House of the Day: Crazily Overpriced on Greene
They gotta be kidding on this one! The 4,000-square-foot house at 165 Greene is one of a half dozen or so identical houses that were put up back in 1990. We’ve always assumed they were built as part of some kind of subsidized affordable housing initiative and the pricing and financing of the original sale…
They gotta be kidding on this one! The 4,000-square-foot house at 165 Greene is one of a half dozen or so identical houses that were put up back in 1990. We’ve always assumed they were built as part of some kind of subsidized affordable housing initiative and the pricing and financing of the original sale lends credibility to that theory: We bet they were sold for $300,000 with 10% down, but we could be wrong. Regardless, they are without question deserving of a large price discount relative to the similarly-sized Victorian-era brownstones that grace the neighborhood. But the seller is pricing it on a par, which is insane, especially when you consider the truncated rear yard (see photo, top right) and, one of our favorite attributes, the bouquet of utility meters next to the front door (lower right). To be fair, it’s not all bad: We thought the arched windows on the parlor floor were an unexpected nice touch. The location is very central, too, though the bus stop across the street is a slight bummer. Bottom line: We think the sellers are going to have to lower their expectations–and the price–a lot. Like four or five hundred thousand dollars.
165 Greene Avenue [Corcoran] GMAP P*Shark
Sorry you missed the boat a few years ago, but if you lived here, you would know that this part of Clinton Hill is decidely not “iffy.”
This strip of houses was actually built in two sections–the first section towards Washington wnet up in the early 90s. Allegedly the developer ran out of money, so there was a big empty lot on the St. James corner.
Then in the late 90s more units were built on the empty lot–I think it was the same developer but I’m not sure. The newer units tried without success to be luxurious–marble here and there but really stupid layouts. My fave feature was a fireplace located annoyingly off-center in the living room.
I think the older units, of which this is one, actually have better layouts and benefit from the lack of cheesy upgrades that plague the new ones.
But my pet peeve is electric baseboards–totally unattractive and not easy to fix. The price seems a bit steep for the quality of the construction.
Sorry you missed the boat a few years ago, but if you lived here, you would know that this part of Clinton Hill is decidely not “iffy.” More like spiffy, barber wire or no.
Barbed wire does not equate “iffy” neighborhood. The tenants who live on that end have young kids and there is a side entrance that is right on Wash into their backyard. You can never be too safe. It was definitely safer and quieter there when I was renting than in Prospect Heights.
Actually, I think my neighborhood is iffy too>>>> witness the stabbing that took place on a Saturday afternoon because of road rage. And no, I’ve never seen barbed wire in the North Slope. Please point it out if you know of it. I also doubt the North Slope has hotels. SROs yes, hotels no.
only some one from the north slope would call clinton hill an iffy neighborhood. have you never seen barbed wire in the north slope? the only problem with this location is the bus that runs along greene avenue, which is extremely loud and runs all night and the suspicious hotel around the corner on washington avenue. but even the north slope has its share of questionable hotels. there used to be one on lincoln place between 7th and 8th avenues that was only recently replaced.
i don’t think the bus stop is an issue. i’ve heard brownstoner and others complain about houses that have bus stops on their blocks. we have one right in front of our house (no shelter though) and it’s a blessing. i love coming out of the house right when the bus arrives.)
the sound doesn’t bother me. (our replacement windows were well-installed.)
if not “iffy”, why the barbed wire?
I actually lived for 2 years in the adajacent building and moved out after purchasing apt in Prospect Heights. The upstairs apartments are great for rental, however, beware of basement apartments. Whenever it rained, most experienced severe flooding. Apparently there were major disputes between the city and individual building owners over whose falut it was and I’m not sure if a resolution ever came. Therefore, if interested, I would make sure to have the basement/leak problem fully investigated.
Location is great and is anything BUT iffy. Extremely quiet with exception of bus and nice walk to Fort Greene resturants. I still miss that neighborhood!