Condos of the Day: 486 3rd Street
We’re gonna keep working this converted Brownstone condo thing some more…The current owner paid $1,600,000 for this five-story, 4,400-square-foot brownstone on 3rd Street between 6th and 7th Avenues back in 2004. Now he’s looking to sell the four units for a combined $4,455,000. Even if he has to take 10 percent below asking price, he’s…
We’re gonna keep working this converted Brownstone condo thing some more…The current owner paid $1,600,000 for this five-story, 4,400-square-foot brownstone on 3rd Street between 6th and 7th Avenues back in 2004. Now he’s looking to sell the four units for a combined $4,455,000. Even if he has to take 10 percent below asking price, he’s going to be doing pretty well. If he spent about $250 a foot on renovation and another three hundred grand on carrying costs, then his total cost would be around $3 million. As for the units, we think they look a tad nicer than yesterday’s 418 Henry but they’re also a tad more expensive. It’s also a little easier to find a condo in Park Slope than Cobble Hill.
486 3rd Street [Douglas Elliman] GMAP
I don’t think someone that chooses to buy a condo instead of a house uses sq. footage as a main variable. Otherwise the option of buying a house/brownstone, would be a better choice.
Originally, the main selling point behind a condo/co-op in a converted brownstone was that they were less expensive than purchasing a whole brownstone so those that couldn’t afford to purchase a brownstone could still afford to own part of one (the same reason that made condo’s and coops marketable – property ownership for those that could not afford to buy a house).
I think the main variable in whether brownstone condos (OR coops) are attractive from a design and investment perspective is the width of the buildings. With a grand 25 foot or even 22 foot or a corner building with several exposures, you have more choices, but in many cases, a floor thru is a floor thru and what you can do is limited by the width of the building and the placement (or lack) of windows.
i have seen them and these r the same as the ones that corcoran had. nice units, nice qualtiy but i think way over priced for the space.
I don’t quite understand how a condo in a brownstone is marketable at that price. A previous response mentioned amenities.
I’d have to say that amenities in the general vicinity versus onsite amenities (i.e. gym, 24 doorman, concierge service, etc.) isn’t equitably comparable to other similarly priced condo’s in brooklyn or manhattan. There is definitely a market out there for luxury/expensive condo’s, as there are many folks who just aren’t interested in dealing with the challenges that come along with owning a house/brownstone.
Maybe I’m generalizing, but why would anyone within the demographic that chooses to buy a condo instead of a full-size brownstone for close to the same price, want to buy a condo in a converted brownstone versus a full-service, aesthetically pleasing, modern, mega-condo building [crappy architecture is not allowed to be a variable in your argument, as they are not, in my opinion, comparatively equitable.]).
As someone with a school aged kid, I have yet to meet anyone who lives in those kind of so-called 2 bedrooms who paid over $1 million. I just don’t know who they are. I know lots of people with kids who do live in that same amount of space because they have a cheap rent, or bought years ago when the price was low.
I just have never met someone with a budget of over $1 million for a home (which makes them fairly rich folk, in my book), who ALSO has a kid, willing to spend that money to live in that kind of space. I’m sure they are out there, just don’t know who they are.
the thing about using the bottom floor as a bedroom means you are separated from your kid. also, the bottom flooring on the apt. i saw a few months ago was flooring appropriate for a basement, in case it floods. no nice wood floor, but some hard kind of material (i forget but it was like marble or something) and it made the place feel really cold and not homey. having said that, someone will buy this place. just not me.
Asking too much and being represented by one of Brooklyn’s shadier brokers…Buyer beware.
12:44…you are exactly right and that is what is so interesting…people are willing to “overpay” to live in Brooklyn rather than live in the suburbs.
From Anon: 12:24 — Do people really use that rec room as a 2nd bedroom? I’ve seen that when there are 2 other bedrooms (so it’s a third bedroom), but I just have a hard time believing someone would pay 1.2 million to use a rec room as a 2nd bedroom. I get it if it’s a great deal, but not at that price. At that point, If I was someone with a 1.2 million budget, I’d buy a million dollar house in Montclair, instead of a semi 2-bedroom. And I love Brooklyn.