Nice, I wrote that about this place last time?! No forgiveness needed IJ!!!

We're 200K below May 20 and I'll venture to say another 200K to go before it's taken seriously.

Perhaps I should have said poor "soul" instead of "fool"....I must have had an extra dose of bitter buyer's rage that day. So forgive me!!

I don't mind low stoops in the slightest, but you cannot trust Realtor photos. The street view of the bldg itself looks just dismal. Bergen is fine in certain spots, but noisy as all get out. The 2-way bus and truck traffic I believe would be substantial.

That just doesn't scream 1.6 million dollar home to me. Thumbs down.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 13, 2009 2:10 PM in response to Open House Picks

I only know from the front, never actually went to the property. We did a street view to check out the block...because it seemed like a decent deal for such a TALLLLL and nicely renovated house. So we were going to visit.

Which led me to question "which effin house on this block (we are not fans of Bergen on most sections) could possibly be that magestic, 3-story home with a lovely high stoop...

Answer is none. It's a squat looking thing w/ a dismal stoop and a garden windo basically at alley level.

You just have to see for yourself, and then try to hold back the general disdain for RE brokers you will feel upon conclusion.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 13, 2009 1:36 PM in response to Open House Picks

My wife and I were looking at the 449 Bergen listing last weekend. Love the interior.

However, on close inspection, Elliman did a SPECTACULAR job on the perspective distort on the building facade. Looks magnificent! I'd even say bright and cheery!

Now go to a street view in Goodle Maps and try and figure out which one it really is. Boooo...Hissss!!!!!

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 13, 2009 1:27 PM in response to Open House Picks

Broker, are you libby ryan?

HAHAHAHAHA!!!!

I tried to work with her as a buyer and threw her out the door....my one comment to her as she said she was....(looking for words), finished sentense, "sell side"

HAHAHAHAHA

She is a total total snake oil saleswoman.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 12, 2009 8:16 PM in response to House of the Day: 540 4th Street

Late to the party, but am I missing something here? 2 pictures of fireplaces, 2 doorways, a skylight and an exterior...

How are you all so sure of the quality of this property? Where's the love coming from?

My take is almost definitely a dilapidated mess w/ nice details in a great location.

And for this a cool 2 Mil...

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 12, 2009 8:10 PM in response to House of the Day: 540 4th Street

I *LOVE* the exterior of this place.

Posted by: InsertSnappyNameHere at November 11, 2009 1:28 PM

---

well that's good because DE's not showing you anything else other than a staircase.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 11, 2009 3:14 PM in response to House of the Day: 75 New York Avenue

"he was the jackal laughing at all the idiot buyers."

Wasn;t laughing at them. You really are an idiot, Antidope. And RE the bank statement shit, this is an anonymous blog. You're just a hater, my friend. It's general information. I would never hang out with you, but if I did, I wouldn;t tell you how much I earn.

I was saying that people who bought in the last few years thought they were probably buying low...but that the market is still correcting.

This was always said to point out people who try to hype the market...I don;t believe I've ever called a buyer stupid, though others have. They jsut overpaid. My goal was to knockdown the Team Bull argument.

I remain a Bear on real estate and the US economy.

I am willing to overpay some here because of how much money I am saving in taxes and pre-school. 50-70K in the first 2 years alone.

And my life will be sop much happier now that I don;t have to visit real estate blogs with miserable dipsh*ts like you. Honestly. backyard aside, that may be the single biggest quality of life improvement I just bought myself.

Godnight.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 4:40 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

This is a good time to buy real estate. I agree with MFN. Even though it is probable that prices will come down further, the dollar will drop even further. Pretty soon all the dollars we have socked away in the bank or in our 401K's won't be enough to buy us socks. Better to put money into real estate and durable goods. At least when push comes to shove you will have a place to live and something to drive.

Posted by: Minard Lafever at November 9, 2009 4:23 PM

Minard,

This also played HEAVILY into my thinking...if Inflation picks up heavily, RE will not come down nearly as hard. That's just another one of these ridiculous maybes in a steroid-induced economy. Just too hard to know how it will play out.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 4:34 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

She enters at 2 (2.5), kindergarten starts at 5, correct. So 2-3, 3-4, 4-5...

Might be 2 years though, Mom's in charge of the school details.

Still, I'll take the savings for 2 years!

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 4:32 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

Yes, I am still a bear. I'll just be a far less frustrated one.

Dope was just waiting for one to crack so he could snipe.

Too bad hater, going to live in a fu*king sweet townhouse my little daughter will run around like crazy in and giggle her head off. I'll be having cocktails on my deck soaking in my super-deep backyard.

And I spent less than half my non-retirement savings to do it.

Hate on that.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 4:30 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

Yeah antidope, why the meanness? I don't get why folks have to be so nasty on here. And OK, so MFN shared his financial info, but this is an anonymous list - very different than discussing that stuff point blank at a dinner party. What difference does it really make when we're all anonymous? Frankly, I find that kind of candor revealing, and appreciate when people are forthright.

Posted by: Miss Muffett at November 9, 2009 4:17 PM

If he weren't such an assh*le, I'd say we should feel badly for him because he had it rough growing up, and I'd probably mean it....;)

And thanks for seeing my pt on financials Miss Muffet. He's so upset about it because Antidope, ironically = just another hater.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 4:21 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

Antidope:

It's about willingness to wait. Moving to pay rent for 1 or 2 years to see how things shake out makes little sense when I'm getting 20K a year in taxes saved and buying 25% below peak. Oh, and 3 years of free preschool saving me about 30-45K. If that's throwing in the towel, then so be it. But it's clear I'm nowhere near peak buy, and for the trade-off to live in a 3-story brownstone w/ a 60-foot backyard and deck, call me Roberto Duran.

If you know one thing about me (and you know little), you know I did my research. I had 11 years of every single and multi-family home sale in Hoboken printed out for me a year ago. I know where the best blocks are, and I know what people paid for every property that was transacted in that time. So, yeah, I have *kind-a* seen the comps in this nabe.

The 3 most recent sales at peak on the same block in question are literally the same exact specs, and considering the place we're looking at has a full renovation on every floor, I'll assume they are equal quality at best.

Plus their mortgages are probably 1.5-2% higher vs comp 30-year fixed if you want to throw that into the cost of ownership at peak.

No delusion that this is a prime Bklyn townhouse, so not calling it a Benz, calling it a way more sensible value vs the absurdity of brooklyn real estate.

I do like however that I'm the a-hole, when if you look, I've never instigated any personal attack, just been pretty blunt abt how overpriced brooklyn is. Been pretty unsentimental about the US economy and financial steroids. But there's always someone like you willing to throw a swing, and when they do I throw back hard, I throw back smug. And yeah, then I *am* knid of an assh*le about it.

And re: the bank statement info, none of you know me, have never met or seen me, so I consider it not rude at all to share. It's information anyone in a similar financial situation can use to help their own thinking.

I tell all my personal friends I'm having financial trouble and ask if they can loan me money so I don't seem like such a dou*hebag.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 4:18 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

"You're only paying -26% off that peak comp. Pretty consistent with where we are in Brooklyn. "
--------

Agreed, but BHO, I was not willing to continue to wait (who knows how long) to *maybe* get another 10-15% off peak. And post 25% peak in brooklyn is still an INSANE amount of money, and nothing I would consider. I suspect brooklyn falls harder than Hoboken, which is only a one-square mile town. There's very very little brownstone inventory.

Rates are just so damn low, and getting below the max conforming limit was a big hope for me (saving abt 500 bucks a month in interest by doing so). So you pull the trigger.

Monthly payment is $4K ($3200 of it is deductible for the first 7-10 years), plus $1K prop tax (40% deductible). So you're looking at post-tax $3,100 or so to own this place. Way less stress to own, and 15-ft wide or not, after 12 years in a 600SF rent stabilized apt, believe me, it's plenty large.

I do think it's going to drop more, fully expect it. But in the end it's a very high quality property on a prime block. We're in it for 10 years at least, so not so concerned.

In the meantime, we saved ourselves a very serious sum of non-retirement cash that we can deploy elsewhere if bargains appear.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 3:53 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

Thanks TL...

Italian pasteries and deli meats is one cultural upside for Hoboken, no doubt.

There's a Portuguese Piri Piri place that just opened there, which feels like a cultural awakening for the nabe, so I'll cross my fingers.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 3:34 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

"public schools in new jersey are GREAT and GOOD even in the hardcore ghettoes because in NJ property tax is evaluated fairly"

ROB, unfortunately, in Hoboken, that's not the case, they're pretty bad (or typically have been). But there are 2 charters.

That's one of the drags of Hoboken, you get socked w/ NJ property taxes, but the municipality doesn't have the same quality the awful suburbs have.

Just another trade off.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 3:24 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

MFN, what are you doing about schools for your daughter? Are you sending your daughter to private school?
---------------------

Ultimately, I think so, but here's the details:

Related to this, more on the value: Hoboken has state funded free preschool. My daughter starts pre-school next fall. So 3 years of saving about $10-15K a year (post tax). I'll take that every day of the week.

The deal w/ Hoboken schools is that until about 3rd or 4th grade, they're pretty good actually. Then people historically have moved out.

But I think possibly you're going to see many of the recent parents there stay for many reasons, so we'll see.

There are 2 charter schools. Not a ton of seats, but you can get in, and if you do, you're golden.

The income tax I'm saving will pay for much of the school, if not all, anyway. And honestly, unless you get a prime school district, which means REALLY paying up the nose in Brooklyn, you're likely looking at private school anyway.

ROB, not ashamed of the 'boken. Originally from Fort Lee and Edgewater as a kid. It's just not nearly as interesting culturally as Brooklyn. But it's very family friendly and has a nice walking vibe.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 3:21 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

DIBS--I love the federal bricks better as well, I'm with you)

Wadser,

There comes a pt where you might not get that dramatically reduced price anytime soon. As inflated as I believe NYRE to be, I got sick of waiting. A year and a half looking (originally hoboken, then a year in brooklyn) made us realize that. A real estate correction takes 5-7 years typically, and I'm not willing to wait that long.

The part that makes it an even better deal is that the loan is at 5.25% for the max single-family rate of 729K. That is an insane bargain, and .5-.75% below the loan once you get over $729,750. Huge savings. We saw a place we really like, and financing it will literally never be cheaper.

Unless you're willing to put down another 100+K, you'll never get that loan in brooklyn now. I decided holding onto additional cash in this environment was a smart idea.

Identical properties on this block were selling at $1.275-$1.325 million in late 2007 early 2008, the peak. And this house is in pristine, and I mean pristine condition. Almost nothing to do.

So we got it at 25% off peak, and with a dirt, dirt cheap loan that will save us thousands. Maybe not the value I was looking for, but the value I will take nonetheless.

Alop, since I run my own business, NYS Unincorporated Business Tax takes another 4% on top of the 4% city tax. I'll include the $20K in annual savings I project as part of the value.

Everything's a trade off. After 18 hard months of grueling looking and hoping, this trade off felt 100% right.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 3:15 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

Thanks DIBS...i'll post the link once I have a contract....

So yes, a perfectly pointed federal brick front, I'm not gay so I lump em all together ;)

And man, these guys really did pour a ton into this place (owned it for 10 yrs). Slide out drawers in every single kitchen cabinet, even one of those silly spice rack slide-out things. Granite kitchen breakfast bar, one of those pull-off faucet things. They Even put a custom-built-in murphy bed in the guest BR. Oy vey!

Also has 2 working original fireplaces.

The price is insane vs the inanity we were looking at in Bklyn. When a couple w/ 550K min the bank and 300K in income isn;t really set up to buy anything other than a junk brownstone at best, somethign is wrong. We got tired waiting to find out what.

A little narrow at 15-feet, but it's laid out perfectly, and after a year and a half looking, including 60-places in brooklyn, this thing is such an amazing alternative to all the aggravation, and a super high quality piece of real estate.

I'll deal with the frat-boy mentality downtown there and keep my daughter away from them best I can.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 2:55 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

Hey, let me take the target of 11217's back.

I was going to go see this place Sunday. Scary that this place is at the fringe of "reasonably priced" in Brooklyn. But that's where we are even today.

My wife and I love it in Bkln, wanted to live there for sure. But owning a brownstown was a semi-must. Or at least a 1400-1500 SF condo w/ serious outdoor space

So instead, we went back for a 2nd visit to what's almost certainly our new home:

3 story, single family federalist brownstone with central air and fully renovated with classic charm, crown moldings up the wazoo, jet-air jacuzzi tub in one BA, full wall to wall standing shower in the other...Fully renovated kitchen wirh a sweet 15x20 foot deck off it spilling into a perfectly landscaped, low maintenance 45-foot deep yard.

(Having 2 meticulous gay guys as the current owners is a BIG plus BTW if you're looking)

For this, we'll pay $965K off a peak comp of $1.3 million in 2007/2008 for identical brownstones sold on the same block. One of the best blocks in this hood. Probably top 3 or 4.

Building of this quality I estimate at asking a hyped $1.4-$1.6 million in park slope.

The catch? It's Hoboken. Snicker away. But you know what?

After 1 year of looking, we were so sick of the ridiculously overpriced properties in gentrified Park Slope it makes us ill. The $20K a year in taxes I'll save as a business owner cures a lot of ills. As does getting to live in a gorgeous building on a 100-foot deep lot.

So there's the value if anyone's looking for pristine brownstones for under a mil. 15 minutes from midtown, 25 from downtown.

Put down $235K, to get your loan to the max jumbo-conforming limit of $729K and get a ridiculously low 5.25% FIVE-POINT-TWO-FIVE PERCENT!!! 4Gs a month payment.....

And that smacks of a pretty amazing deal at the expense of brooklynites laughing

Thank you and good night, and please, feel free to send some snipes. Brooklyn real estate can really go eff itself. So Overpriced. I'll sit on the several hundred thousand dollars I just saved myself and use it to buy something else when things REALLY fall apart.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 9, 2009 2:42 PM in response to House of the Day: 430 10th Street Revisited

"Can't knock the location"??

Between Vanderbilt and Underhill across from a dead lot and a basketball court? BHO, you going soft?

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 4, 2009 12:09 PM in response to Price Cuts at 272 St. Marks Avenue

that is one dismal location. a dead lot to the right and a POS residence sure to be torn down at some pt and turn into a contruction nightmare.

New construction completed in last year plus? Crap quality to be sure.

Still shooting for over 700 bucks a SF? "Good luck", or "my condolences", depending on if it sits or sells.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at November 4, 2009 12:06 PM in response to Price Cuts at 272 St. Marks Avenue

i am enjoying life, brother, in my humble brooklyn abode.

part of that enjoyment is unmasking the self-righteous who think they know more than the market just because they've been shopping.

looks to be a lifelong battle.

[closes door gently, smiling goodbye]

----
non answer to the question. and talk about self-righteous.

[returns to work, thinking what a total tool]

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 9, 2009 4:54 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

Also wonder, you an economist for the Fed or a supply-side think tank?

You seem to consistently be of the "less bad = bullish" persuasion.

"Buy now or be priced out forever!!" has been replaced with "Buy now or you'll miss the bottom!!"

Lol!

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 9, 2009 4:14 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

"I am thinking we had an initial 20% drop which will be followed by another slow decline of another 10-30% more, but hey, who knows. I wouldn't buy right now unless its a real steal."

------
Thank you for succinctly stating the relatively sane, obvious position. Why people seem hell bent on these boom or bust predictions is beyond me.

Real estate bottoms take 5-7 years to complete typically. We're in the early stages, and downward-trending stagnation is likely the next leg down. Patience and smart bidding and negotation will be rewarded.

Unrelated, I do find Dope putting "peace" on his last post to make himself feel good after starting more pissing contests to be very funny. Whatever you need to make yourself feel good, I guess.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 9, 2009 3:56 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

i hope you read more carefully before you sign binding contracts; there was no mention of you or your EGO in the april comments. got it?

Posted by: antidope at October 9, 2009 2:36 PM

---------------------

More about your lack of ego I think than any show of one by me. Poor fella feels the need to post about waiting on me to "start slamming doors"

Does poor baby need a little attention?
Got me on your brain even when I'm not here?
Sad.

But thanks for confirming what I just said: There were no comments by me on the houses 6 months ago. So what exactly were you expecting me to slam doors about on this 6-month update? Please enlighten us all, I'd like to know where the silver lining is here.

Here are the facts:

--50% sold below ask,
--50% continue to twist,
--buyers who purchased this year have paid higher interest rates than needed.

And this was WITH one of the great reflation trades of all time. Heaven help those with large payments to make when the stimulus runs out.

So, seems like sitting and waiting continues to be a great decision for any would-be buyer. Nothing to slam a single door on, just sit, wait and to use one of my like minded poster's handles, get "more4less"

Sorry to burst your bubble.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 9, 2009 3:04 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

Oh, and for the record, not a single negative comment 6 months ago by me on either house that did sell, so again, what exactly is your point?

That prices continue to drop? Yes, we can all see that. Congratulations.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 9, 2009 2:24 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

[waiting for yougetwhatyoupayfor, i mean, moneyfornothing to walk in and start slamming doors]

Posted by: antidope at October 9, 2009 2:04 PM

-----------------
Man, you really spend your time trolling a real estate porn blog and wait for people like me to make a response? That's sad, man.

But since you insist:

Always a buyer willing to purchase a place, never stated otherwise. And as I've often mentioned before, each and every one of them that has in the last 18 months is, without question, negative equity (and paid a higher interest rate as they've kept plummeting).

May be fine for most people in a long-term situation. But unless you are severely pressured to purchase, I see no need to put yourself in that position.

But in the meantime, let's be sure to point out here that 50% of these did NOT sell, and the 50% of them that did both sold for under ask.

So until you start seeing places go at or above ask, the trend is down.

So, Dope, I'll sit in my 600SF rent stabilized apartment in Soho, walk the 3 blocks to my design firm, and use the time I save commuting to spend more time with my lovely 22 month old daughter.

All the while, squirreling away thousands in cash to increase my purchasing power.

Not so much a door slam as a bitch slap, but there you have it.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 9, 2009 2:21 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

Over a mil to live far south between 3rd and 4th avenues is a stretch. Nice looking property on the surface, but c'mon. That area is grim.

It is NOT park slope, it's Gowanus.

Nice looking place on 11th, tastefully done...but $1.65Mil for a single-family on this block, nice enough as it is, seems a bit optimistic. Hardly outrageous given it's peers, but I doubt anyone's running in to pony up the cash.

What is nice is all these new optimistic sellers are flooding the area with inventory.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 9, 2009 2:06 PM in response to Open House Picks

That's a lot of scratch to have a large 1 BR apartment for your family and have to be a landlord for 2. Especially since garden floor looks like pretty low ceiling.

Too bad the duplex doesn't look like it'd make a reasonable small 2BR otherwise w/ the rent-controlled space, come down about $175-200K and it looks like a good value.

At that price, a nice deal if you have no kids and want to be a landlord I suppose...

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 8, 2009 1:23 PM in response to House of the Day: 130 Summit Street

Link for the St Marks place?

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 5, 2009 2:45 PM in response to House of the Day: 276 Berkeley Place

"How much did the median salary go up since 1991 before falling to $400/wk?"

Hey, to be fair, unemployment is now $425 a week in NY thanks to the stimulus package....

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 5, 2009 2:36 PM in response to House of the Day: 276 Berkeley Place

"Whaddya Think"?

May be worth this, and maybe they get it. Don't know, I'm not an oligarch.

But what I think is that the sellers think the real estate market has come down 50K, or .00000000001$ on a four-and-a-quarter million dollar property since 2007.

you just have to love the pricing strategy on that one!

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 5, 2009 2:34 PM in response to House of the Day: 276 Berkeley Place

"It can actually take 8-10 months to sell, even in a good market"

Since we're in a particularly bad market, or more precisely, a particularly bad economy, I'd say that one fact doesn't bode particularly well for properties sitting on the market.

The fundamentals of the economy, despite John McCain's declaration, are still not strong, and are likely to slip once the stimulus wears off. We're shedding jobs and stagnating WITH 1.2 Trillion in gov't spending.

Sellers better get in front of the market, or, as is happening with most listings, they will fall behind, and play my favorite game, "price cut catch-up"

good night.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 5:42 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

Blah Blah Blah,

Predict all we want. The point is,

Prices are continuing to drop. Even after the latest stimulus-infused bull market.

Doesn't mean doom, just is what it is.

If you're a buyer, it means worth waiting, being very selective if not, and bidding aggressively whenever you offer.

No rational reason not to. There will almost certainly be more opportunities, probably at a lower price. Maybe not half, but lower.

Dunno about you folks, but spending less of my hard earned cash is something I generally look forward to when making a purchase.

Need proof the opposite is happening to change my opinion, not rants.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 4:56 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

Brownstoner, the Bed Stuy house is in contract. It says so on the listing.

Posted by: mopar at October 2, 2009 3:56 PM

ALLRIGHT!!!

Now we can formally request: "Enter Meatloaf......"

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 4:00 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

"Keep trying to talk the market down though...I've gotta admire your tenacity. "

We don;t need to talk it down, it's doing a mighty fine job of it on it's own. Every sale below ask, and most listings not selling....

Those are the facts, not a rant.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 3:17 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

WAIT!!!,

We in fact can quoth the Meatloaf for these places, I've got it:

"So don't be fooled, cuz none out of four ain't GOOOOOOOOD..."

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 3:15 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

"the real unanswered question is whether we are in a temp or firm plateau. no amount of cyber table pounding will answer that question."

The lack of sustainable economic growth, increasing unemployment (263,000 jobs lost last month), decreasing wages, pronounced deleveraging of consumer balance sheets, lessening of appeal for housing as an "investment" option, lower appetite for risk, end to the 9-month stimulus prop-up and commensurate stock market contraction, potential removal of the increased "jumbo-conforming" loan limits and a constrained financial service industry facing a commercial loan meltdown on top of their other systemic problems might just provide a clue however...

But that's just a guess.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 2:35 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

So antidope,

Did houses (which now sell for 3 million) in general go for 300K in Brooklyn Heights in 1995 or was there an issue with this house?

I'm genuinely curious because I know my neighbor paid a little over a million for their house in 1998.

Either prices moved up a ton in those 3 years, or the North Slope was much more desirable than Brooklyn Heights in the 90's.

---

Nice backpedal.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 2:25 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

"Ultimately, he said the firm expects prices to drop an additional 5 to 10 percent."

OMG, the horror!! 5-10% further down? Bring out the National Guard!!!

Posted by: 11217 at October 2, 2009 1:49 PM
----------

Nicely done excerpting of a quote to support your perspective!!

I hope we can agree that something like 10% off on a 1.5 million dollar property is a lot of scratch. A horror for many folks to lose actually.

But is this the worst case? Let's consider the source of the quote:

"Robert Knakal, chairman of Massey Knakal Realty Services, which is marketing several distressed assets in Brooklyn..."

After giving sympathy his unfortunate last name (particularly for the lovely Mrs Knakal...) I, wonder if he has any reason to see the rosier side of the picture?

Deutsche Bank famously predicted 40% down from June levels this year, and many a Bull here laughed at it as imlausible.

So who's correct? Could it be somewhere in the middle, closer to the 20% I imagine. Now THAT'S a horror!!

While we're at it on price declines, I wonder how much sellers are conceding on closing costs and mansion taxes that don't show up in the sale prices these days.

Methinks a lot.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 2:04 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

"Today's low ball is tomorrow's high ball."

Right about now, I could use a highball

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 1:55 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

Saw the place on President a month ago when it listed for 1.795M (originally 1.895M).

It's got character and details, but cramped, small cut up rooms, pretty dark. And it is JACKED full of stuff, just crammed to the gills. And the bathrooms are pretty glum, along w/ a ho-hum kitchen.

It's a great block of course, but the owner's space is really less than ideal—small and carved up and the 2 rentals are nondescript.

For the money they're asking even now, I think it's a pretty crappy deal for the owner as far as quality of living. As nice as the building itself is in quality, hardly feels special at all.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 1:38 PM in response to Open House Picks

Hey, WAIT A MINUTE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Brown harris Stevens site CLEARLY states that the house on Pacific is a NEW LISTING. There it is in bright red text on their website, plain as day.

Now I can't imagine that they'd be gaming the listings on their site to suggest the property wasn't anything other than a new entry and reasonably priced to reflect today's economic sensibilities.

They must mean some other 411 Pacific Street in Brooklyn.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 1:34 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

And thanks Broke Developer for making my Meatloaf refrain part of the "6-months later" lingo!!

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 1:15 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

"Comment: Are these sellers living in some other planet?"

No, they've bought the reflation trade along with everyone else. The sky's the limit!!

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 2, 2009 1:11 PM in response to Open House Picks: Six Months Later

These 2+ million dollar homes are really starting to bore me.

It's like Colbert Platinum, but not nearly as funny.

Is anyone on this blog really in the market for one of these things? Or qualified to give a qualified appraisal?

What a waste of time.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at October 1, 2009 2:53 PM in response to House of the Day: 171 State Street

"...maybe that $500k is down to $350k."

Well put, because this is my number exactly as one of the people in this situation. Leaving 200K in cash for potential lean times ahead is a must.

I suspect the majority of people in my position are thinking similarly.

Let's also not forget that the last 6-9 months represent a serious reflation trade financed by stimulus rolled off the printing presses in unprecedented quantities.

We've hooked up electrodes to the dead frog to twitch it.

Everyone has seen how the economy responds when there's over a trillion dollars in stimulus, primarily aimed at the finance industry here in NY.

Nationally, it's been accompanied with zero in the way of job or wage growth. The stock market is up, nothing else. The sustainable fundamentals of financially healthy Americans are not coming along for the ride. It's a trade.

What we don;t know is how it responds when it ends, and rates rise.

Both soon to come...

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at September 30, 2009 6:01 PM in response to House of the Day: 233 Garfield Place

"As distasteful as he is..."

Man, now dope, that one hurts.

I'm just givin you the straight dope, from the perspective of (I think) a relatively rational buyer of means, with a little macro-economic flair and you have to go and piss in my cheerios.

I'm taking you out of the will.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at September 30, 2009 5:41 PM in response to House of the Day: 233 Garfield Place

"I never said there was a plethora...in fact I said it takes just one. "

----------------------

A buying party of one tends to have an awful lot of negotiation leveredge when bidding on a home (and a pool of better quality alternatives with similarly low bidder pools).

Points to a downtick in prices if you ask me.

Unless these people are this wealthy, but too dumb to know they are a rare breed indeed.

So it may only take one, but it'd have to be an incredibly stoopid one at that.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at September 30, 2009 5:26 PM in response to House of the Day: 233 Garfield Place

"400K a year (a couple) could afford this house. "

That's quite an assumption that there are a plethora of couples where both people draw 200K+ a year.

And as a family that if my wife were working instead of raising our daughter, would be a very nice annual family income, this 2.5 million dollar home makes little to no sense.

A 2 million dollar home is pushing it.

And you better bet I ain't paying to massively reno the place, including mechanicals if I'm laying out that sort of scratch. There's just no way.

2 million bucks, that sh*t better be in top-notch condition.

Posted by: MoneyForNothing at September 30, 2009 5:16 PM in response to House of the Day: 233 Garfield Place