Co-op of the Day: Brooklyn Heights Cozy
A reader brought this ground-floor brownstone co-op to our attention questioning the size and the price. No one’s going to argue with the location–only a block from the promendade–or the historic details. Good stuff indeed. Our tipster (who’s been inside the building) notes, though, that this apartment is only the front of the ground floor…
A reader brought this ground-floor brownstone co-op to our attention questioning the size and the price. No one’s going to argue with the location–only a block from the promendade–or the historic details. Good stuff indeed. Our tipster (who’s been inside the building) notes, though, that this apartment is only the front of the ground floor and does not include garden access. (Which makes one wonder how the apartment could be 864 square feet if it’s only half a floor.) That, combined with the fact that the “bedroom” is really just a nook tucked under the stairs, makes the asking price of $799,000 seem a little steep, doesn’t it?
Brooklyn Heights FSBO [NY Times] GMAP
I love google maps! Very cool & thanks.
However, I don’t think it’s two separate buildings here; rather it’s likely that an extension was added onto the back to make the original property larger. This kind of thing is VERY common in Brooklyn.
The bottom line is that it’s entirely reasonable for an 864 sq. ft. co-op to fit in the front portion of 40 Remsen Street given that the property is 100 ft. deep.
Ed,
I will probably be walking through there sometime this evening or over the weekend, so I’ll let ya know what I see.
(if it’s a regular brownstone in front and a large building in rear, or one huge building over the entire lot)
FWIW, both Google Maps for 40 Remsen
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=40+Remsen+St,+Brooklyn,+NY+11201&ll=40.694649,-73.996943&spn=0.001847,0.005107&t=h&om=1
shows exactly what I am talking about, so you can see where I am coming from.
It’s just not one huge building from Remsen inward; it’s two (one small in front and one large in rear) at best.
This is what I was getting at with respect to murky public records. As it is, perhaps due to mapping 2 records over the same lot, Property Shark doeesn’t even show the regular 40 Remsen listing, only the phantom whole-lot huge REAR building blanket record.
Very odd.
cheers
$799,000 ???!!!
You can buy a whole house futher out in Brooklyn for that.
Or a house in the burbs/country with a huge yard and pool.
This price is just plain silly.
Sweet mother of Moses! What the! Okay, seller has taken leave of his/her senses. Granted, being only a visitor to BH, PS and PH neighborhoods, maybe the charm of this one is lost on me. I will take the B41 to the promenade and stay my butt in Old Mill Basin(I have a nice gingerbread house – 2 bedroom 1 bath with a lovely backyard and basement that I bought for 279K in 2004). I cannot sleep under the stairs; I’d have a breakdown.
I’m not sure why you are doubting that this is a large building. Property records show that 40 Remsen’s neighbors are HUGE as well – having footprints around 2500 sq. ft. each. These buildings are all large because they are exceptionally deep (90 – 100ft.), while remaining 25 ft. wide. Think of them as jumbo brownstones.
By the way, the building at 40 Remsen appears to be known by BOTH addresses – 40 Remsen and 40 REAR Remsen (in the same manner as a corner property may have two addresses which refer to the same building).
Do we have an expert out there who can settle this once and for all? I don’t mind being lectured (if you must), but aren’t we all looking for facts here too at La Brownstoner?
Meanwhile, if the building is as large as it appears to be, I’m wondering how it can offer bedrooms/bathrooms with windows. Is there an airshaft or opening in between the buildings such that light (albeit minimal) may reach the bedroom or bathroom? If there are not windows in the bedroom, then this unit is really not a one-bedroom at all – but a large, subdivided studio.
Ed,
You might do well to follow your own advice and confirm correct info about the building.
There is both a 40 Remson buidling (regular brownstone) and a (HUGE) 40 Remson REAR building (the one you describe), which is probably also known as a Grace Court address.
How can you be sure which it is, as the ACRIS and DOB buildings (and even owner’s title docs) make no mention of which it is.
Both buildings share the same block and lot (!!) numbers.
However, the FSBO listing indicates a Remson address, not a Grace Court address (handy for open house directions, you know), so it appears it’s the regular 5-story brownstone, not the huge building in the rear facing on to Grace Court.
Meh. Sloppy public records.
Anyhow, I may be mistaken, but I doubt it is in the big building. I believe it is in the garden level of the Remson-side 5-story normal size brownstone.
I think looking up at the stars when going to sleep would be lovely. But I don’t think the bedroom had a glass ceiling with and a view.
Meanwhile, it’s hard to tell much about the bedroom given the pictures. It’s really difficult to assess the quality of the layout without seeing it in person or, at least, a floorplan.
Does anyone have more information so that commentary can be more educated?
folks, a bed under the stars in never worth 800k
Folks – learn about the building before passing judgment. According to city records, this is not an ordinary brownstone, but a 10,000 sq. ft. building with 2500 sq. ft. per floor. That means it’s entirely reasonable for a 900 sq.ft. apartment to fit on only part of the ground floor.
The price – nearly $1000/sq.ft. – is certainly on point for a well-appointed place in many neighborhoods in the city, and the Heights is one of the best, no?
If it seems overpriced, that’s probably because things in Manhattan are CRAZY high now. Brooklyn dwellers need to start looking at value in terms of Manhattan pricing formulae, because that’s where things have been heading for quite some time, folks!
Is this place worth $800K? Is any 900 sq. ft. apartment in NYC worth $800K? That’s the real question.