House of the Day Greenpoint

Fixer-Upper Flip in Greenpoint With Faux-Painted Mantels, Other Details Fishes for Nearly $1.5 Million

The wood frame house has some charming features but appears to be in rough condition and in need of renovation.

by Stephen Zacks

01/09/2019 0

This two-story wood frame townhouse in Greenpoint seems to date from the late 19th century based on historic maps. It has three lovely slate mantels, two with the original faux marbling, two with their original summer covers, and one with an original stove insert. Very little is pictured but the photos show a parlor and the entry are still intact, including woodwork, moldings, and stairs with stained newels, railings, and balusters. Otherwise, 29 Sutton Street appears to be in rough condition and in need of the usual full renovation.

Going by the layout, it looks like an original two-family consisting of a rental apartment over an owner’s duplex. Note the 17-foot-wide house has no cellar, and mechanicals are located in the kitchen in the rear of the garden level.

Sorting through the hocus-pocus of this particular sale, we surmise that an estate left the trustee with unpaid property taxes, resulting in a tax lien certificate being issued last year. Subsequently the two-family building sold for $1.175 million to an LLC in November.

What happened since in the last two months? It appears that someone created a couple of renderings and renovation plans for the LLC, indicating what it might look like to replace its vinyl siding with brick veneer and gut the interior for a shiny modernization.

Although the listing says approved renovation plans are included in the sale, no recent building plans are on record, so these should be regarded as pure fantasy. The LLC is offering to deliver the house renovated for a different price, but fair warning, these types of arrangements can get messy.

The floor plan does not appear to show any stoves, and if that’s accurate — or the heating system or anything else isn’t functional — the property may not qualify for a standard mortgage but only cash or a construction loan. (These can be cumbersome and more expensive to deal with.)

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That said, it’s close to a well-regarded elementary school and scenic McGolrick Park, and might narrowly miss being right on top of the Meeker Avenue Plumes.

There’s an open house on Sunday, January 13 from noon to 1 pm, with Damon Bodine and Riana Bodine of Corcoran doing the listing. Do you think the asking price of $1,499,999 sounds like a stretch, considering condition?

[Listing: 29 Sutton Street | Broker: Corcoran] GMAP