Co-op of the Day: 167 Sands Street, #215

building appears to have a long and/or wide-ranging history of DOB violations, some of which are still active/open

http://a810-bisweb.nyc.gov/bisweb/PropertyProfileOverviewServlet?bin=3000168

sounds like it would be a fun co-op board interview.

$149K indicates something is seriously wrong. Don’t know what it could be, but that price is so low that it actually will probably scare off a lot of buyers.

Some great comments on 167 Sands, again from DUMBO NYC (newest to oldest):

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My friend lives in this building and i have been here several times. I personally wouldn’t buy here for any price; to live or otherwise. Apart from the fact that there are wires hanging out of the elevator, muggings are now a weekly phenomenon, and English is not spoken whatseover, the place is a complete dump. The place actually smells like a really bad chinese restaurant. I would visit it, at least for the entertainment value if nothing else. This is perhaps the worst managed building in NYC.
James
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CK [Moderator] 2 years ago
does anyone know if these offerings for the coops are legimate.? if so, what are the going prices for a 2br coop? thanks in advance.
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anonymous broker [Moderator] 2 years ago
I viewed this building and a few units with the “exclusive” broker some time last week. I’m not entirely sure what’s going on there but it sounds as if the she was pulling some sleight of hand to get her clients to buy the units. Supposedly the building is being bought by Corcoran and being converted to condo’s. Funny, the Corcoran agent that was there too knew nothing about it. Regardless I’ve never met a more difficult broker to work with, never in my 15 years of real estate have I met anyone who wanted to get the client’s financials PRIOR to viewing! If she’s going to work that way then I wish her well in finding some buyers for whatever scam it is she’s trying to pull.
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Dumbo Buyer [Moderator] 2 years ago
Does anyone know if there are any available listings in this building? Will the board permit a non-Chinese buyer? Is it safe?
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halfie [Moderator] 3 years ago
Yes, it’s noisy, but since it’s a constant din of white noise I honestly barely notice it anymore. My impression living here for the past two years is that my neighbors (who generally seem to speak little if any English) choose to live here for the proximity to Chinatown–there is a mini-van serving building residents that runs back and forth between Henry Street and the parking lot of the building all day long. There are very, very few non-Chinese residents in the building, and the few I’ve seen are probably subletters, not owners.
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dumbonyc [Moderator] 3 years ago
Thanks halfie for sharing. very interesting. I do like the building though, and although not in the worst place, it must be noisy when the BQE is busy. It is close to the F train so it’s convenient. so are there any non-Chinese residents there?
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halfie [Moderator] 3 years ago
I live in this building. It was bought by a Chinese developer in the early 80’s and converted to co-ops. It is like a different country in there, with all the notices posted in the lobby in Chinese, and red lanterns hanging from the ceiling in some common areas, and an abandoned swimming pool down in the basement. Sure, we are practically in Farragut’s backyard, and true, my view is of the BQE and the Manhattan Bridge on-ramp (and no we don’t have triple or even double paned windows), but it’s cheap as hell for a place that’s a quick 10 minute bike commute from the city.