Open House Picks: Six Months Later

“But, in terms of longterm (inflation adjusted) resale value, it is an issue. I said “Post Lehman” about the close but I’ll assume you went into contract well before October. Bed Stuy is Foreclosure Central and you are unlikely to see a bubble like this again. Just calling it like I see it.”

Well, actually, (sorry I gave you the wrong title before), Brownstones Half Off, it is not an issue, not for us at least. Firstly, we plan to KEEP the house, as in, it will be a family house. We are not (barring, God forbid, loss of income (we are in education, so we have a bit of security, and yes I know about the Times article that came out yesterday, but that news does not directly apply to us), divorce, and/or death planning to sell the house. We bought the house because we wanted to be part of a community. Now if our children decide to sell it or our grandchildren, maybe then we can anticipate some loss, but by that time we will have gotten a lot years out of the house. Secondly, at some point the market will bounce back. Hopefully, in a balanced way. We are not looking for our house to be worth a million. Because with out of wack, completely inflated housing prices comes a whole host of things that we don’t want, i.e higher real estate taxes, change in neighborhood demographics, etc. Making money off the house is like waaaaaay down on our list of the benefits of owning a home. But you are right, what is done is done and even if we could, we would not turn back.
Thanks for the well wishes

You know, there’s a lot of people who aren’t “fringe speculators” … they just want to own a brownstone and they can’t afford to buy in “non-fringe” areas.

My wife and I are considering Bed Stuy, and we’re not considering it because of some stupid plan to buy a house there and flip it. We’re considering it because it seems like a decent place to put down roots. Stuyvesant Heights is beautiful and there’s some nice stuff in the way of amenities happening on some of the avenues.

Congrats Imglad! Looks like a beautiful home!

I hope you have many great memories there.

“My husband and I both work in the neighborhood, so Brooklyn Half Off, the 6 block walk to the train is not an issue, in terms of commuting to work.”

But, in terms of longterm (inflation adjusted) resale value, it is an issue. I said “Post Lehman” about the close but I’ll assume you went into contract well before October. Bed Stuy is Foreclosure Central and you are unlikely to see a bubble like this again. Just calling it like I see it.

That being said, congratulations on your new house! It’s too late to turn back now. Make the best of it. Good luck.

***Bid half off peak comps***

imglad – I like your house and think you paid a reasonable price for it. 🙂