Cash is King in Crooklyn: 7 Arlington Place

We told you months ago that the house where Spike Lee's "Crooklyn" was filmed may never make it to market.  And, indeed, it barely did.  7 Arlington Place came out with the infamous Minsk Man last week, and didn't last long at all.  With a list price of $1.3M, this 20' wide 4-story 2-Family pricing may sound high for Bed-Stuy to novice ears.  Maybe you haven't been following the $1.5M market and how far east it's had to push because the money simply has nowhere else to go.  We knew cash offers would fly in right away as soon as we got a look inside for ourselves.  And financed offers above asking price were a no-brainer as well.  But what happened next will send shock waves through even the most up-to-date participants and observers in this market.  Rumor is an offer was accepted at $1.8M all-cash from a Manhattan buyer.  Now don't despair, there's a difference between an accepted offer and being in contract - a distinction lost on Brownstoner in a recent piece about another high-ticket Bed-Stuy gem.  Nothing is binding - either on the buy or sell side - until a fully executed contract of sale.  But, boy, is that offer alone another canary in the mineshaft of this market, y'all!  We've heard people say we talk bullish; we think we talk facts.  But let's let the house and the market speak for themselves...

Meh.  These listing pics don't even do the house justice.  Excuse us again while our haphazard iPhone pics run laps around the folks getting paid tens of thousands for this...

It's got period details for days, yet it's easy to forget what period we're even talking about.  If you just started giving Brooklyn a chance in recent years or even months, keep in mind that big ballers have been here for centuries.  At another pre-market gem in Clinton Hill the other night, we saw this same bath tile that Arlington has...

We asked the owner if it was the original tile.  She said, "No, it's not original.  It's from 1890 when they Victorianized the house.  The house is from 1870."  Ha!  We meant "original" as in "not from Home Depot", but she was splitting hairs between the 1890's and the 1870's.  Those of you who moved here from Michigan a few years ago and have been renting in the East Village, maybe this is all news to you.


Despite the listing's claim that 7 Arlington Place is a 3-Family, it's definitely a legal 2-Family.  But, again, when a house basically sells itself, what's the point in expecting accuracy from the listing agent charging as much as $90K or more?  This probably isn't $90K+ worth of pics on the agent's part either, but the lion sleeps 'cause it can...

If you've got less than 20% down and think somebody owes you something in this market, think again.  Where were you 2 years ago when all these houses were under a million and aching for you to make a financed bid at a reasonable price?  Where were you last summer when another gem on this block was up for grabs around $750K??  7 Arlington Place listed for more than many might think a Bed-Stuy house is worth (at first glance) and is set to go for $500K MORE than that!  If you're keeping score at home, that's TWO $1.7M+ cash offers in Bed-Stuy in the past few weeks on 4-story 2-Family townhomes, and this one will go for more money ABOVE asking price than many people's would-be downpayment.  And many of THOSE people still think they're too good for Bed-Stuy.  Don't call it a comeback, Bed-Stuy's been here for years.  And certainly don't call it "a bubble" when these prices are happening in cash, not some insane lending craze.  Although, rates in the mid-3%'s fixed for 30 years when inflation is hovering around 3%?  That's free money.  And for all you Chicken Littles, please believe this still beats any condo in Manhattan, any day of the week.



Pro's:  curb appeal, sick period details for days, one of Bed-Stuy's cutest little blocks, around the corner from the A train and Fulton - but without the noise, no huge open house with crowds of people

Con's:  gone already, quick sale propelled cash, how ya gonna beat $500K above asking price all cash in under a week?

Ideally:  killer house for sure, but yowza!  Even we're still digesting the implications of this one.  The $1.8M fixer-upper?  It ain't just for Park Slope or Prospect Heights anymore...