Don't get me wrong, we all love brownstoner.com. This guy's got his finger on the pulse of Brooklyn for sure. But I was so disappointed to this see this stale listing for 204 Clermont show up as the brownstoner "House of the Day" pick for the 3rd time. Nothing much has changed at this property since it was first listed pre-crash '08 for $2.5M.
I guess the nice part about draggin this one out of the closet now is the advent of the pricing widget on brownstoner, where the users can estimate their price for the property. At time of print, they're estimating this place at $1.24M, which would make a lot of sense given it's limitations and what neighboring properties have sold. Limitations? Well, the rentals are 1BR's that are already at the top of the market around $1,800/month. (We prefer true 2BR rentals, where the per/BR price in the area puts $2,000/floor within sight, and room to grow towards $2,400/floor) The floorplate is odd too because of the shape of the lot. It's also a legal "4 Family. Used as 3 Family" according to the listing. We don't know if this means the bank will let you close with it as a 3-fam or a 4-fam, which could be crucial around this price point. FYI, these are the FHA loan limits in Brooklyn for now:
1 Family - $729,750
2 Family - $934,200
3 Family - $1,129,250
4 Family - $1,403,400
So if the bank will let you close as a 4-family, you're much closer to asking price. If not, you're looking at $400K+ down on a place that doesn't make much income.
Neighboring properties? Well, we would much rather be closer to the Lafayette C train and the main drag of DeKalb over at 258 Adelphi which closed back in February for $1.05M. Those looking at this property might also want to have 308 Clermont on their radar.
We gotta give it up to this agent for doing a real listing with descriptions, dimensions, and nice pictures. Agent also put the listing on nytimes.com/realestate so it has some visibility. Plus, the condition of the interior looks great for the building itself.
Pro's: interior is quality and needs no renovation, corner lot, garage, location
Con's: odd shaped lot & building, 1BR rentals, 3 vs. 4 fam status needs resolution, pricing
Ideally: the sellers get religion and accept an offer around $1.3M, bank calls it a 4-fam and lets buyers put 3.5% down FHA and have a healthy chunk of their mortgage paid off by rental units
I guess the nice part about draggin this one out of the closet now is the advent of the pricing widget on brownstoner, where the users can estimate their price for the property. At time of print, they're estimating this place at $1.24M, which would make a lot of sense given it's limitations and what neighboring properties have sold. Limitations? Well, the rentals are 1BR's that are already at the top of the market around $1,800/month. (We prefer true 2BR rentals, where the per/BR price in the area puts $2,000/floor within sight, and room to grow towards $2,400/floor) The floorplate is odd too because of the shape of the lot. It's also a legal "4 Family. Used as 3 Family" according to the listing. We don't know if this means the bank will let you close with it as a 3-fam or a 4-fam, which could be crucial around this price point. FYI, these are the FHA loan limits in Brooklyn for now:
1 Family - $729,750
2 Family - $934,200
3 Family - $1,129,250
4 Family - $1,403,400
So if the bank will let you close as a 4-family, you're much closer to asking price. If not, you're looking at $400K+ down on a place that doesn't make much income.
Neighboring properties? Well, we would much rather be closer to the Lafayette C train and the main drag of DeKalb over at 258 Adelphi which closed back in February for $1.05M. Those looking at this property might also want to have 308 Clermont on their radar.
We gotta give it up to this agent for doing a real listing with descriptions, dimensions, and nice pictures. Agent also put the listing on nytimes.com/realestate so it has some visibility. Plus, the condition of the interior looks great for the building itself.
Pro's: interior is quality and needs no renovation, corner lot, garage, location
Con's: odd shaped lot & building, 1BR rentals, 3 vs. 4 fam status needs resolution, pricing
Ideally: the sellers get religion and accept an offer around $1.3M, bank calls it a 4-fam and lets buyers put 3.5% down FHA and have a healthy chunk of their mortgage paid off by rental units
A reader points out that this property went into contract in September:
ReplyDeletehttp://streeteasy.com/nyc/sale/537734-townhouse-204-clermont-ave-fort-greene-brooklyn
Can't wait to see the closing price!
Closed on 2/16/11 for $1.45M
ReplyDelete