Open House Picks

To anonymous at 11:01. I stand corrected. I must be losing track of time. I moved 4 years ago, but those “amenities” were there prior to my moving.

Bottom line- When houses in neighborhoods (including mine-BedStuy) go above $1 million given the present state of the neighborhoods – it is not unreasonable to raise an eyebrow or two. At this point a million dollar home has become meaningless. It’s not a dig at the neighborhood, it’s just being objective.

Anonymous 10:38, thanks for that note of levity in the midst this ridiculous discussion!

Fact of the matter is PLG already has a few coffee shops and sit-down restaurants, several good bakeries, and clean markets. However, in order to access their offerigns, you must be willing to endure their less than gentrified trappings and ambience and you must be willing to rub elbows with the local “common folk.”

But, I’m with you: any reports on the Midwood Street Open House?

To Anonymous at October 17, 2005 05:01 PM Here we go. {{Excuse me — what playgrounds?}}

Playgrounds-
1-right at the Lincoln Rd entrance to Prospect Park

2-Imagination Playground on Ocean Ave btwn Lincoln & Parkside.

3-MS 61, on Sterling St btwn Nostrand & NY Aves

4-Dodger Playground on Sullivan St. Good for a quick stop between Rite-Aid & Associates when we’re out running errands.

{{And a “short” walk to PH/PS/CH — in the summer it might be bucolic, but a 30 minute hike to those places is NOT fun in the depths of winter, or under the pouring rain, or when you’re just tired from working all day and want to sit down and be taken care of — and since my formal dining room doesn’t come with servants, that doesn’t quite work either. And sometimes maybe you’d just like a romantic dinner out for two, not a dinner party circuit.}}

LOL! Walking to our car sucks during a pouring rainstorm. If I’m tired from work it’s far more relaxing to eat at home. With salad & the lemon rotisserie chicken from Western Beef, dinner is ready when I walk in the door. As far as a romantic dinner for two, last time I checked, I didn’t need a passport to leave the neighborhood. Walking home from our favorite “Garden Cafe”, allows us to appreciate what we’re going home to. Nothing like walking down tree-lined streets to your home to continue a romantic mood.

{{And I don’t have a kid or a stroller (nor do I ever intend to) }} Probably why the merits of this family friendly neighborhood escape you. I might have shared your frustrations if I had lived here before having a child. As it is I had a sweet rent-stabilized deal in a brownstone on the Lefferts Place block discussed last week. I left my apt to give birth and I when I left the hospital with my daughter I came to Lefferts Garden.

{{I don’t find the Associated on Nostrand particularly clean or friendly }}

We’ll agree to disagree.

{{I don’t come back home with a load of groceries from there (especially since they don’t carry many of the products I use (check out their lettuce selection — iceberg or… iceberg!), and I would never touch their meat or fresh produce), so I don’t need help from the people blasting their car radios.}}

For meats I like Western Beef because their buthchers cut to order or Fresh Direct. For lettuce I love Western Beef. Their Mesculin salad mix is only 3.99lb. Most of our other produce is delvered from Urban Organics.

{{Oh, and I’ll bet your friends in the ‘burbs have minivans to haul around their groceries, so they don’t need the help either…}}

Great for them, but since I’m one of those native NYkers that’s never learned to drive, a minivan is not an option for me. Besides have you seen the price of gas lately?

{{And I call 311 at least 2 times a week about the never-ending car alarm symphony on Lincoln Road and sometimes on Lefferts Ave — the most recent time was this morning, when it started at 7 am and continued at least until 9 am, when I left for work.}}

There are inconsiderate people in every neighborhood.

{{My whole point in this is that the neighborhood, which definitely does have its good points, is so NOT worth the money being asked here, and the fact that someone’s already paid $1.3 million for a house doesn’t make it right — you know the old adage about “if everyone jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge…” }}

One thing my parents always told their children is “The real value of something is what you’re willing to pay for it.” I get it. You don’t think it’s worth $1mil++ to live in Prospect-Lefferts Garden. Do you get the plenty of people do as evidenced by them voting with their dollars?

{{And Nativegal, I’m sure you paid ALOT less than current asking prices for your house, so no, you’re money isn’t misspent, but people looking at shelling out over $1 million might want to think again. PLG is fine for me, based on my (for the moment) cheap rent, and therefore I put up with these things, but for someone looking to move into the neighborhood and pay the same as Clinton Hill, or more than Stuyvesant Heights, it makes no sense.}}

Yes I did. However at the time we purchase we paid $20k over comps and $60k more than my neighbor who purchase 1 month before us. Quite a few of my neighbors came over to introduce themselves because they wanted to meet the fools who had paid so much for the house. We paid it because I was pregnant and after looking for a house in PLG for 2yrs we were desperate to get into the neighborhood. That’s why we wound up in a 2family when what we wanted was a 1fam.

As far as current prices, did you miss the part where I said we are now looking for a 1fam house in the neighborhood. We can’t afford 1mil+ without selling our current house and we don’t want to do that. We’ll take our time and find a house that we can afford that meets our needs.

I have to say that you sound very unhappy with the neighborhood. Another thing that my parents used to say is “You pay one way or the other”. Maybe you should consider if your cheap(for now) rent is worth the drain on your spirit. For me that would be too high a cost that can’t be counted in dollars even at $1mill+

By the by – it was 4 years ago and if you look at the beginning of my earlier post, I agree with you. – So relax