House of the Day: 708 President Street
It’s always a difficult task to discuss a listing which fails to include a single interior photo, a strategy that only makes potential buyers assume the worst. In the case of 708 President Street in Park Slope, we’d really like to know what “unfinished” looks like. Is it beautiful original wordwork that just has a…
It’s always a difficult task to discuss a listing which fails to include a single interior photo, a strategy that only makes potential buyers assume the worst. In the case of 708 President Street in Park Slope, we’d really like to know what “unfinished” looks like. Is it beautiful original wordwork that just has a few layers of paint on it, or is it charmless mess? Since the asking price is $1,950,000, we’re going to assume the two-family house needs some work in either event. Can anyone speak to the condition of the interiors? Think this is priced right?
708 President Street [Edward Tully/NYT] GMAP P*Shark
Saw the place, and to say it needs a lot of work is an understatement.
Also, the garden apartment didn’t have a stove and only had an electric range, which suggests to me it hasn’t been linked to the house’s gas supply.
It also felt narrow (hard to tell, with the missing floor), and I thought that while the parlor level ceilings were fantastic, the top two levels were noticeably lower (not claustrophobic, just not ten feet).
I heard about the $1.8 offer, too, which I thought was insane. This place could be really beautiful someday, but it’s for someone with a huge amount of cash to burn, or real know-how in rehabbing. And as is, I can’t imagine $1.8 million.
Zero filings with the DOB is meaningless. Take comparable sale prices in the neighborhood less estimated cost to renovate to get an appraisal value. This, of course would be a developer’s calculation, and probably the type of buyer the sellers are looking for.
Nothing has been filed with the DOB….GULP!
That asking price is lunacy given the state the house appears to be in. Definitely some more realistic thinking will be needed to get that sold.
I saw it a while back and agree with most of the above sentiments.
I think either the husband or some amateur was doing the work and just gave up.
I believe I also saw “notched” joists to accommodate wiring. Yikes! That’s a big no no.
That said, It has a ton of potential–after 2 tons of work.
I threw out a low offer and was told (kindly) to go jump in a lake.
Ed Tully (the listing broker) is not the owner, he’s an agent with Coldwell Banker. But if the owner did the work himself, that’s even more of a red flag. I think I heard the owner hurt himself during the renovation though, so I bet that’s right that he was doing the work himself. Hmmm, the more I hear, the less attractive this place seems. The only thing the sellers have going for them is low inventory, but even that’s not enough these days.
I saw this house when it was listed with the Manhattan broker. He showed up about a half an hour late for our appointment. The owners ended up showing me the house and the husband seemed rather annoyed (as he should be) that his broker was late. I suspect the current “listing broker” is really the owner. No real broker would tell the amount of a previous offer. The place is very very rough with virtually nothing interesting left in the house. I was shocked the couple could live in the place in the current condition. I think the husband said that any work that had been done, which I recall an electrical overhaul, he did himself and I’m not sure what qualifications he has if any. The block is nice but the house is too narrow and priced too high imo. I wouldn’t even pay 1.8 for it.
Would it be hard to get a mortgage on a building without floors?
Also, the market is certainly not going up anytime soon – if these people want some nice retirement money, I’d take a reasonable offer now and not hold out – the offers may just get lower… Oh, and they better hope whoever offers has lots of cash.