Yearly costs of maintaining a brownstone

In my experience: Redo front concrete $2,000-$3,000. Add garden hose bib (if supply line already nearby): $850. Freshen up (paint) wrought iron fence: $2,000.

cate

in General Discussion 3 years and 6 months ago

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cobblehillhome | 3 years and 6 months ago

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@Brownstonecurious – you sound like me 8 months ago! We bought a renovated townhouse from a developer. (Tip: Try to negotiate at least 6-12 months to a year of repairs done by them.) We found a leak in a toilet and new roof, plus some electrical work that needed to be fix when our W/D went on. There’s going to be things you’ll discover since no one has lived in the house since the reno.

Expenses we didn’t think about (some we did) until we moved in:
– blinds/curtains for each window (most aren’t standard sizes)
– closet systems, even getting someone to hang a rod + shelf
– power tools to get the above work done 🙂
– landscaping, if you have a yard — nice planters $50-100/each, plants can run you ~$500-$1000, gardening tools

Short term:
– after all the rain this year we’re going to spend $20-25k to fix to our backyard to better manage storm water

Mid-term:
– custom storage solution – our kitchen is missing a true pantry but a DIY-solution with standard cabinets won’t work in the space ($8K)

Long term plans:
– redo the front concrete, add an extension for a garde n hose up front, freshen up the rod-iron fence, add a security gate to the garden unit. All about $50k total, maybe more

(We’re very excited to own a house in Brooklyn so want to make this place feel like home. I know a lot of people may think some of the improvements listed above are not a good return on their investment. )