to piggyback on tybur6's great idea. i always thought it would be great if someone plunked down one of those great prefab 'small homes' that have been so hyped for the past few years on some lot in bk. how cool would it be to leave the shell, have a big garden, and then one of those super-eco, super-designed little houses all the way in the back?

Posted by: perhaps at November 13, 2009 11:26 AM in response to Big Turnout for 437 Waverly Auction

i'm surprised no one has mentioned the oddness of including a picture of, not just any hipsterish idiot waiting to have his legs amputated, but jakob lodwick of long-time gawker-ridicule fame. maybe there isn't a lot of crossover between gawker/bstoner readers...

Posted by: perhaps at November 5, 2009 10:30 AM in response to Subway Service on Weekends Is F@#%ed

don't think this building has a roof deck - not mentioned in this listing or any of the others for the building. it does have a courtyard.

great location - but hard to say much about it without decent photos or floorplan. but not a bad price to be able to put some roots down in prime bheights.

Posted by: perhaps at October 6, 2009 1:18 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 55 Pineapple Street, #7H

according to google streetview this block is downright celestial: http://bit.ly/2w8oUg

...

(p.s. not the first to make this joke, i know)

Posted by: perhaps at September 21, 2009 9:37 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 242 Baltic Street, #17

Awful story about the drive-by in bedstuy. Condolences to the families.

Sounds like it was around where a few bstoners live, did anyone see/hear anything??

Posted by: perhaps at September 11, 2009 9:16 AM in response to Friday Links

It's also important to consider newswalk's engulfed (almost) by the Atlantic yards project - units facing away from the yards (south exposure) are preferable, but you'll see that reflected in pricing

Posted by: perhaps at September 2, 2009 11:20 AM in response to Buying into Newswalk?

Oh yeah superfund is nine letters. Ha, beware my math skills!!

Posted by: perhaps at September 1, 2009 3:45 PM in response to First Closings Recorded at the Satori

Re: the superfund thing - as I said, think it is overblown, and, personally wouldn't care too much about it. also, I actually kind of like the building and it's a nice hood for sure. But right before I put an offer on my place I did consider a nice apt in the same area, and my risk averse self was freaked out by the (irrational) devaluation of the place because of the superfund stigma.

Posted by: perhaps at September 1, 2009 3:32 PM in response to First Closings Recorded at the Satori

Agree with maly, this is a great, quiet, charming
part of wburg BUT this unit has got a very 2007/8 price. Units at jacksonia, 444 humboldt etc. sold recently at more like 550-600/sqft - units, IMHO, with better layouts and outdoor space. Go a few blocks south of here around grand (in an admittedly much less nice area) and yr talking 500-550sqft.

Posted by: perhaps at September 1, 2009 2:43 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 105 Ainslie Street, #3B

The Gowanus bet

Not going to judge the buyer's mental capacity, but I agree they bet on a near future gowanus that definitely did not happen.  And, if they get superfunded they'll probably be taking an even bigger hit.

What's funny about that though is how irrational the whole superfund re devaluation is - eight letters don't make the gowanus anymore toxic than it already is. 

If I was looking to buy in gowanus I'd be cheering on superfunding so I could buy at a discount as a result of a program that will actually help solve the very, preexisting problem it publicizes.  

Posted by: perhaps at September 1, 2009 12:29 PM in response to First Closings Recorded at the Satori

when i went to see the one hanson units the other thing that really struck me was how small they seemed compared to the stated sqft. i don't know if this is because they built them with bathrooms the size of studio apartments or because they measured to the outside of very thick walls. but, for example, that 722sqft unit felt like 550-600sqft to me, max. was this just me?

i did like the building though - and the location seemed like a fair trade btw not particularly nice immediate area and great access to other nice areas. so, these units selling cheap will certainly raise the competition for other units in bk.

Posted by: perhaps at August 28, 2009 1:47 PM in response to Prices Cut on Most Remaining One Hanson Units

nice ltjbukem73!

it's interesting that there is a 'troubled condo corridor' that seems to run between vanderbilt and bedford from the navy yard all the way through prospect heights.

on first glance it seems to mirror just those 'emerging' areas that developers really sunk their teeth into - on the eastern border of clinton hill and prospect heights/western border of bed-stuy and crown heights

Posted by: perhaps at August 28, 2009 1:01 PM in response to ID'ing Troubled Condos

that rent hike would mean that someone would be paying the same rent for a 1bdr in East New York that I paid 2 years ago for a 1bdr two blocks from Columbia.

also, it is absolutely outrageous that at a time when rents are going down around the city, affordable middle-class housing is still disappearing.

Posted by: perhaps at August 28, 2009 12:37 PM in response to Rents Set to Almost Double at ENY Mitchell-Lama

correction - 95 lex does have closed units - but you get the point

Posted by: perhaps at August 28, 2009 9:42 AM in response to ID'ing Troubled Condos

i'm curious about the definition of 'troubled' as well. the crain's article doesn't really specify and the list includes a whole lot of buildings in very different situations. for example, 1 hanson pl - recent price cuts, but a lot of sales - and - 95 lexington, 111 steuben, etc - with no closed sales, a lot of units still on the market, etc. some of these look like real candidates for loan defaults, others less so.

Posted by: perhaps at August 28, 2009 9:36 AM in response to ID'ing Troubled Condos

one hanson is definitely not at 500psf yet. i assume, BO, you're referring to yesterdays price cuts - which were, admittedly, pretty big - and bring some units into the 580-615psf range. of course, that's been accompanied by a big uptick in maintenance at the building as well.

Posted by: perhaps at August 27, 2009 1:30 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 269 Clinton Avenue, #D2

agree with mopar - can't see how this is much more than 650-700 sqft. that said, the building is quite beautiful, it's a nice block, and the common garden actually looks pleasant and usable (in my experience this latter fact is rare). i bet it goes fairly close to ask.

Posted by: perhaps at August 27, 2009 1:10 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 269 Clinton Avenue, #D2

spent some time in sunset park over the last few years, had a good friend that lived there. it is a nice, family friendly neighborhood - and there are def some great restaurants. grocery stores seemed pretty so-so, though. and if my friend's experience was anything to go by, you really gotta leave the hood for nightlife - which can be a pain in the ass when you gotta get back there late at night and pay quite a bit for a cab. also, this place is next to the R-local rather than the DMNR stop at 36th which increases your commute noticeably. that said, for a family that doesn't do a lot of late night socializing it could be great at the right price.

Posted by: perhaps at August 26, 2009 3:19 PM in response to House of the Day: 552 47th Street

yes toren's definitely got 85 units out of 240 in contract. so turning into affordable housing doesn't look likely at all. rental, seemingly still a possibility. they certainly don't seem in any hurry to sell out, with an almost edge-like refusal to lower prices or (so i've heard) even negotiate.

Posted by: perhaps at August 25, 2009 12:18 PM in response to Mystery Downtown Development Going Affordable

also not taking sides in the bear/bull argument, but as per streeteasy. it does this confusing thing of taking listings that have been pulled and putting them in the 'Sales' column in the 'activity for the building' section. however, that doesn't mean those are actual sales - the ones at Toren are marked as 'off-market' - so those aren't sales, just pulled listings. bad design on streeteasy's part though - don't know why they still haven't fixed that.

Posted by: perhaps at August 25, 2009 12:09 PM in response to Mystery Downtown Development Going Affordable

I'm guessing be@ - like Prodigal_Son said - there's less occupancy (I don't think anyone's living there) and a lot more units. Moreover, they weirdly pulled all but one of their available listings from streeteasy - which seems either like they're going rental or making some other big change.

Posted by: perhaps at August 25, 2009 9:39 AM in response to Mystery Downtown Development Going Affordable

it is worth noting that recent sales in the building have been between 600-675/sqft. including a unit in the G-line on a higher floor. so this is a good 20% under some recent comps in the building itself.

still, not a fan of the layout, maintenance or location, really.

Posted by: perhaps at August 20, 2009 1:22 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 145 Park Place, #2G

this is a tough one. on the one hand, just above 500/sqft in north slope seems impressive abstracted from everything else. and it has a little outdoor space. one the other hand, 695K for a one bedroom, not impressive. location is not particularly nice - although convenient to the subway. monthlies are very high, particularly for a condo (it's $674 plus taxes = $1131). and the space is pretty blah.

Posted by: perhaps at August 20, 2009 1:10 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 145 Park Place, #2G

i'm not sure if i can use it, but i am looking to build a library space - and i would def like to see to see the photos. you can send them to realestatehfc at gmail dot com
thanks!

Posted by: perhaps at August 19, 2009 1:53 PM in response to Complete Cherry Panelled Library F/S

gotta be jamie foxx with those awards.

Posted by: perhaps at August 12, 2009 3:52 PM in response to House of the Day: 20 Grace Court Alley

$4000/sqft seems impossible - requires some person driven insane with money to will its reality into existence. and the recent economy has seemed to have a strong anti-psychotic on the stratospheically wealthy. yeah, maybe 10mil.

also, agree with mrs. limestone, that the interior was somehow less impressive than i expected. the clocks are amazing, and that central elevator/stairwell is amazing. for instance, the sloped ceilings in the master bedroom are kind of cool in an apartment that isn't worth its space/time in 2007 hedge funds, but at that price it seems a little cramped with small windows.

Posted by: perhaps at August 10, 2009 11:05 AM in response to All Along the Clocktower

i think there's something weird with that 386K figure for the house. not only is it almost unbelievable, but the article states that the owner paid 2mil. not sure whether this was an extraordinary deal for the buyer, so much as a record keeping anomaly.

Posted by: perhaps at August 3, 2009 9:33 AM in response to Heights Rent-Controller Out on a Technicality

yeah, nomi, i can relate as well having a very unusual, very punnable name myself - but then again i gave it to myself, so, i can't really complain (i mean my real name, not 'perhaps', which obviously, i gave to myself as well) and now i have confused myself, as well.

Posted by: perhaps at July 31, 2009 12:54 AM in response to Condo of the Day: 44 Cheever Place, #505

i think it'll be interesting to see over the entire run of this downturn how places like WT will compare to places like CH and south/east Wburg (Prospect Heights seems somewhere in the middle). it is possible that once the market bottoms out (whenever that is), the places with more speculation would be the places to buy, because all of the negative hype might artificially push those prices down, just the way the positive hype artificially inflated them.

(also 11217 - haha)

Posted by: perhaps at July 30, 2009 1:31 PM in response to Brooklyn Sales: Under a Million

there was an extended debate last time this building came up about its distance from the subway.

http://www.brownstoner.com/brownstoner/archives/2009/06/condo_of_the_da_141.php

the conclusion i took from this debate was that subway stops have no objective, physical location, but either 1. migrate seasonally or 2. are fixed only through the subjective perception of each individual consciousness

(also it still seems far from the subway)

Posted by: perhaps at July 30, 2009 1:02 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 44 Cheever Place, #505

i'm a bit in the BS-zone here. but is it possible that areas like WT are holding up better because they had less of a run-up in prices/inventory to begin with - unlike some other 'non-prime'/'fringe' (sort of hate all those words) areas like clinton hill, south/east williamsburg, or harlem in mnhtn, where there was much more speculation, development, hype etc?

Posted by: perhaps at July 30, 2009 11:54 AM in response to Brooklyn Sales: Under a Million

TD - I think it may also be a function of price - not price relative to the market, or relative to 'what it's worth', but just the actual price regardless of other factors. For example:

http://www.brownstoner.com/brownstoner/archives/2009/07/coop_of_the_day_257.php

This place in Kensington also was much closer than usual to asking, and received high praise. It is a nice place, but I also think there just seems to be generally more good will to properties priced under, say, 400K.

Posted by: perhaps at July 29, 2009 1:44 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 416 Ocean Avenue, #12

last thing on streeteasy to close in this building was a 1000sqft unit (not a duplex) at 575/sqft. i would imagine then that this would sell at a bit less per/sqft than that. so, it would be surprising if it broke 600k, for sure.

Posted by: perhaps at July 28, 2009 12:54 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 1 Tiffany Place, #5C

talking to some of my california friends - they always find it amazing how important price/sqft is in nyc real estate. easy explanation is simply the very value of space in the city - although i don't think that full explains it.

anyway, given that that's the case - shouldn't their be some more regulation of how one determines and advertises square footage - i mean for many new yorkers the value of an apartment is directly tied to:

(everything positive about the apartment) / pricepersqft

Posted by: perhaps at July 21, 2009 4:42 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 34 Plaza Street East, #704

dirty hipster -

i think you slightly misunderstand me. yes, attracting wealthy buyers has absolutely impacted neighborhoods like SOHO, WVillage, Tribeca etc in ways that many (including me) would consider negative. (i mentioned some of those ways in my comment.) my point is that despite this - i still enjoy a stroll around these neighborhoods, i still enjoy dropping by them, they remain attractive despite their extreme homogenous wealth. Wburg has been, and in some small spots remains, an enjoyable neighborhood precisely because it was a place that allowed people to live and start businesses and form communities without being incredibly wealthy. however, during the economic boom I think developers extracted a lot of value from Wburg's community without laying the groundwork for a more sustainable, long term, thriving neighborhood.

if the economic tsunami passes and the development train rolls on, if wburg does not simply ungentrify - (which I don't think, long term, it will) what is really likely to happen? i fear/expect wburg will not return to an interesting, affordable, creative community and neither will it become some sought after and very exclusive community. because it will neither be affordable nor particularly unique (since it was the community that made it unique, rather than the architecture or geography) so, it might just become a kind of middlebrow neighborhood with a slight aura of past 'coolness','newness'. (and, i don't think EV, LES or Nolita are exactly filled with beautiful architecture - but they have two things that wburg does not have - 1. they are on manhattan 2. they have far less open tracts of formerly indsutrial land lying empty for new condos.)

(btw, I would love, love a kind of utopian, new, blossoming of a youthful, berlin-esque wburg filled with artists, musicians, etc able to live and work in NYC in an accessible community - i don't see how that's going to happen)

(also, look there are plenty of places i like in Wburg still. i don't think all (or even most) of Wburg is like SEA, but I can imagine a future in which much of it is. )

Posted by: perhaps at July 13, 2009 6:23 PM in response to The Epitaph of Epitaphs for Williamsburg's Boom

I wonder whether wburg will be a 'better' neighborhood if and when the economy comes surging back. I was walking around SOHO the other day and thinking about the course of gentrification in various NYC neighborhoods. It occurred to me that no matter how gentrified/boring (to some)/homogenous SOHO, WVillage, Tribeca are they still are filled with historically significant, gorgeous (to most) architecture. A similar thing could be said about most, if not all of, brownstone Brooklyn. (And places like Chelsea and Madison Square Park are attracting some of the best new architecture in NYC even where they lacked much great prewar housing stock.)

By contrast, what's the best case for most of Wburg? That its unattractive blocks become increasingly occupied by new condos and the relatively few historic blocks retain their character? In this case, unlike neighborhoods whose buildings are re-used in the process of gentrification, Wburg will both be socially AND architecturally transformed for better or for worse. Moreover, Wburg, even at the height of the boom, attracted the Scaranos, Fischers and Kaufmans of the architecture world, not the Koolhaas' and the Tschumis. Maybe tastes will change and NV and Sevenberry will be seen as architectural masterpieces in years to come... But it seems likely that in this supposed best case, Wburg will settle into an awkward position where it doesn't have the cache or affordability to attract a young, artistic crowd and it doesn't have the singular architectural beauty to attract a wealthier crowd who can also afford DUMBO or BHeights, if not SOHO and the West Village. This makes me worry a little whether the best future of Wburg is an entire neighborhood that has the feel of SEA on a Friday or Saturday night - if you've been there you know what I mean - a sort of air of aspirational wealth that wants to be but isn't quite luxury but has lost all other cultural cache beyond this vague sense of striving to be like something wealthier, more exclusive in downtown NYC.

Posted by: perhaps at July 13, 2009 5:11 PM in response to The Epitaph of Epitaphs for Williamsburg's Boom

debate about exactly how many have sold aside, what does everyone think about that wild unit at the top of the church? every time I look at those photos I am torn between "that is rad!" and "how could you actually live in that?" in particular - love the stained glass - am weirded about by the notion of not being able to see outside one's apartment.

I actually did live in a convertered church a while a go that similarly had no way of seeing outside - all the windows were stained glass. it was way way bigger than this, but a total dump. I liked it at the time, but I was also 20 and willing to deal with a lot of craziness.

Posted by: perhaps at July 10, 2009 1:21 PM in response to Price Cuts at The Sanctuary

i'd say the L is a decent train but it is also mad overcrowded both during the day and at night. something that will only continue to get worse. recently, i was also really turned off by the thought of depending on the L when I found myself in wburg in the middle of the day in the rain and the L wasn't running from bedford to manhattan. unlike almost any bk neighborhood that is geographically close to mnhtn - you're basically completely screwed if this one train line goes down. (and that is also the true (partial) story of why I didn't put an offer in at fast-selling 72 berry.)

Posted by: perhaps at July 7, 2009 4:11 PM in response to Last Week's Biggest Sales

"The shooting on Classon two weeks ago drove away all the drug dealers who usually reside at Friendly Food Center"

umm, sort of reminds me of a story of a spider and a fly...

in any case, if you go to condosinbrooklyn.com it does say 1800sqft. even though the building's website says 1197sqft, i'm tempted to believe the other figure just because it is less f**king outrageous.

Posted by: perhaps at June 25, 2009 11:54 AM in response to Signs of Life at 105 Lexington Avenue

cringeworthy comparison of the day: 793/sqft for a condo on the clinton hill/bedstuy border vs 865/sqft for a condo in north slope
or
950K for approximately 1200sqft in CH/BS vs 975K for approximately 1100K in north slope

makes me almost not believe that 105 lex sale

Posted by: perhaps at June 25, 2009 11:20 AM in response to Brooklyn Sales: Under a Million

784/sqft doesn't seem too bad for brooklyn heights. maybe this area comps lower because of distance from amenities? the layout seems quite aesthetically pleasing from the photos, but it would make the place much more difficult to live in with two people. also, the location of the bathroom is unfortunate.

Posted by: perhaps at June 23, 2009 1:01 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 30 Willow Place, #4

just in terms of price/sqft in this area (assuming this place is between 1000-1300sqft) this place is definitely priced a bit high. 800-850/sqft is definitely on the high end of prime park slope apts these days, particularly given the necessary reno. i'd say you'd get a deal done in very low 800's or high 700's right now. and their shooting themselves in the foot pricing it higher, because a year from now they might be looking at mid 700's or lower and wishing they'd sold realistically. the layout is great though.

Posted by: perhaps at June 22, 2009 7:47 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 170 Prospect Park West, #4L

anyone have any idea what's up with the price on the ditmas park pl? i know ditmas is relatively cheap, but damn, i assume it was about to fall down or something.

Posted by: perhaps at June 19, 2009 11:11 AM in response to Brooklyn Sales: Under a Million

'You can buy a 2 bedroom apt in Manhattan for $500,000? Really?'

according to streeteasy, the answer is, even below 125th st, technically, yes - although most (if not all) carry a big asterisk of some kind. (of course, since Manhattan includes a hundred blocks north of 125th, if you take into account the entire island you can find plenty of stuff - but that's no surprise to anyone, I would imagine)

just considering things below the upper east/west side - here's one. not great, but not bad at 420K, right? still, considering the size, not sure it's a 'true' 2bdr:

http://www.prudentialelliman.com/listings.ASpx?listingid=1089790&utm_source=Streeteasy&utm_campaign=corporate&utm_medium=listings

this one even has (grim) outdoor space and a working fireplace:

http://www.prudentialelliman.com/listings.ASpx?listingid=1115755&utm_source=Streeteasy&utm_campaign=corporate&utm_medium=listings

(BTW, this is not meant as a bull or bear comment - I was just curious to see what the answer to the above question is - and thought I'd share what I found)

Posted by: perhaps at June 19, 2009 12:51 AM in response to Bank Predicts NYC Market to Fall Another 40 Percent

i looked at several apartments in this building. i thought the big open interior space was great - and the high floor apartments really have nice light and views. but the commute is a pain with only the G there and, i've had a lot of friends who lived in the area and, for various reasons, after a few years they were all itching to move elsewhere.

also, i looked at an apartment with a very similar view to the BHS listing and it went for 525K (or under, maybe) sometime in late 2007/early 2008. so, i'd say 488K is overpriced for a no view unit, and 525K is overpriced for a view unit - gotta cut at least 12-15% off peak comps to get interest right?

Posted by: perhaps at June 18, 2009 2:33 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 970 Kent Avenue, #107

jfss - i think i'm subway autistic - i do know cg, but if you asked my friends you'd discover i am notorious for screwing these things up. not gonna argue about where the stop is. agreed, it's far - less than i thought - but still far.

Posted by: perhaps at June 17, 2009 8:56 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 44 Cheever Place

nomi - probably, unless you are astute and lucky enough (as bklyn 14 points out) to always get on at the back of train.

my cut off for way too far is just over the half mile mark - because then i figure your walking more than a mile a day just to get back and forth from the subway. and if it's 15 degrees out, that is not my idea of fun. so this is right on the border for me, personally.

(although i like the look of the building and the views, i'll also add to those who say it seems to be a very small 832 sqft.)

Posted by: perhaps at June 17, 2009 8:34 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 44 Cheever Place

alright, i cede that point - it's about a half mile (according to google) to the union/court st entrance which is not too bad. (forgot about that F entrance)

still, although i don't have anything against walking, i don't like the cold at all - thus, honestly, a half-mile is pushing it in the winter. i would (and did) trade a longer subway ride to shorten my required winter walks to the subway.

Posted by: perhaps at June 17, 2009 8:18 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 44 Cheever Place

Surprised no one has mentioned yet the big disadvantage to this location - it is FAR from the subway. You'll definitely make good use of yr parking spot living here.

Posted by: perhaps at June 17, 2009 4:09 PM in response to Condo of the Day: 44 Cheever Place

agreed that the biggest sales are not a good indicator of general market trends. also, unusually strong (or weak) prices for individual properties illustrate the particular difficulty of price/sqft comparisons, or price/bdr comparisons. even within a given subsection of a single neighborhood, even when only considering renovated (or unrenovated) properties, there remain hard to quantify qualities that strongly affect the price of individual homes.

whether it's 'open house picks 6 months later' or 'last week's biggest sales', extrapolation to larger market trends is really speculative. you only start to get somewhere when you look at large aggregates of properties. but, of course, then you cannot account for the individual home that will sell for higher or lower than expected based on unique qualities.

as tempting as it is to take these posts as signs of some trend, you almost might as well be reading goat's intestines.

Posted by: perhaps at June 16, 2009 12:43 PM in response to Last Week's Biggest Sales