Open House Picks

Agree with househunt--Caton Ave. is EXTREMELY loud. Vanderbilt is EXTREMELY quiet.

I live in the are, and am planning to visit both OH's tomorrow. Will post my thoughts (in case any of you wish to wait on the edge of your seats).

Sorry in advance for the lengthy post, but here we go:

I visited both OH's yesterday. Caton had a lot of visitors while I was there; I was the only one at Vanderbilt. Note to Vanderbilt FSBO, a sign or balloons or something would help at your OH. I wasn't sure I had the street number correct, and there was no indication from the street that an open house was happening.

Here is my take~

Caton Ave positives

Dedicated parking space (though parking is not much of a problem in this area, so it’s not as special as a parking space in the Slope, for example)
Original parquet floors
A bit closer to, well, everything, including the subway (3 minutes) and the park (8 minutes), than Vanderbilt
Some details remain, in addition to the floors

Caton Ave negatives

It’s on Caton Avenue, which is extremely busy and loud; tons of truck traffic (not just local trucks, but 18-wheelers)
No back yard
Not updated at all
One bathroom
Very small rooms
It’s been on the market for 6 months, so there could be underlying problems with the property or maybe the seller? Or maybe just the price….
The basement is jam packed with junk, which makes it difficult to gauge the condition of the room; potential water issues, etc

Vanderbilt positives

It’s on Vanderbilt, which is very quiet, but only one building away from McDonald Avenue (see negatives, below)
Reasonably close to the subway (6 minutes) and park (12 minutes)
Partially renovated, and I would describe it as move-in ready. However, not really much style & no details remain…. And, not everything is renovated (see negatives, below)
2 bathrooms and 4 real bedrooms
Versatile layout, which I think is a positive, though some would consider negative
Finished basement
Much more room overall than Caton

Vanderbilt negatives

Just off McDonald Avenue, which is extremely busy, and has the same sort of traffic I describe as a negative for Caton Ave.
Lacks a back yard, just a very small patch of grass, which looks out on to the driveway of the neighboring building
Bathrooms are not renovated
No parking (again, though, street parking is really easy in the area)

Overall, I would say that Vanderbilt is a better deal at $849,000 than Caton is at $769,000. Even considering that Caton has been on the market almost 6 months, so owner likely to take less, if I were in the market for a one-family townhouse in this area, I would buy Vanderbilt, hands down.