 25' wide house there.

Posted by: Boerumresident at June 15, 2009 2:41 PM

I believe that eventually the corner house will be rebuilt to match the historic look of the original. The landmarks permits are in place. In the long run, this will be a beautiful corner of one of the nicest blocks in the Borough. I do think that this house is just spectacular. So perhaps it is a wonderful chance to buy a top-notch house at a deep discount.
I actually prefer 100 Clark Street the way it is today (vacant and mummified) to the way it was a year ago when it still housed several holdout renters who could not be budged or bought out even though the house was falling down around their ears. I heard they were offered $100,000 each to move and they refused, only to be evacuated with only five minutes notice by the DOB last summer.

Posted by: Minard Lafever at June 15, 2009 2:58 PM

Mssr. Lafever: that is a classic example of the greediness of the renter class. :)

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at June 15, 2009 3:14 PM

Mr. Davidinbedstuy,
I am afraid that New York's well-meaning regulations affording rental tenants protection from market-driven forces, sadly overdoes it in cases like this one. it is one thing to protect the rights of renters and quite another to allow them to hold an owner hostage. In this case, the renters overplayed their hand and instead of accepting the $100,000 checks they were instead forced out to a Red Cross Shelter by the city with little or no notice or explanation. So it goes.

Posted by: Minard Lafever at June 15, 2009 3:25 PM

Please, call me dave. David is too formal and DavidInBedStuy sounds like the name of a hair salon. :)

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at June 15, 2009 3:28 PM

What,
$1.2 million. Stay tuned tomorrow.

Posted by: brownstoner at June 15, 2009 4:01 PM

Dave, because you are obviously a gentleman and a businessman with knowledge of "The Modern Builder's Guide", please call me Minard.

Posted by: Minard Lafever at June 15, 2009 4:07 PM

Merci beaucoup.

Posted by: daveinbedstuy at June 15, 2009 4:11 PM

I have nothing to say to Mr. B because he just PWNED me.

I am off to find a thread that I haven't ruined yet. Wish me luck!

Posted by: ghettoazzpnkbtch at June 15, 2009 4:25 PM

I agree with BoerumGuy about the broker - just awful! She was the broker on a rental for us and we nearly walked because we couldn't stand her.....really fake and totally pushy. I guess she must be doing something right though if she is now getting these kind of listings.

Posted by: rachel12 at June 15, 2009 6:25 PM

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