Who did you use as a contractor? Thanks!

Posted by: Brooklyn11218 at August 13, 2007 12:18 PM in response to Bathrooms.. typical costs?

Are you in Brooklyn? And may I ask who did the work for you?
Thanks

Posted by: Brooklyn11218 at August 13, 2007 12:24 PM in response to Bathrooms.. typical costs?

ok, I bite..
What's the link?

Posted by: Brooklyn11218 at August 14, 2007 3:24 PM in response to Brooklyn Art Scene - Open Call!

Admissions for middle school next year will not be at the school level. The city is centralizing the admissions process to look similar to HS. My understanding is that parents will rank their MS choices and then be given their school.

I think in policy variences are out, its less clear what that will look like in practice.

Posted by: Brooklyn11218 at August 15, 2007 10:31 AM in response to ps 321

I think the house is really Kensington, but would definately recommend Jeff at Abacus Realty or Mary LaRosa Lederer at Brooklyn Real. I don't know Mary personally but she's closed many deals in our neighborhood (Windsor Terrace), and got a huge price on a co-op in our building.

We are in the processs of closing on our co-op sold by a great realtor (not mentioned above). I would totally recommend using a realtor. Unless as mentioned by Vanburenproud you have a ton of time.

Posted by: Brooklyn11218 at July 18, 2008 10:37 AM in response to Should I User a Realtor to Sell my House

We have had the exact opposite experience of Ray, and found for our area, smaller local agents were a better choice.
We are in Windsor Terrace and I would recommend Mary at Brooklyn Real, or Orrichio Anderson (who we both bought our apartment from and used to sell the same apartment).

My Corcoran connection didn't know our neighborhood, didn't take the time to know it and wanted a higher commission to do business.

In terms of Brooklyn's MLS my understanding is that its not there yet.

Posted by: Brooklyn11218 at July 24, 2008 8:53 PM in response to Park Slope co-op realtor recc's?

Vince: unrelated to this post, but I think you have suggested this before, I got it for my husband and he LOVES the book. We enthusiastically agree with Renovating Old Houses :)

Posted by: Brooklyn11218 at August 7, 2008 8:11 PM in response to Any good books re basic Home Maintenance?

Wes Martel at Martel Fabrication might be able to re-create too. http://www.martelfab.com/projects/architectural_metalwork/6

Posted by: Brooklyn11218 at August 7, 2008 8:16 PM in response to Fence Contractor

Thanks all for the input. We bought from Nemo Tile and are going to pickup in Jamaica.

It was a bit of a random tile situation, where I needed small quanity but, by Monday morning.

Thanks again.

Posted by: Brooklyn11218 at August 9, 2008 11:32 AM in response to Ann Sacks Tile

Are there show rooms around to view this marvelous material? I just scanned the website and we would be most interested in the blues or green apple.

Is this stuff expensive, and as you may guess, we are new to this world. Is Ceasarstone priced by the sq ft?

Posted by: Brooklyn11218 at August 14, 2008 9:56 PM in response to Anyone have a CaesarStone Quartz Countertop?

Bathroom costs vary hugely. As mentioned above, if you have the plumbing in place, and you are simply renovating an existing bathroom without moving pipes, I would expect to spend anywhere from $7k to $15K depending on how big it is, what fixtures you want, etc. If there is no existing plumbing (wiring is an issue too), you can expect to spend significantly more. You will also face issues involved with running water and drain lines through your house, which may be extremely inconvenient or disruptive.

When I was putting a new bathroom in on our top floor, I went through several different scenarios with the contractor, and ended up choosing one that would cut my costs by $10K. In exchange, I have to put up with water and drain lines running through my hallway (sheetrocked over, of course), as well as an indentation in the ceiling in the room below (also sheetrocked over). You can't run the pipes through brick, and they've gotta go somewhere.....

Posted by: guest at August 13, 2007 1:46 PM in response to Bathrooms.. typical costs?

When we re-did our master bath, we realized we needed all new plumbing and electrical. Our total cost for a fairly simple reno was $15k six years ago, but a significant chunk of that went to the plumber and electrician.

Posted by: tinarina at August 13, 2007 2:58 PM in response to Bathrooms.. typical costs?

We were at 8k but picked up all the stuff on our own once we figured out what we needed. We only paid 5k for labor which is pretty low and although they did a good job rushed at the end and there are a few details that needed touching up.

Posted by: kensingtonbrooklyn at August 13, 2007 5:20 PM in response to Bathrooms.. typical costs?

Gut reno'd ours for 9k, including fixtures (but kept tub). Didn't move pipes but redid some electrical. Used mid-range tile/fixtures except splurged on Dorn Bracht faucet/knobs. I'd say the 7-15k number is right on. Tilework can be expensive, and we had a lot of it done ( 4 feet up walls; we have 2 messy kids).

Posted by: guest at August 13, 2007 7:35 PM in response to Bathrooms.. typical costs?

We spent about $10k on a small 5 x 10; used cheap subway tile on walls and 1" hex on floors. Installed a custom frameless shower (about $2k for the doors alone); wainscotting; high-end fixtures; new vanity, etc. Labor was about $7k. With cheaper labor, you definitely get what you pay for.

Posted by: guest at August 13, 2007 10:16 PM in response to Bathrooms.. typical costs?

I wish I could get labor quotes for $7K from somebody good. I kept getting bids that were more like $12K for the labor and this wasn't even to move plumbing, just demo and reinstallation of new tile and new tub and vanity. So we put it off. Of course, now that I have had the time to think about it, I want an even more extensive bathroom renovation that will create a 2nd toilet behind a door (utilizing the master BR closet located behind the present bathroom wall) which will be like having a 2nd bathroom on that floor without building an entire separate one. So I'm estimating it will be at least $30K all-in, whenever it's done. Someday.

Posted by: traditionalmod at August 14, 2007 2:20 PM in response to Bathrooms.. typical costs?

Does anyone have a reco on a reliable contractor/ laborer for a bathroom reno?
For basic 5 x 10 bath we need new tile, and floor and fixtures, will probably keep the tub. Also, might explore opening a wall to install a washer/ dryer as well. Alternately, if anyone can provide resources for identifying someone to do the work, i.e. a list somewhere, that would be ideal. Thanks.

Posted by: guest at August 14, 2007 11:38 PM in response to Bathrooms.. typical costs?

Hello...redoing a small bath in Manhattan...33sq. ft. bathroom...180sq. ft. of tiles. Can someone tell me the going rate for removing wall tiles and replacing with new tiles (floor to ceiling)???..then tile over existing floor tiles...very good condition! Just the labor $$$..I'll provide materials! Thanx!

Posted by: guest at August 19, 2007 3:26 PM in response to Bathrooms.. typical costs?

My recommendation is to talk to more than one firm. And let them know you are talking to more than one firm.

If you go to Corc and they know you are only talking to them they will tell you they never ever discount the commission. If they know you are talking to someone else they will work harder for you and compete on price.

We had bought our PS coop through Brooklyn Properties so when we went to sell it 5 years later we felt we had a relationship (we like Marie who works out of the 7th+ Carroll office and lives in Windsor Terrace) and so turned to them first when we looked to sell, also talked to Corcoran.

Ended up giving PB as an exclusive for the first 60 (? not sure) days for a reduced commission. They failed to get any bids on it in their exclusive period (we put it on the market in January -- weren't a lot of buyers in that time of year) and so we opened it up to Corcoran as well. The weather turned nicer and the traffic got heavier. Ended up having a small bidding war between Corc and PB -- the buyers competing on price and the brokers competing on commission. Worked out well for us.

The other thing I feel I learned is that as well as the brokers know how to market properties in general I really know more about my property in particular. Try to imagine who would really LOVE your place and then think about marketing to her/him. The corcoran broker missed a showing of the apartment (he said it was a mix up) and I showed it instead. They seemed like me and my wife 10 years earlier so I felt like I knew how to talk to them. They ended up being the 2nd place bidder. The winning bidder (from BP) loved the apartment for all the reasons that I thought the apartment was great too.

Posted by: phripley at July 24, 2008 9:23 PM in response to Park Slope co-op realtor recc's?

Not to piggy-back on mrpickles' original post, but we are thinking of selling a co-op in North Slope (near Prospect Park) and would love to know if you have any recommendations for a broker who knows this area well.

I am considering talking to both local-based (BP, Aguayo) and larger firms. Corcoran has an office here on 7th Av so I assume they know North Slope? Are brokers with Douglas Elliman and Halstead familiar with the neighborhood?

Also do the big firms usually take 6%? Thanks.

Posted by: prolog at July 25, 2008 1:58 AM in response to Park Slope co-op realtor recc's?