Checking In On One Sunset Park
What does it say about the condo market that a medium-sized conversion in Sunset Park is selling more units than most of the large, big name developments in higher-profile parts of the borough? We have no idea, but surely there’s reason to cheer for the fact that One Sunset Park, a 54-unit former rental building…
What does it say about the condo market that a medium-sized conversion in Sunset Park is selling more units than most of the large, big name developments in higher-profile parts of the borough? We have no idea, but surely there’s reason to cheer for the fact that One Sunset Park, a 54-unit former rental building gradually being converted to condos, has racked up five signed contracts since it hit the market in October; 22 of the units have been put up for sale to date and most of them range in price from $300,000 to $585,000. Maybe there’s something magical about sub-$500-a-foot pricing.
702 44th Street [Halstead] GMAP
One Sunset Park Hits the Market [Brownstoner]
Vinca and Snark;
The NYT featured these apartments yesterday too. All cash is required.
I suspect that this requirement is due to necessity. This is a conversion from a rent-controlled building to a condo. Sometimes it takes years and years to complete such a conversion, and in bad times some of these conversions can go belly-up (this happened to a cousin of mine).
Even in normal times, banks are reluctant to finance buildings where the majority of occupants are non-owners. In times like these, such buildings are radioactive to them: they won’t finance such a purchase. Hence, the all-cash requirement,and the more affordable price.
In a certain sense, you’ve got to have nerves of steel to go into this type of transaction. You had better have confidence in the long-term viability of the building and the neighborhood.
Snark: Check the mortgage calculator for these units on Halstead’s site.
You won’t be able to calculate anything other than all cash.
My how times have changed.
When I was a kid in the 60’s, “apartment buildings”, as these types of places were invariably called, were the last place anyone would want to live. They were generally subject to rent control, and maintenance was kept to a minimum. In other words, these type of buildings were widely seen as thread-bare places to live for those who needed to get by. Back then, the general rule of thumb for buying a home in the city was to avoid areas with “too many apartment buildings” because they were generally shabby and led a neighborhood’s deterioration.
It’s amazing how a little TLC goes a long way in making these buildings shine. I especially like how they spruced up the courtyard. I lived in an area that had many such buildings,and I don’t recall any of them having done anything nice with the courtyard.
Nice to see what they’ve done with this building. It seems to me that the lobby could use some furniture. Other than that, this looks like a nice, more affordable option for folks.
While some of the old Finntown coops require all cash deals, I don’t think this condo conversion is subject to such. Or am I missing something in the fine print?
Check the purchase terms. It looks like these units require 100% down.
Looks great, priced nice, big airy rooms (love all the windows), perfect location being sandwiched between both the R Train (45th & 4th) and the D & M lines (38th & 9th).
Great job.
these buildings look like castles.
I’m really happy to see these doing well. I know they’ve been saying it for years, but I think Sunset Park has a ton of potential.
I also thought this looked like a nice (but small) 2 bedroom (also on 44th Street) listed for only 249K. It could use some sprucing up, but the building looks cool.
http://www.corcoran.com/property/listing.aspx?Region=NYC&ListingID=1488540
It’s fantastic to see one of these very iconic multifamily buildings (for the area) with their light and air conditions (via communal court yards and tons of windows) was refurbed rather than the typical “tear down, build back up” scenario that is so prolific in south Brooklyn.
Regardless of the sales outcome, kudos to the re-development team on reuse and re-adaptation.
And it’s a great location.