Set Speed Condo Report: The Firehouse Condos
On the market since September, the Firehouse Condos, located at 31 St. Felix Street between Dekalb and Fulton in Fort Greene, are worth revisiting given the recent price reductions. All three residential loft units are about 1,100 square feet and are configured into two bedroom, two bath units. The penthouse unit has a huge rooftop…
On the market since September, the Firehouse Condos, located at 31 St. Felix Street between Dekalb and Fulton in Fort Greene, are worth revisiting given the recent price reductions. All three residential loft units are about 1,100 square feet and are configured into two bedroom, two bath units. The penthouse unit has a huge rooftop deck while the middle unit has a back deck. Each unit also has a wall of windows facing Saint Felix St. The units seem to be co-brokered between Elliman and Harbor View Realty. These units, when first put on the market, were priced at $1.3MM, $1.1095MM and $995K, if memory serves correctly. They sat on the market and now the prices are at a more affordable $995K, $895K and $795K.
What sets these units apart from many other new conversions are the high-quality furnishings, such as Poggenpohl kitchen, Toto toilets, Franke sinks, Bosch washer/dryer and jacuzzi tubs with round windows facing the green backyard. It’s hard to say why these have sat around for so long, especially since the nearby Greene Scene Condos have sold 2 of their 4 units at prices of $845K and $1.175K. It could be due to something in the offering plan which we’re not privy to or the fact that the block these condos are located on is pretty grim and lacks the character of nearby South Portland or South Oxford.
31 St. Felix Street [Prudential Douglas Elliman] GMAP
Every Thursday, ltjbukem, whose own blog Set Speed scrutinizes the progress and quality of new developments in the area we know as Brownstone Brooklyn, pens a guest post about goings-on in the condo market with an emphasis on new projects.
All of the condos in the Greene Scene on Adelphi are in contract.
A “classic six” has a living room, formal dining room, 2 bedrooms, a kitchen, and a maid’s room. A “classic seven” has an additional bedroom. They usually have large foyers or entrance galleries. These were usually prewar (really pre-Great Depression) apartments intended for the upper middle class.
True prewar “luxury” apartments are usually 8 or more rooms, including a library, even more bedrooms, more servants’ rooms, or specialized rooms like solariums. Rosario Candela, James Carpenter, and Emery Roth are often cited as the best architects of prewar luxury apartments.
Tinarina made an excellent point, I think, that developers don’t put enough emphasis on layouts and the flow within apartments. It’s not that hard to buy a place and install high-end kitchen appliances, but it’s usually much harder and expensive to change an apartment’s layout.
I’d forgotten about the walkup aspect–another serious flaw.
Anon, a classic six is the kind of prewar apt. that are coveted all over Manhattan and in the nicer borough buildings–generally a LR, DR, 2 BRs, 2 baths and a kitchen. These apartments also have some kind of foyer or entry, and nicely proportioned rooms (not necessarily big, but easy to furnish).
Like another poster said, a classic six may not be doable in a conversion. But the guiding design force in most of the new construction I’ve seen seems to be how the developer can do the plumbing stack most cheaply. The rest of the rooms flow from there. How elegant.
I’m with tinrina on the problem being the layouts.
Long and narrow is a tough shape for 2 BR configurations. The “master†is 11’ x 9’6†and can’t be made bigger without cannibalizing the 2d BR (which is only 12’ x 7’6â€) because of where the bathroom are. That limits the market for these as premium-priced condos. Add in that these are walk-ups in a small (no service, no doorman) building, and they are just not going to have much appeal to a ‘high end’ condo buyer. And the top floor unit has exclusive roof access that involves leaving the apartment and going up the common stairs (unless an interior stair is built, costing bucks and feet).
Beautiful finishes, though, with *some* character from the old firehouse. Just too many $$$$.
I’m sorry but has anyone on this site actually been on St. Felix Street?? You have low income housing occupying most of the middle of the block…the street dead-ends at the hospital and basically ends directly at the emergency bay driveway so the Street is a chute down which Ambulances go to short cut to Flatbush…NEVER underestimate the impact of emergency vehicle traffic routes on your standard of living…ask anyone who lives around Union/Grand Army Plaza…
By the way, there are THREE buildings for sale on the block…all 3 families and all priced at the same price at ONE of these condos was priced at (pre price cut)…
It is extremely close, however, to shopping…the two beautiful bodegas at the end of the block provide everything you could need…
Prices were a joke…the person who said 600-800K is on the money at the low end…
BTW I live 3 blocks from St. Felix
What might help these places is if/when the high rise condo building goes up a block or two away on Fulton by BAM’s Harvey Theatre. I’ve heard it will have commercial space in the bottom. It would be great if they put in a good quality grocery there a la Whole Foods.
what is a classic six anyway? 2.5 beds and one bath? or what?
People just don’t like to be holed in their nice condo all day on a “grim” street. They like to socialize with their friends and new neighbors. What is the main rule of real estate ? Don’t buy the nicest house on a “grim” street ? You will only bring up the other home’ values.