This place has been overpriced and stubborn the whole time.

Posted by: Paluka at October 23, 2008 11:28 AM in response to Checking in on The Vermeil

I'm a big believer in down more than 15%, but down less than 30%.

Posted by: Paluka at October 3, 2008 11:05 AM in response to Third Quarter Report: Foreclosures Down in Brooklyn

"rolling blackouts and food shortages"....I heard that things are going to get so bad so fast that when The Road movie comes out they are going to classify it as non-fiction

Posted by: Paluka at October 1, 2008 2:09 PM in response to Has the Bubble Finally Burst?

I'm an owner, but I've always told people I thought renting was a very good idea. But,the rental inventory in Brooklyn is pretty bad compared to Manhattan. For renters who want to buy, I don't suggest waiting for things to come in 30%, they may not make it there.

Posted by: Paluka at October 1, 2008 10:33 AM in response to Has the Bubble Finally Burst?

Get over it already. You stand in line for shit other people don't like, and they stand in line for shit you don't like. I bet they listen to music you hate too.

Posted by: Paluka at September 26, 2008 12:00 PM in response to Rainy Ribbon Cutting for Trader Joe's

It is completely irrational to care what appliances there are in a $4M house. You can replace appliances more easily than anything else that might be wrong in a house. A $4M is just a $3,775,000 house with fancy appliances. Anyone who is swayed by a washing machine when they are spending $4 million dollars probably should get professional help before making any large financial decisions.

Posted by: Paluka at September 24, 2008 8:30 PM in response to House of the Day: 169 Clinton Street

what is the square footage on this place?

Posted by: Paluka at September 22, 2008 1:36 PM in response to House of the Day: 147 St. James Place

You found a chain of restaurants in Seattle when there is already a Wild Ginger in Manhattan and Williamsburg? They also just opened one on Flatbush called Tao Palate for some reason, but it is the same place.

Posted by: Paluka at September 5, 2008 11:15 AM in response to Streetlevel: New Asian Restaurant Coming to Smith

Given the price I find it hard to believe it would not need $500k of work.

Posted by: Paluka at September 4, 2008 3:22 PM in response to House of the Day: 511 3rd Street

lechacal I'm not really sure if your post applies here. I think very few people bought in Park Slope "chasing their own greed", unless you think it is greedy to want to live in a nice neighborhood. And your comment about "fringe neighborhoods" obviously has no relevance here.

Posted by: Paluka at September 4, 2008 12:14 PM in response to Condos of the Day: 153 Lincoln Place

I haven't been actively looking in a few months, but these prices would have been reasonable before all the freddie/fannie business.

Posted by: Paluka at September 3, 2008 9:42 PM in response to Condos of the Day: 153 Lincoln Place

Buffalo does seem too geographically challenged to ever have any sort of real resurgence. Just too damn cold.

Posted by: Paluka at August 26, 2008 10:32 AM in response to Can't Cut It In Brooklyn? Try Buffalo.

Yeah it is a weird situation on this one. Being recently renovated just isn't as valuable when you have to rent out the place. Normally this much square footage recently renovated at this price would be decent.

Posted by: Paluka at August 11, 2008 1:52 PM in response to House of the Day: 531 11th Street

Those common charges are definitely not high.

Posted by: Paluka at August 5, 2008 12:33 PM in response to Closings Begin at the Heritage

I have no understanding of why they are giving money to help out first time home buyers. First time buyers are already getting plenty of help- the housing market is crashing. There is just no justification for this.

Posted by: Paluka at July 25, 2008 11:35 AM in response to Fed Bailout Bill: Any Piece of That Pie for New Yorkers?

The 3380 square footage figure is 3 floors + the kitchen. It seems like they are treating the garden level like a basement. Personally, I don't think that $/sq ft is a very useful barometer in these Brooklyn houses. That comparison works fine for commercial spaces and cookie-cutter apartments. But these houses vary wildly in both condition and how effectively they use their square footage.

Posted by: Paluka at July 21, 2008 10:40 PM in response to House of the Day: 586 4th Street

I think most people understand what is going on in real estate outside Brooklyn, but most people also understand that Brooklyn and New York City have very little to do with the rest of the country. There is very limited land in the city. Incomes are higher here. There was never an epidemic of subprime and other questionable mortgages in brownstone brooklyn. New York has been rapidly gentrifying leading to more people with money being willing to live here with kids longer and need larger spaces. There is a ton of foreign money pouring into the real estate market here as well. New York is just not the rest of the country. There are some good reasons why we might see a price drop in real estate here, but the fact that there are too many condos sitting on the market in Miami and Vegas isn't really one of them.

Posted by: Paluka at July 21, 2008 9:59 PM in response to House of the Day: 586 4th Street

You hope people "swallow their pride"? The real estate market in NYC is way more rational than you give it credit for. This isn't about pride and "reevaluating what is important". This is about what people are willing to pay to live somewhere. You make it sound like there is something noble about pricing your house aggressively.

Posted by: Paluka at July 21, 2008 3:46 PM in response to House of the Day: 586 4th Street

I know plenty of people who can afford a $3.5M house and are very interested in the kitchen. New York is full of regular people who have made a lot of money in a career- $3M homes aren't just for trust fund people and high society types.

Posted by: Paluka at July 14, 2008 9:25 PM in response to House of the Day: 615 2nd Street

assuming the place does not need major renovations, this seems like a good price for a house of this size. I don't know how many people need that much square footage, though.

Posted by: Paluka at July 14, 2008 1:34 PM in response to House of the Day: 615 2nd Street