Late Victorian/Craftsman Mantels

"Park Slope transaction sounds like a divorce settlement. Rather than do an appraisal, they just took the last sale price and divided by two."

Two men with the same last name getting divorced? Or two trust beneficiaries/sons of Richard Ravitch, former chairman of the MTA & buyout financier.

Really, this has to be one of the sillier comments ever posted.

Posted by: new2 at June 30, 2009 1:17 PM in response to Last Week's Biggest Sales

Why is it that all the good stuff is opening up in places *besides* Park Slope. It's getting to be a bit of bummer, especially compared to Boerum H and W'burg.

What to do about this?

Posted by: new2 at March 18, 2009 6:07 PM in response to Streetlevel: Clover's on Atlantic

Nokilissa,

I appreciate the *genuine* curiousity.

Actually, I mixed up 567 1st with another house. 567 is actually pretty nice too! Without a visit, I couldn't say whether it has *nicer bones*.

Sorry!

Posted by: new2 at March 10, 2009 2:13 PM in response to Price Cut at 615 3rd Street

This house has beautiful bones. It's in a different league than 567 1st St.

You can completely change the house with paint and wallpaper and other surfaces things.

I hope this house doesn't go under $3m, for sake of preserving values of comps.

Posted by: new2 at March 10, 2009 12:07 PM in response to Price Cut at 615 3rd Street

I think BRG is right, DIBS.

You pass the cooktop every time you go to the refrigerator or the patio. And it's on the island that makes this an eat-in kitchen. And it's also right between the path from the sink to the refrigerator. It's an accident waiting to happen. Plus, it's really inconvenient.

Posted by: new2 at March 9, 2009 3:03 PM in response to House of the Day: 18 Willow Place

TL - Sorry about your doors. But I'm saying something incredibly obvious. Rational buyers take the cost and time needed for renovations into account when they decide what to offer.

Posted by: new2 at March 3, 2009 3:22 PM in response to House of the Day: 365 Parkside Avenue

Townhouse lady:

What is so "super fugly" about the entrance? Looks like an elegant design to me. A few details and it could be pretty grand.

Regarding the kitchen, maybe they didn't have the cash to redo it, and didn't want to borrow. We need more of that. Plus, anyone wants to buy the house can surely spend $25-$50k to redo the kitchen.

Posted by: new2 at March 3, 2009 1:38 PM in response to House of the Day: 365 Parkside Avenue

Can't comment on the "karma". But for new construction, the build quality looks good and it works well on the street. Definitely a cut above what you usually see in South Slope.

Posted by: new2 at March 2, 2009 12:27 PM in response to Checking In On The Iroquois

We recently got multiple quotes for stripping a painted 20" bayfront to brownstone and then doing any necessary repairs. They were $50k to $75k. Perfect Renovation was the most confidence-inspiring (although not the cheapest). But we never went ahead with the project and so can't say anything about their work.

Posted by: new2 at February 27, 2009 6:13 PM in response to Facade Work

We tried to fight a $100 ticket for snow on the walk, and lost. Even though we had an affadavit from our neighbor saying that not only had we shoveled our own walk but their too. (True, and we got a ticket and they didn't.)

We did it for the principle, but ended up more aggravated. I tend to agree with smyer418 - it's just a cost of living in NY, unless you have nothing better to do than go to the hearing. ($500 ticket would be another story!)

Posted by: new2 at February 26, 2009 5:32 PM in response to How to fight Sanitation ticket

From your username, I'd guess in you're in Cobble Hill.

If you're in Park Slope, you're probably talking about the rectangular parquet (they're actually cloth-backed tiles) that are common here. (I've never seen them in Cobble Hill.) We also have some extras if you need them.

However, the reason we have the extras is we couldn't save the original floor. The tiles are really thin and tend to just come apart after a few sandings. So if that's what you have, I'd guess you'll end up ripping and replacing unless they're in really good shape.

Posted by: new2 at February 26, 2009 5:28 PM in response to reusing old wood parquet

gemini10...exactly! it's a fine house. They haven't done a cheap job. They probably didn't remove anything that wasn't already trashed. They haven't desecrated a landmark. They aren't ruining their neighbor's views. I think those thinks justifies a little slamming.

This just costs $$$, and that's really what the full-time commenters really resent.

Posted by: new2 at February 19, 2009 3:03 PM in response to House of the Day: 897 Union Street

DIBS...excellent point....sounds like there's a market for a new blog appealing to people who value preservation but are not snarky or bitter and don't think Restoration Hardware is the apex of the design world.

We'll take that under advisement.

Posted by: new2 at February 19, 2009 2:44 PM in response to House of the Day: 897 Union Street

Townhouse Lady...exteriors are landmarked, the choice of lighting in your den is not. That's kind of the point of all this, isn't it?

Posted by: new2 at February 19, 2009 2:38 PM in response to House of the Day: 897 Union Street

No 1: It's a perfectly fine house, in the top 5% of what you find in Park Slope.

No 2: I don't recall the owners of the house asking what "Mr B" thought of his house when they put it on the market.

No 3: I think this whole Brownstoner tradition of reading the real estate listings and then making (more often than not) snarky comments about the listings has become (1) obnoxious, (2) lame, (3) generally reactionary and (4) transparently driven by envy.

I mean, it's not likely Mr B is saving Penn Station from the wrecking ball with posts like this. It's really just rude.

Posted by: new2 at February 19, 2009 2:19 PM in response to House of the Day: 897 Union Street

I'm sure you (and the others posters) don't want to hear this, but I have to ask: How ugly is that door? There are some horrendous doors on our block, and it mars what otherwise would be a beautiful block.

BTW, a new door does NOT have to cost $10k, in case you need one.

Posted by: new2 at February 10, 2009 2:05 PM in response to Can Landmarks Do This?

Traditionalmod...Missed the opportunity to comment early on, but couldn't have said it better than you.

"..really good details IF a house has them. Many houses here don't. Also the degree to which they're historic and special can be very little. A bit of molding and maybe one fireplace doesn't count as a historic interior worth preserving in my book. If that's all a place has people should feel free to do whatever they want with the interior..."

I'd add one thing however. Some of the "restorations" Sam refers to are total garbage. I'm sorry, but you don't get a preservation award for adding some fake brass ceiling fans and switchplates etc. etc., which is what most PS "restorations" have. And if you're not really "restoring", you're not restoring.

Posted by: new2 at January 22, 2009 1:29 PM in response to Ultra Modern Reno on South Portland Avenue

First of all, it seems to me that people have the right to live *inside* their homes as they want. Exteriors and streetfronts are one thing; interiors are another.

Second, not everything *old* needs to be kept. And how old is *old* anyways? Renovations of an 1880's house are ok if they're done in 1910 but not if they're done in 2008?

It would be different if the typical *historic* Brooklyn interior really were architecturally significant. But many were just the bad taste of their day. And there's a lot of them. It would be different if we were talking about the Montauk Club. But it looks to me like what these people did was probably an improvement.

Mr B's obsession with "preservation" lacks architectural discernment, and ends up being reactionary and oppressive. IMHO.

Posted by: new2 at December 22, 2008 9:26 AM in response to Brownstone Interior Destroyed Modernized by Artist Couple

amazing place. only negative thing i can think of is having the hospital right there. listening to ambulance sirens at night would not help light sleepers such as myself.

Posted by: bktycoon at October 20, 2008 1:40 PM

No ambulance sirens here. The emergency room is on 7th St. between 7th & 8th. 7th St. runs north. Ambulances is are empty when they hit 8th.

Posted by: new2 at October 22, 2008 12:28 PM in response to House of the Day: 617 8th Avenue

New York's energy efficiency is a function of its density. Tiny houses on big plots are a step backward.

Posted by: new2 at October 17, 2008 6:48 PM in response to Brooklyn's Own Tiny House Movement

Hi,

I'm thinking of doing one of these myself. Anyway I can get the names of the engineers, contractors etc. who are helping you out?

Thanks!

Posted by: new2 at October 15, 2008 12:23 PM in response to The Modules

I hope LPC lets them go ahead. The visual implications to the neighbors are neutral (maybe even positive) and it's their backyard! People have done much worse without getting blockedf by LPC. Glass, grass, stone, how is that anyone's business?

It's a nice idea...wish I had room to do it.

Posted by: new2 at October 14, 2008 1:38 PM in response to A Sexy Behind for 139 Lincoln Place?

Barf....

It's not like What was debating with a panel of Nobel laureates. Lets' face it. It doesn't take much to win a macroeconomic forecasting debate among the Brownstoner commentariat.

By the way, a lot of people were forecasting it (Warren Buffet, for starters). They just weren't hanging around the Brownstoner forums.

By the way, what are these prescient forecasts What made? I recall him linking to newspaper articles, ranting and raving every time the DJIA dropped, etc. That's more consistent with being a bitter real estate have-not/barnburner than financial seer.

Posted by: new2 at October 11, 2008 10:27 PM in response to Quote of the Day

Mr. B., along with 9 out of 10 commenters on Brownstoner, should just exit the design review business, because they really have no taste, which is almost as bad as bad taste.

Take the obsession with "original details." Without a doubt, some Brooklyn houses deserve to be preserved in amber. Others have been so poorly maintained that there's not much left to save. (Often by people who think they should win preservation awards for watching them decay because they left them "intact.") And many others were junk when built and are still junk today. (Do you think Trump Boulevard should be landmarked 75 years from now because it will be old?)What's wrong with creative destruction in those cases?

By the way, I'm not talking about ruining landmarked facades in Park Slope. I'm talking about the in teriors, which are usually dowdy at best, and no one's business anyway.

Oh, and by the way....the addition to this BH house is hideous. So why did Mr. B. get suckered by someone waving green cliches around?

Posted by: new2 at October 10, 2008 2:46 PM in response to Green on Brownstoner: Salvage on State Street

rylb2009,

And by the way, I'd love to take you up on your offer of an architecture appreciation lesson. You seem like an individual of exceptional culture, taste and refinement. How can I contact you?

Posted by: new2 at September 15, 2008 1:15 PM in response to Late Victorian/Craftsman Mantels

rylb2009,

Enough negotiating, make me an offer.

Posted by: new2 at September 15, 2008 1:12 PM in response to Late Victorian/Craftsman Mantels

Pluses:

Great woodwork
Exposure on three sides
Nice proportions

Minuses:

Major facade work needed (entire back facade needed repointing)
Kitchen sucked
Horrendous, cheapo "pueblo" style "spa" for master bath
No yard
No basement
North side of block is basically a dumpster for Flatbush storefronts
Charmless garden rental
Broker is a complete a*hole (wonder how he functions, even where standards are as low as in PS)

Net:

Some sucker overpaid, big time!

Posted by: new2 at August 25, 2008 11:32 PM in response to Sales: 146 Sterling Place Fetches $2,730,000

I wonder where The What spent his summer vacation? Wouldn't it be delicious to find out he has a 1/4 summer share in West Hampton?

Posted by: new2 at August 19, 2008 1:02 PM in response to 445 E. 19th Street Dodges Foreclosure Bullet, Lists Large

1. Front of house looks out at brick wall of tall building
2. Back of house looks out at giant air conditioning exhaust ducts of tall building (which blow onto the back yard)
3. Back yard gets no light
4. Garden floor needs major renov
5. Fourth floor is not on the market
6. Parlor floor is very small, since main stair is needed to service the fourth floor

= $2.6-$3m before you're done, dank outdoor space and it's still a coop!

Posted by: new2 at August 14, 2008 1:35 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 110 Hicks Street

I hate to be catty, but this is really just not that interesting. It's kind of like reading about your evening tooth-flossing ritual.

Posted by: new2 at August 1, 2008 12:09 PM in response to Bird Blog: Week 12

kuroko, good catch. i had the same thought when i saw the staging. then i saw it's the same broker. then i recall that broker said the 209 dean owner had decided she was so good at renovating, that she's become a full-time style flipper and was already working on the next project while selling 209.

for what it's worth, the 209 renovation was just a veneer. ceilings dropped instead of replastered. sheetrock laid over walls that needed skimcoating. wall2wall carpet over subflooring. woodworked covered in paint without stripping. the new work was already peeling away from what was underneath in some cases. basically, expect that renov to have a half life of 18 mos.

Posted by: new2 at July 24, 2008 5:07 PM in response to House of the Day: 210 Prospect Place

http://americanflooringsystems.net/hardwood.php

Of course you need to keep them for future use if they are still in good condition. Buying new oak parquets are a little expensive. Are they still in good shape? If they aren't maybe you can dispose them and buy new ones that will be perfect for your kitchen.

Posted by: rhoebe at October 29, 2009 10:00 AM in response to reusing old wood parquet