albermarle-road-kensington-020514

In one of its “Living in” columns, The New York Times took a look at Kensington, a slice of a neighborhood sitting between Green-Wood Cemetery and a corner of Prospect Park, with Windsor Terrace to the north and Ditmas Park to the south.

“Kensington is the last affordable neighborhood before you get to Windsor Terrace and Park Slope if you’re trying to move closer to the city,” the story quoted a broker, Liam McCarthy, who founded the agency JMKBK, as saying.

The “historically working class area” has a large number of immigrants from more than 15 countries, including Russia, Mexico, Pakistan, Haiti and Poland, said the Times. It is also attracting “increasing number[s] of young professionals, many of them unable to afford Brooklyn neighborhoods closer to Manhattan, like Park Slope and Windsor Terrace,” said the Times.

Prices range from $750,000 to $1,200,000 for a townhouse, according to the story. A two- or three-bedroom co-op or condo will set you back $400,000 to $650,000. There are also plenty of rentals, with two-bedroom apartments going for about $2,000 a month, said the Times.

Would anyone familiar with the area care to chime in? What do you think of Kensington?

Living in: Affordability in Kensington [NY Times]
Photo by Google Maps


What's Your Take? Leave a Comment

  1. Been living on the border of Kensington and WT for a couple years now, and about to decamp for elsewhere in Brooklyn (nothing related to the neighborhood). I’ve loved living out here, except for the increasing unreliability of the F train lately. The Foodtown on McDonald and Albemarle is quasi-suburban pleasant by city standards, it’s quiet, and you do actually get that “neighborhood feel”. Church Ave is busy enough that you can get your urbanity fix, but if you live on side streets away from there, it’s pretty damn quiet.

    It’s definitely still affordable, but prices have been going up (more specifically, inventory seems to be going down). Rents have DEFINITELY been going up.

  2. I’m a big Kensington booster — resident for 3+ years, after nearly eight years in Carroll Gardens. For me it was a no-brainer. I bought a 3-story, free-standing house with a backyard (no driveway though, drat) for less than I would have paid for a 2-bedroom apartment in my old neighborhood. Do I miss some of the upscale restaurants, stores, and amenities of some of the classic brownstone areas? Sometimes. But I love having the Golden Farm 24-hour grocery nearby, I love having access to half a dozen different cuisines within two blocks of my home, and I love the feeling of community.

    I don’t think it’s going to be a “secret” neighborhood for long. (Especially not with articles like this in the Times!) I don’t want things to get TOO fancy out here. But I sure am looking forward to that wine bar on Church opening later this spring …

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