The Epitaph of Epitaphs for Williamsburg's Boom
It’s tough to know where to start with the New York mag story on the rise and dizzying fall of Williamsburg’s condo boom, which casts the neighborhood as “New York’s version of the collapsing exurban ‘boomburgs’ in Florida and Arizona.” Is it the detail that the developers of the Steelworks Lofts, who paid $26.5 million…
It’s tough to know where to start with the New York mag story on the rise and dizzying fall of Williamsburg’s condo boom, which casts the neighborhood as “New York’s version of the collapsing exurban ‘boomburgs’ in Florida and Arizona.” Is it the detail that the developers of the Steelworks Lofts, who paid $26.5 million for their condo-to-be a couple years ago, are considering turning their building into a youth hostel? No, perhaps it’s the news that potential buyers for the failed (and mostly constructed) Warehouse 11 project are coming up with offers “closer to $30 million than the $50 million owed” to the bank by its developers. There’s too much in it to fully blurb, but here are some of the choicest bits:
- David Maundrell, president of Aptsandlofts.com, estimates that 2,818 new Burg apartments will have hit the market by the end of this year, with another 2,766 projected by the end of next year. Also, Maundrell tools around town in a $120K Maserati bought with condo-sales dough.
- Even though Williamsburg developers are having a lot of trouble selling the units they do have, they’re still bemoaning the repeal of the 421-a tax abatement that would have allowed them to build even more units.
- Before she died, Jane Jacobs wrote a letter to the mayor saying the Williamsburg rezoning that put the wheels in motion for the condo explosion appeared to be a particularly risky move: Even the presumed beneficiaries of this misuse of governmental powers, the developers and financiers of luxury towers, may not benefit, she wrote. Misused environments are not good long-term economic bets.
There’s a great deal more of note in the article, which is well worth a read.
The Billyburg Bust [New York]
Pic by krzysztof.poluchowicz.
LOL @ the freelance mafia. so spot on.
definition of a “freelancer” in nyc. someone who is unemployed but doesnt dress like a bum.
*rob*
when was the last time you rode the L train Rob?
Actually – I think the demographic you are speaking of has shifted down to the J train in the morning – lots more dirty weirdos.
The L has a lot of business casual peeps in the morning rush. The freelance mafia doesn’t start riding until 9:30am.
“as an aside, i don’t know how the developers messed up Warehouse 11. i checked it out and it’s nice. good location, nice facility- gardens, playroom, doorman, nice units, great location (near park and subway) and parking! i hope that someone just buys it, finishes it and gets humans in there. it’s almost done, so can’t be too hard.”
Sorry Wine Lover – I disagree with you on Warehouse 11. I pass by this everyday. It got a lot of bad press initially for being on one of the most polluted areas in the boro (Roebling Oil Field) – on top of that, it’s just not attractive, the apts are tiny and the location isn’t that great either.
I peek in the model apt everyday walking home from Khim’s and the finishes look better suited for rentals, not high end condos.
229 N8th and the Nfourth condos are better looking, cheaper and in better locations (oh and they are finished)
quote:
Please stop pretending that the 10 minute’ish commute to manhattan on the L is worse than the forever and a day train ride from PS
my train ride from 4th ave and union to prince and broadway in soho is 23 minutes! a nice relaxing commute because the R is never packed. the L is gross. it’s clean, but gross.
*rob*
Welcome Ennulater – i ended up here in a very similar manner.
I love it up near McGolrick Park. I take the b48 frequently to get down to the J train, and it’s typically on time.
Hope you enjoy the hood!
there so much nonsense here, hard to know where to start.
love that condo are owners are too stupid to get inspections. that’s utter BS and complete speculation. would love to see the non-existent stats on that one. everyone gets inspections.
also think it’s pretty funny that anyone would believe that 100 year only plus property has less upkeep maintenance dollars going out (not even counting renovations) than a brand new building where your common charges pay for someone else to deal with everything. i’ve owned 2 old buildings (both totally renovated even) and one brand new condo, and lemme tell you, the buildings had non-stop money spent on them for something or other. now, i don’t do more than put a garbage bag in a bin whenever i need to. so, give me a break. new condos have new central A/C, washer dryers, new windows, new appliances and new kitchens and baths. they are surely much easier to deal with than an old building any day.
unrelated to WB or anywhere else, NYC has suffered over the years from not enough housing. hence, sky high prices in rentals and high purchase costs even prior to this latest boom. if this recession dries up building, we will see an even bigger housing craze down the road because of ongoing lack of supply. population ain’t getting smaller, people are raising kids in the city instead of the burbs, and every hollywood actor and foreign rich guy wants an apartment in Manhattan. demand will again push prices up. don’t know how soon but obviously coming.
there are NOT now 2000+ properties on the market in WB BTW. according to SE, there are 632. that’s not a lot to get absorbed when the economy sorts itself out. even the NY mag article says 400 new apartments only really in WB. the rest is NY Mag re-stating the obvious a million years after Curbed covered the issue – of “what if everything gets built in WB including Domino”, which is light years from beginning. If you don’t include Domino, you don’t get into the thousands as Domino itself is 2400 apartments. NY Mag is the worst — always sensationalizing nonsense. WB has 3 big waterfront buildings – 1 is mostly sold and the other 2 aren’t finished, but WB has a “Miami” problem. so stupid.
as an aside, i don’t know how the developers messed up Warehouse 11. i checked it out and it’s nice. good location, nice facility- gardens, playroom, doorman, nice units, great location (near park and subway) and parking! i hope that someone just buys it, finishes it and gets humans in there. it’s almost done, so can’t be too hard.
OH, yeah, the L rocks! i have never not gotten on, and the trains come constantly and they are automated and fast. Please stop pretending that the 10 minute’ish commute to manhattan on the L is worse than the forever and a day train ride from PS. Especially to midtown. it’s an HOUR, and don’t BS me – I lived there. it’s the short commute that will continue to pull all sorts of people to WB. don’t kid yourself, it’s a huge selling factor.
well i dont feel bad for them either. i dont think id ever EVER live next to certain subway lines knowing id have to commute during both hours. i DO NOT stand on a subway train. EVER.
*rob*
Personal annecdote time:
My months long apartment search is finally over, and the winning neighborhood, surprising even myself, (and after looking pretty much everywhere including Manhattan) is Greenpoint. (Near McGorlick park)
The fam and I are now packing up for the move next week. We found a very nicely finished (the landlord used to live there) and good sized 2bed w/backyard on a non-butt ugly block with trees for $2k. Bonus: the zoned school is good!
My commute to work will now involve the B48 bus to the L train at Lorimer. I HopStoped it and did a test run- even with the transfer it’s a shorter commute than sitting on the 2/3 for 45min as previous. Nice.
It will be weird leaving Prospect Heights after so many years, but cheaper apartment, good school, yard? Ok. I’ve avoided living on the Northside for years, but it’s finally got me. So strange.
Recommend to all here as I do elsewhere, read “Contaigion” by John Talbott if you want a real picture of where this is all headed. A great read (if you dig economics I suppose) and an important reflection of where we’ve gone as a society.
Or reach the Detsche Bank Q2 2009 propert forecast highlighting the top 10 metropolitan areas in America. NY esta numero uno for pain to come, anticipating a 40% correction from current levels.