I think its time to start taxing the East River bridges. Their maintenance is not free and should not be disproportionally paid for by non-users. Staten Island drivers pay $10 if they want to drive into the city, so you can't argue that everyone should have free driving access to Manhattan because it's already not the case. The rest of us pay $2 a day to take the train/bus. And really, the city should be making every effort to minimize driving into Manhattan where possible (spoken as a driver and car-owner in BK).

It's not clear to me why drivers over these bridges, and these bridges alone, should be subsidized by everyone else. Technology has certainly improved to the point where they could install quick-read EZpass, etc., and try to minimize traffic build-up.

Posted by: setancre at November 10, 2008 10:35 AM in response to East River Bridges May Not Be Free For Long

Since you're in Sunset, I would actually go in the other direction and hit up the Salty Dog in Bay Ridge for football. They have a bazillion TVs with every game on, college and pro. 75th and 3rd Ave. Good bar food too (wings, burgers, ribs, yum)

Posted by: setancre at November 4, 2008 12:28 PM in response to Best Places to Watch Football This Thursday

Well I don't have any real advice as far as exterminators, but if you see any centipedes scurrying around, try not to kill them, they are one of the few natural predators of roaches (and roach babies).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_centipede
(gross bug pictures, beware)

Posted by: setancre at November 4, 2008 11:01 AM in response to The Roaches. The agony

I looked into tin ceilings a little while back and this website was a great resource:

http://www.americantinceilings.com/

They have how-to videos for DIY homeowners as well as a ridiculous number of patterns and finishes in tin tiles. It seems like installing them is fairly straightforward, your contractors may just be intimidated because they haven't done it before.

Posted by: setancre at November 3, 2008 4:03 PM in response to Need tin installer

Last time Dow was 4000 back in '95.

Posted by: setancre at November 3, 2008 3:51 PM in response to The foundation of fraud.

http://www.nyc.gov/nypd has it by precinct.

Posted by: setancre at November 3, 2008 2:55 PM in response to Mugging on St. John's Place

You don't pay NYC income tax if you reside outside of NYC. You pay taxes in the location you live, not where you work. Taxing wages where one works is called a "wage tax" they used to do this in Philly, not sure if that's still the case.

Posted by: setancre at November 3, 2008 11:31 AM in response to Back to Brooklyn (Thanks, in Part, to Brownstoner)

The one thing with the whole propery tax issue that everyone forgets is in NYC you have to pay extra income tax to the city and the NYS tax is also slightly higher then NJ. So if you're making a lot of money the increase in property taxes will be offset by the decrease in income taxes. And NJ allows you to deduct property tax paid from your state taxes. That being said property taxes in NJ are still pretty extreme right now.

Posted by: setancre at November 3, 2008 10:14 AM in response to Back to Brooklyn (Thanks, in Part, to Brownstoner)

In my experience, inspectors tend not to be up on the current prices of renovations. To get accurate estimates you'd really want to talk to GCs and/or individual trades.

Posted by: setancre at October 31, 2008 9:31 AM in response to Inspector for brownstone?

I would also add that you should check to see if the plumbing can accomodate the waste water that would be going down the drain at the end of the cycle. It can back-up into the sinks of the lower floors if the waste water comes down too fast for your pipes to handle.

Posted by: setancre at October 30, 2008 12:26 PM in response to Tenant Wants to Install Own W/D

Yes, still having the problem at work. Like 4-5 pop-ups everytime I load a new page. For some reason not having the same issue at home.

Posted by: setancre at October 28, 2008 10:36 PM in response to Adobe Flash Popup

Welcome to Bay Ridge! Can't help with all your questions, but will touch on the ones I can...

Plumber - Sessa plumbing, well respected in the neighborhood but $$$. I'm still keeping an eye out for someone else.

Hair Stylist - My fave place is Bodhi Salon 3rd Ave and 68th St. http://www.bodhisalon.com/ Most "normal" salon I've been too. Warm and friendly married couple own the business, and live in the neigbhorhood. She does color, he does cutting/blow-outs.
My husband goes to a bare-bones barber shop on 3rd and 74th.

Restaurants - recently had a great brunch at Saint Germain (french bakery) on 3rd and 83rd.
Tanoreen great middle eastern.
Pizza--I like Peppinos, but you have a ton of choices for that (Vesuvio's, Gino's)
Le Petit Oven is new little restaurant on 69th St, very yummy. http://www.yelp.com/biz/le-petit-oven-brooklyn
Indian - Taj Mahal for takeout, not stupendous but above average when you need an Indian fix.
Sports Bars - Yellow Hook Grill and Salty Dog, both good for beer/burgers and watching a game.

Fave anything - love going for a run around the loop in the park on Shore Rd and 75th St. Also walking past the mansions on 76th between Colonial and Ridge.

Posted by: setancre at October 28, 2008 3:10 PM in response to In Need of Recos for All Things Bay Ridge

It would be awkward to try to wash your hands under a wall-mounted faucet with a sink that narrow. Your hands would be banging into the wall. That is why they have the faucet off to the side. Also, if that is the exact sink you are going to have a hole where the faucet is supposed to be that you'd need to fill in.

Posted by: setancre at October 25, 2008 5:56 PM in response to Tiniest wall mount faucet

Streeteasy shows a price cut as-of today 10/23.

Posted by: setancre at October 23, 2008 6:45 PM in response to Condos of the Day: 473 Clinton Avenue

Seems like it's coming from a sponsor advertisement that's messed up. Any new ads on the page this week?

Posted by: setancre at October 23, 2008 12:07 PM in response to Adobe/Google Pop-Problem Fixed?

Yes, extremely annoying.

Posted by: setancre at October 22, 2008 9:49 AM in response to Adobe Pop Up Surfing brownstoner

Also, I've heard spiders and centipedes are 2 of the only effective predators against roaches, so if you see either of those guys running around your home, try to look away and not smoosh them!

Posted by: setancre at October 21, 2008 6:39 PM in response to i'm so sick of these roaches

Polemicist unfortunately I can't take credit for the 1.64% growth rate, it is the fellow here (I posted his website link earlier in the thread) at: http://homepage.mac.com/ttsmyf/

I used his research for my calculations. He goes into a lot of depth on his page as to how he arrived at the 1.64% growth rate, and after reading through all of it, I have no reason to believe I could have estimated it any better, so I'm not gonna try. =)

Posted by: setancre at October 10, 2008 1:15 PM in response to Dow Status Check

Gatesave I wasn't asserting an opinion on where the DOW is going. To be perfectly honest, it looks enticing to me to buy right now as well. I was just stating factually that with the inflation-adjusted average of 1.64% growth since 1924, the DOW would be worth approx 6763 right now. If you think it is worth more, than it would be because you think the growth rate has changed and is higher in the last X number of years. If you think the growth rate will stay at it's historical average rate, than 6700ish is the number should expect the DOW to return to in a "perfect" correction right now. What the DOW will be 10 years from now I have no idea largely because I have no idea what inflation would look like either.

Point being, after doing the calculations, I decided to hold off investing add'l money (which I have been seriously considering the last few days) and thought it'd be nice to let others know how the math works out as well.

Posted by: setancre at October 10, 2008 12:53 PM in response to Dow Status Check

The DOW would have to come back down to approx 6763 to be back in line with inflation-adjusted historical growth (1.64%) from 1924-present. Be wary all you 8000 buyers.

This guy has a great website for inflation-adjusted market graphs, etc.

http://homepage.mac.com/ttsmyf/recDJIAtoRD.html

Posted by: setancre at October 10, 2008 11:56 AM in response to Dow Status Check

Sounds like you're trying to convert a single family home to a boarding house or SRO which would almost definitely require changing the certificate of occupancy. Hopefully someone more familiar with housing/fire code can weigh in.

If you do this illegally and your neighbors realize what you are doing, they will report you. A rooming house is generally not thought to be good for the neighborhood especially in a "decent area" as you call it. BTW, $500k for single-family, 4 bedroom house, in a decent area of Brooklyn? Seems unrealistic even given the downturn.

Lastly consider your plan in the event that your renters decide to squat, destroy your house, or stop paying rent. You will have a lot of fun trying to evict.

Posted by: setancre at October 8, 2008 3:33 PM in response to Turning Home to Room Rentals

"Why doesn't everyone go ahead and watch the debate and come back and post your uninformed drivel. I'll be here at work actually doing something about the financial crisis." - lecacal 9:06pm

Can this be tomorrow's quote of the day?

Posted by: setancre at October 7, 2008 9:42 PM in response to Quote of the Day

Wow, ok did not expect that to get quote of the day.

So I think I might have been overstating my point a bit on the original thread, but really I was attempting to make a point about demand. Nearly every last person I have talked to about NYC real estate declining (for what that is worth) in the last 6 months has made the same remark "Maybe now I can finally afford to buy something here." The difference between NYC of the last real estate decline (late 80s and early 90s) and NYC of today is 180 degrees. Back then (which was when I was growing up here) people actually wanted to leave. Kids got jumped every single day on the way to and from school, their bookbags, jackets and shoes got stolen. It didn't make the news or police blotters the way a bunch of kids harrassing someone at Barnes and Noble does now, because it was such a part of the culture. There was crime, a crack problem throughout much of the city, and many families thought there were better options for them in suburbia. Demand for housing in the city went down. Similar crisis during "white flight" of the 70s.

Right now, the demand is really not going anywhere. Everyone still wants to live here, and as inflated as prices seem, they are not above the incomes of most residents (as evidenced by co-op purchases requiring documentation and 20% down, and general paucity of foreclosures). Suburbs bring their own additional expenses in energy costs, crazy-high real estate taxes, car payments, insurance, etc. Personally I would love to see prices go down here, it would be to my benefit as I am looking to buy in the next 2 years, but I realize that I am one of many, many people hoping for the same thing.

Until demand to live in NYC heads downward I don't see prices declining anywhere near to what they have in the rest of the country. There really aren't all that many better options out there for people to move to.

Posted by: setancre at October 7, 2008 6:08 PM in response to Quote of the Day

Lechecal how do you know the $38k is already off the table? She has said the original price was at/under comps. If other properties are selling or are offered much cheaper I can see your point, but until that happens (and she hasn't said it's happened yet), what you are saying is pure conjecture asserted as if it is fact. It is not fact, it is your opinion.

For every person crying that the sky is falling I know of another person (you and myself included) sitting on a pile of cash. Ask yourself how many people you know who are hoping to purchase a distressed property in the next year or two. I don't understand why so many of you are so negative on NYC market when in reality I'm sure many of you also know people who have a lot of money right now they don't know what to do with. These people = demand. Nothing is trading right now because everyone is in wait and see mode, but don't confuse wait and see mode with the preamble to a cataclysmic decline in prices. It might not happen. I am much more bearish on the financial markets and the national real estate market than on NYC market.

Posted by: setancre at October 7, 2008 11:20 AM in response to Front Page Forum: Walk Away from Downpayment?

If you already have financing secured, then no, you probably cannot get out of the contract. If you still don't have a mortgage yet and are unable to get one, then normally there is a carve-out so that you can get your deposit back.

Honestly, if I were in your shoes, unless you can get 100% of your deposit back I would not even consider backing out of the deal. Yes, prices may fall 10% in Brooklyn, but they also may not, I wouldn't chance $38k on the possibility that you find something you like that's $39k+ cheaper because it just might never happen. Way too risky of a gamble. At least you will have some equity in your new home with the $38k instead of zilch. You say it's a great place, and at/under comps, I would stick with your initial instincts and go through with the deal. Last minute panicky decisions are the easiest kind of decisions to regret.

Posted by: setancre at October 6, 2008 10:31 PM in response to Break contract or not?

bridges thank you for posting that article, I found it very informative.

Posted by: setancre at October 2, 2008 3:16 PM in response to The heist of America

I think you need to think about why you want out of this contract. Is it simply about a little water in the basement? Because that's not really a good reason, it's pretty standard in the vast majority of Brookly basements to take in small amounts of water especially after a straight week of rain. You will be hard-pressed to find a home for sale without this problem if you inspected them all after a rainstorm.

If you want out of the contract because you just aren't sure you want the house anymore, I think you need to realize this is why the contract exists, because it's a leap of faith for two parties to come together and exchange a huge amount of money. The seller spent time and money putting the house on the market and you are wasting their time and money if you pull out of a signed contract. It is supposed to be difficult to get out of contracts for a reason.

Best of luck with your situation.

Posted by: setancre at October 2, 2008 10:35 AM in response to Closing coming up and new leak

Keep in mind it has rained a lot the last few weeks, in these houses, some wetness in the basement is not unusual at all after a rainy period.

Posted by: setancre at October 1, 2008 7:04 PM in response to Closing coming up and new leak

I work on Wall Street (actually on a trading floor as well), I understand how intertwined the entire economy is, and I don't support the bailout because I don't think it will work. Period. People can have differences of opinion on the solution to a problem. It's a shame most Americans seem incapable of critical thought or of forming nuanced opinions, and have become entirely reliant on CNBC/CNN pundits to tell them what's *good* or *bad* for themselves and others.

Would you have trusted the financial wizzes at Merrill Lynch, Lehman Bros, WAMU, Wachovia, and Bear Stearns a year ago if they were all telling you the same thing? Obviously they all thought they knew what they were doing too (and agreed with each other more or less), but they were all wrong. It is entirely possible for Bernanke/Paulson/Bush administration to be just as wrong and do even more damage to the economy. There are plenty of economists who think the bailout is a phenomenally bad idea, they just don't get as much coverage on CNBC.

Posted by: setancre at October 1, 2008 4:08 PM in response to Quote of the day

The one thing I think protecting NYC right now is that the current economic crisis is a national one. It is affecting all cities, suburbs and rural areas. The last major crisis in NYC there were "better" alternatives for people who wanted to leave the city, and that just isn't the case right now. Young people still want to come here relative to other major cities, families are not interested in moving to the suburbs with higher property taxes, higher energy bills (home and vehicle), etc. Neither rural areas nor other economic centers in the country offer better job opportunities than NYC (even with the loss of jobs we will experience--nowhere else in the nation is constructively any better). So that's one thing that insulates NYC right now to some extent.

Also, regarding apartment prices ($400k for 1-bed, etc), these prices also will likely be more sustainable in NYC than elsewhere because of the sheer number of co-ops here relative to the rest of the nation. I tried to find an article citing data, the most recent I could find was this quote from this past April: "While the citywide ratio of co-ops to condos is about 85 percent to 15 percent, the rates in an area like Brooklyn Heights chart in at almost 95 percent to 5 percent, said Ivana Tagliamonte, a senior vice president with Halstead Property." (http://ny.therealdeal.com/articles/foreigners-crossing-pond-and-the-river-to-brooklyn)

People have been documenting their income and forking over 20+% down-payments to get mortgages for their Brooklyn apartments throughout the entirety of this run-up in prices. They aren't faking their income with no-doc loans, or over-leveraging their income, so fewer apartment owners in BK will have their heads under water. Yes, there may be trouble in some of the new condo developments, but that still does not take away the fact that all of these people bought co-ops that they have proven they CAN afford.

So anyway, I'm much less gloom and doom on NYC compared to everywhere else. I don't think it's reasonable to expect prices here to come down as much as in Vegas or Florida where there was purely speculative buying in stagnant economies that never had a real job-base and where no one actually had to document their income to get a mortgage.

Posted by: setancre at October 1, 2008 11:39 AM in response to Has the Bubble Finally Burst?

More like $7 to get a manicure in Brooklyn, if you're going to your local neighborhood nail salon.

Posted by: setancre at September 29, 2008 2:21 PM in response to Canary in the mine

Certain areas require parking now depending on your zoning laws. I know of new developments in Bay Ridge (6 units) that were mandated to provide parking.

Posted by: setancre at September 26, 2008 2:04 PM in response to mandated off steet parking?

DIBS I work on Wall Street and if the finance guys in NY really thought there was money to be made buying those assets, they would have been bought up already. Private equity and hedge funds are not afraid of risk and are ruthless when they smell blood. If existing money isn't buying them it's for a reason. They are willing to chance that (a) the gov't will overpay for them, or (b) they can get them even cheaper. It's like the old joke that went around when I was in school, how much does it cost the Board of Ed to buy a lightbulb? At that time it was like $25 or something for a 5 cent bulb.

Buying complex financial products is not something I would trust our gov't to do properly, nor would I assume that even if it's done perfectly that it will work. The idea is that the regional banks will start offering more credit to Main Street again once their balance sheets are cleared up. Guess what, you could give all $700B to Chase or Citi or whomever, and do you really think they are going to loosen lending standards again (no 20% down, bad credit?). The lending standards are going to be tight for a while no matter how much money the gov't gives these banks, and that's as it should be, so we don't get into a bigger foreclosure/credit card mess than we already are. Easy money is what caused the problem, and the banks realize this. Clear up their balance sheets and the same problem still exists. The American consumer has spent more than they can afford. That's just going to have to be ridden out.

Posted by: setancre at September 26, 2008 11:09 AM in response to WaMu Bailout a Bonus Bonanza for Brooklyn Bigwig

I'd stay away from any policies sold by AIG at the moment if you have that option.

Posted by: setancre at September 23, 2008 1:59 PM in response to anyone put in a claim under AIG's Distinguished Program?

Sorry but this isn't going to happen for 20k. If anyone tells you they can do it at that price be wary... Realtors are notorious for low-balling their estimates (obviously that's in their best interest).

Make sure you get like 5-6 estimates at least, and really talk to the contractors about some of the risks and worst case scenarios. By talking with several you will start to recognize which ones are trustworthy and which ones are just glossing over the potential problems you could face in your reno. You don't need to be an expert on construction but after discussing the same projcet with multiple parties you learn quickly who knows their business best.

Posted by: setancre at September 21, 2008 11:40 AM in response to Constractor suggestions for a newbie??

If you go over to ths.gardenweb.com/forums/kitchbath you will find a mecca of people who discuss the tiniest minutia surrounding kitchen fixtures, appliances, etc., in great depth. Search around there will give you way more info that on you'll find on brownstoner.

Good luck!

Posted by: setancre at September 21, 2008 11:33 AM in response to High end appliances

I live in a 1-bedroom apt and if there was "normal human interaction" going on in my kitchen and living room, I wouldn't be able to get any sleep either. They are right next door to each other. However, my apt is still a 1-bedroom and not a studio.

I get what you're saying, it's weirdly located, not great for a family, etc., but at the end of the day the room still qualifies as a bedroom, and the sellers shouldn't be required to market it differently, unless they think they'll get more buyers listing it as a 2-bd + den/bonus room. There are very few generously sized 3rd bedrooms in 3-bd apts (or 2nd bedrooms in 2-bed apts for that matter). If you have a problem with the price I understand, but the listing detail is correct, they have a floorplan and pics of the room, so it's not like they're trying to hide the layout or miniscule size of it.

Posted by: setancre at September 17, 2008 2:13 PM in response to NOT A THREE BEDROOM

I believe Syrian Jews had a lock on the home electronics market in NYC at one period of time... They owned Crazy Eddies, Nobody Beats the Wiz, etc. Not sure if that's still the case.

Posted by: setancre at September 17, 2008 12:45 PM in response to Last Week's Biggest Sales

Lechecal speaking as a native New Yorker, I can tell you that my sister and I both slept together in a similar size bedroom from age 0 - age 6 in my parent's house. Twin bed on one side of the room, crib on the other. It may not be a luxurious bedroom, but it is indeed a bedroom and of a size that many NYers in various types of housing (tenament apts, houses, etc) have lived in for 150+ years. Because it is not large enough for your taste does not negate it's usefullness as a small bedroom, nor does it make the apt a 2-bedroom. Whether that pricetag for the apt is warranted is of course a different issue.

Posted by: setancre at September 17, 2008 11:53 AM in response to NOT A THREE BEDROOM

Prodigal Son, I've been bearish for quite some time and work on Wall St, so my advice has it's own bias. But the old adage on trading desks is when everyone is buying it's time to sell and vice versa. When every single person you know is telling you it would be insanity to buy (or are short-selling), you've probably found the bottom of the market. Unfortunately if Great Aunt Sara has caught up with the financial news and *knows* the market is hopeless, the tide has already started turning. Put it this way, I've got a nice chunk of cash saved as well, and I'm looking forward to buying a house in the next year or two and am happy to scoop up something cheap.

Also, I'm not quite as bearish on NYC real estate market as most, largely because I think unless crime starts going crazy again, we won't see a return to the early 90s/late 80s housing climate again. There is a different sort of "national" pride in the city now than there was before, partially still a post-9/11 thing, and partially because there really just aren't that many thriving cities in the country right now, so young people will continue to flock here. High gas prices and low real estate taxes also help NYC vs suburbs (for example), and everyone at the end of the day needs a place to live. Also, while some of NYC properties are speculatively bought and sold, a lot of people here genuinely still have the cash needed to buy at the current prices. Where they get this money from I really have no idea but I can't pretend it doesn't exist. An older house-painter gentlemen is buying a studio unit in my co-op for cash. Managed to save twice his annual gross income in cash, no mortgage necessary. Not all of Brooklyn is financially out of reach, and certainly not to those who are prudent with their money (regardless of their income). The fact that lending standards have been always been stricter in NYC due to the prevalence of co-ops stabilizes our housing somewhat as well.

Posted by: setancre at September 15, 2008 2:40 PM in response to Wall Street Reorg: Impact on Real Estate?

Just getting back to you slopefarm, checked the can and we used Rock Miracle Multi-Coat Liquifier.

Also, we purchased high-heat tolerant paint to repaint the riser with. If your paint keeps peeling you may want to go that route. It may be getting too hot for normal paint.

Posted by: setancre at September 5, 2008 2:40 PM in response to Stripping

I'm not sure which formula. I will check when I get home tonight and repost... We picked it up over at Abbott Paint in Greenpoint. They were very helpful.

Posted by: setancre at September 4, 2008 12:27 PM in response to Stripping

We used Rock Miracle recently for this exact project on the heat riser in our bathroom. It came in a big tub with sheets of plastic. Wore gloves, applied the paste to the riser, wrapped plastic around it (cut it into big strips so there was less waste). Left overnight. Most of the paint was already softened ready to come off in the morning, but we re-moistened the Rock Miracle already on the pipe (with a spray bottle of water) again just to be safe and re-wrapped and left again for about 12 hours. Came home, scraped it all off, 95% of the paint was gone. We repeated the process one last time (only left it for about 4-5 hrs this time) wiped it all down with a wet rag at the end and were left with a perfectly smooth, paint-free heat riser. The stuff didn't even smell that bad, and the paint was moist throughout the removal process so in the event of lead it wouldn't have gotten airborne. Be sure to protect the floors under the riser, because even though it is a paste, on a vertical surface, it can drip a little bit.

Good luck! It went much more easily than I was expecting (although I was expecting really bad things!).

Posted by: setancre at September 4, 2008 11:40 AM in response to Stripping

Hi what... you were actually much more civil and articulate than I would have expected. I don't have a problem with my parents waiting for their price (or something closer to it) because the house is still a steal. It's not a matter of greed or delusion (it could used as 2-family and rented out for more than an investor's mortgage at the current price--my parents are just not interested in that kind of lifestyle).

I bought a year ago and understand wanting to feel like you're getting a deal as well. For my parents however, $50k is a lot of money. They are both retired and my father has vivid memories of 40 years working on his hands and knees as a construction worker in NYC, and knows how many years it would take him to save that $50k. So if they have to wait 1 or 2 years for the market to firm up and get his extra $50k so be it. It would take him 20 years of working to try to save that much money again and they just don't have the time or desire to work. As I said, they are not in any kind of rush, they are very conservative with their money and there is no imminent need to sell if they are not getting what they feel would be a reasonable price.

DOW8000SP800 there have been posts in the last year or so about people moving out to Jersey to try to find an affordable home, etc, so I'm just throwing it out there as a reasonable alternative... I know most people on Brownstoner live in (or want to live in) Brooklyn, but not everyone wants to stretch themselves financially to afford it (especially families) with the way prices have run up.

Posted by: setancre at August 31, 2008 10:39 AM in response to Open House Picks Open Thread

My parent's lovely Victorian in Staten Island is on sale for $619k (put on the mkt 2 months ago). They've had a lot of interest (realtor says it has the most lookers and offers of any homes they are currently listing) but all 3 offers were low-ball ($530-550k) and the sense is that all buyers are holding out regardless of how good the deal is on a given house (for reference the house next door to theirs sold this past winter for $645k and it's not a legal two-family nor is the lot size as usable as my parents', also 2 ugly half-lot townhouses sold on the same block for $625+ a year ago as well).

So my parent's put the house on at a true fair value taking into account the declining market (they could have gotten $775k 2 yrs ago), but buyers still want to lop off a large number in order to feel like they're getting a deal. I think my folks should just list it at a higher price honestly, they'd still get offers (it's a huge, beautiful home) and the offers would just be more in-line with what they're expecting. Regardless though, they will probably end up holding onto the house for another year if they can't get their price, they are not in a rush if the right buyer doesn't come along.

Anyway, if any families are looking for a nice house in a very convenient location with low property taxes:
http://newyork.craigslist.org/stn/reb/814026007.html

Posted by: setancre at August 30, 2008 4:52 PM in response to Open House Picks Open Thread

I would imagine it increasing your homeowners insurance moreso that your property tax. Should really not have any effect on NYC property tax unless there's some crazy loophole I haven't heard about.

Posted by: setancre at August 27, 2008 9:39 AM in response to property tax and an INGROUND pool in Brooklyn

NYC still has reasonably-priced areas. I feel like so often people go from one extreme to another. Why is it people can only live in Park Slope or Buffalo? Why don't more people look into Bay Ridge, Staten Island, Queens, etc.?

You can buy a humongous 6 bedroom Victorian with a big yard in Staten Island for $600k and you are paying very low property taxes relative to the rest of the tri-state area suburbs (and still using your $2 metrocard fare). It boggles my mind that people are unable to find the "in-between" areas like one below. There are tons of 3 and 4 bedroom houses in the $300k range in SI, and many 2-3 bedroom apts in Brooklyn under $400k.

600k on SI - http://newyork.craigslist.org/stn/reb/814026007.html

Posted by: setancre at August 26, 2008 2:58 PM in response to Can't Cut It In Brooklyn? Try Buffalo.

I'm working with Gaudioso Contracting right now on my co-op bathroom in Bay Ridge, and aside for some unforseeable problems we have had, we've been very happy. Anthony, the owner, is very responsive to problems, their office calls every other day to make sure we are satisfied with the service we are receiving. When there are problems they are addressed immediately and in a pleasant manner. The work we are doing is nothing fancy so I can't really recommend them on that basis, but the commmunication skills are much better than we could have hoped for, I think they are overall a great well-rounded contractor, and very reasonably priced. Also, they're located on President St near Columbia, which is convenient for you in Carroll Gardens. If you call them let them know Steph & Jason sent them your way.

http://www.gaudiosocontracting.com/

Posted by: setancre at August 25, 2008 11:41 PM in response to Love Your Contractor? Please Share...

There is awesome Rent vs Buy calculator tool on the nytimes website that compares all money involved and allows you to put in advanced settings for the mortgage side, the rent side (how many months deposit, annual %increase etc) and your general interest/inflation rate expectations. It makes a nifty graph that shows you gains over different time periods and where the buy vs rent breakeven point is given all the variables you input. For example financeguy might be able to earn 10% interest a year in his other investments but I don't take enough risk to do that and only earn about 5% on my money.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/10/business/2007_BUYRENT_GRAPHIC.html#

Posted by: setancre at August 21, 2008 9:47 AM in response to Co-op of the Day: 123 Henry Street

Of course you could always buy something for cash in Staten Island =)

http://newyork.craigslist.org/stn/reb/803398984.html

Posted by: setancre at August 19, 2008 12:02 PM in response to Selling My House

Gemini10 I'm with Steve on the benefits of housing in Bay Ridge (I am biased of course). It would be easy to find a beautiful limestone in a convenient area for $800,000. Put down $550k, have a nice small mortgage of $250k, pocket the $50k difference and own a home to yourself without dealing with tenants or having a landlord raising your rent.

Posted by: setancre at August 19, 2008 11:34 AM in response to Selling My House

Can anyone confirm that the housing code posted applies to owners of a single-family home? It appears to me that it only applies to tenants in a landlord-controlled space.

Posted by: setancre at August 18, 2008 3:11 PM in response to How many can live in 1 family house

There is a house on my block where an older woman lives with her adult son, and her other adult children and grandchildren come and go, visiting after work and throughout the weekend. So there is a lot of foot-traffic at all hours of familiar faces, but they don't all actually live there. The family has been a fixture on the block for the last 20+ years. If you were new to the area, you might assume they all slept there, but they don't, they are just a close-knit family and try to hang out with "grandma" as much as possible.

For the other part of your question, if in fact they are all sleeping there, I really have no idea if it's against code. I can't imagine it would be though, other than if they had illegal bedrooms (no windows), or other fire hazards that apply to any size structure. A single family home could have 6 bedrooms or 1 bedroom so you couldn't really base occupancy restrictions on its classification as "single-family" alone.

Posted by: setancre at August 18, 2008 12:40 PM in response to How many can live in 1 family house

Entirely depends on the type of wood you select. Go to a flooring store and look at your options, they will price out cost for install as well.

Posted by: setancre at August 13, 2008 10:44 AM in response to how much?

I can't comment specifically on All Renovations work, but I can commiserate with you on the huge discrepancies between renovation estimates I received.

I have a standard tiny co-op bathroom and the estimates for the exact same work (replacing all fixtures and tile--materials supplied by me) were so far apart as to be comical. The lowest was $3,800 and the highest was over $24,000, for labor only. This is a basic pre-war bathroom that probably every contractor in Brooklyn has seen 100s of times over the years, there's not anything unusual about my bathroom that might cause the divergence in estimates I received.

We ended up choosing the contractor we felt most comfortable with, and they were neither the lowest nor highest bid (we received 5 bids). My only advice would be to continue getting estimates until you feel comfortable about what "fair" price is for the scope of work you've detailed. Some contractors will charge more for their own name cache, but they are not necessarily more skilled. Some just aren't really interested in the job and throw out a crazy-high number figuring why not--maybe you're a sucker.

You can also specifically address overages in your contract. Ask the contractor given worst case scenario, what would be the maximum increase over their initial estimate.

Posted by: setancre at August 12, 2008 9:26 AM in response to wildly divergent contractors' estimates

Since we're speaking of Staten Island real estate, someone still needs to buy this house:

http://newyork.craigslist.org/stn/reb/792018801.html

I actually grew up on that block and always loved this house. It's a gorgeous property. If I had $600k to blow on real estate that's where it would end up.

Posted by: setancre at August 11, 2008 2:07 PM in response to Calculating the Real Value of Your Home

I'm redoing my tiny (4' x 8') bathroom right now and the plumbing estimates were all over the place. Definitely get several bids. I called advertisers in the Brooklyn Paper after not being able to get enough licensed and insured contractor recommendations from friends.

Since i'm removing and replacing all fixtures and tile (same location, no pipes moving) my quotes were obviously higher than yours for only the tub/shower. But, to give you some idea of the range, I contacted about 10 contractors, 5 actually came over and estimated, and for labor only (all materials supplied) the bids ranged from $3,800 - $27,000 for exactly the same job, and all contractors were licensed and insured (co-op rules). Half the time I think they just eye-balled me and tried to guess the most expensive number they thought I would pay! So my advice, get as many bids as you possibly can and you will have a better idea of a fair value, especially considering construction costs have gone up considerably the few years, so comparisons of similar jobs from 2-3 years ago will be off the mark.

Posted by: setancre at August 7, 2008 2:18 PM in response to Plumbing estimate

what neighborhood did you end up in? congrats on making the move. i would probably have a chat with your landlord regarding the paint job, they may either be willing to do it for you or be able to recommend someone.

best of luck in your new apartment.

Posted by: setancre at August 3, 2008 6:41 PM in response to Painter and Landscaper Needed

I did a booth in the kitchen someting like what you are describing. There's a pic here (horrible quality--but you get the gist of it):

http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e270/setancre/kitchen_booth.jpg

We used a normal table, and the benches were purchased from the mail-order place Ballard Designs (ballarddesigns.com). They were called the Coventry benches. We actually just purchased the bench bodies, and had them upholstered with our own fabric in Brooklyn (didn't do the kickpleat-style as shown on their website). They have a bunch of different options for upholstered benches on their website (corner units, etc).

Hope that was helpful... Good luck with your project.

Posted by: setancre at July 30, 2008 11:59 AM in response to custom banquettes

Definitely agree with you Flatbushwhacker. Staten Island isn't for everyone (and not for me), but neither is Dyker Heights, and certainly not with a 2 million price tag. To me they are pretty similar except for Dyker costing 3 times more in this case.

Posted by: setancre at July 28, 2008 2:32 PM in response to Last Week's Biggest Sales

See the craigslist link from my original post:

http://newyork.craigslist.org/brk/rfs/771265336.html

The northern shore of Staten Island is an easy commute to Manhattan either by ferry (25 mins ride to downtown Manhattan, 24 hrs a day), or via express bus over the VZ bridge. The property above has the benefit of convenience to both the VZ bridge and ferry, as you can see from the map it links to. It doesn't compare to Park Slope, BH, Williamsburg, etc., but if we're starting to look at houses just as far away in Dyker Heights (lovely neighborhood, but very limited transportation), then why wouldn't you look somewhere considerably cheaper?

Posted by: setancre at July 28, 2008 1:41 PM in response to Last Week's Biggest Sales

I don't understand why people in far-flung Brooklyn neighborhoods are spenging 2 mill on ugly detached houses when there is still beautiful housing stock in Staten Island neighborhoods that's just as convenient to Manhattan as Gravesend & Dyker Heights are (i.e. not very convenient--1 hour trip on public transportation), and where they're only asking $600k?

http://newyork.craigslist.org/brk/rfs/771265336.html

Posted by: setancre at July 28, 2008 12:09 PM in response to Last Week's Biggest Sales

Agreed, you are not going to find a 4-bedroom apartment in brownstone brooklyn. You should be looking at renting a house if anything.

Posted by: setancre at July 27, 2008 8:51 PM in response to Decent Brokers - Park Slope, Ft Greene, Clinton Hill

No one can answer this. It depends how bad the kitchen is currently, how nice your taste is, how much you spend renovating, and whether or not your contractor does a good job. There are plenty of poorly executed kitchen renovations in NYC.

Posted by: setancre at July 21, 2008 7:01 PM in response to How much will a new kitchen increase the value of my house?

Out of curiosity I checked the Starbucks website and there were actually 4(!) in Bay Ridge in a 15-block perimeter, now 3 after this closure... I think that still leaves Bay Ridge as the Starbucks capital of Brooklyn, certainly outperforming the Slope with its measly 1 store on 7th Ave... Making Bay Ridge exceptionally uncool.

Posted by: setancre at July 21, 2008 1:45 PM in response to Anyone cool living in Bay Ridge??

Actually 11217, Bay Ridge had 2 Starbucks 9 blocks apart from each other and the less popular one is getting the boot. So by your definition, slightly more cool, but still not very cool.

Posted by: setancre at July 21, 2008 1:33 PM in response to Anyone cool living in Bay Ridge??

PestAway (pestawayinc.com) got rid of our roach problem, which was really bad in some areas, with no sprays in the living spaces. They did spray some of the drains in the basement, but used what I would describe as a "roach killing sugar gel" in the apartments. It's supposed to be harmless for pets and kids.

Posted by: Heatherie at November 7, 2008 10:30 AM in response to The Roaches. The agony

We own a brownstone in Cobble Hill and have a rental property for investment in Park Slope as well. We have used Envirex Pest Control and have been really happy with their service. I found them to be very professional and well informed. They have helped me with recommendations and suggestions. They were always prompt and reasonably priced. They really got rid of a serious roach problem at our home when we moved in and a mice problem in one of the apartments at our investment property. They are a local firm. I would highly recommend them. The phone # for Envirex is 718-875-9185.

Posted by: brooklyncouple24 at November 7, 2008 4:08 PM in response to The Roaches. The agony

the sp 500 just hit the 750 level i spoke of a week ago. I am good...

Posted by: HOBOKENROCKS at November 20, 2008 3:52 PM in response to Need tin installer