Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Pro-Cro Condo Game is Hot: 475 Sterling Place, #3I





On Platinum Member radar a few weeks before Corcoran dropped the hammer on ya (and why shouldn't they?), it's another 2BR condo in one of Prospect Heights / Crown Heights' niftiest little buildings, 475 Sterling Place, #3I.  Over 1,100 square feet of legit 2BR/2 bath goodness is only getting pricier and pricier by the day.  The building's got a part-time door man, parking, laundry in the unit, gym, backyard with a grill, finished common roof deck with a grill, new 2008-ish construction, and is lodged between the Eastern Parkway/Brooklyn Museum 2/3 stop and the Franklin Ave 2/3/4/5.  Did we say "parking"?  Yes, parking.

You might've missed just last year when the 2BR market forces sent mid-$700K listings in this building above asking price.  And some of those buyers even spent a few weeks updating floors and kitchens in their units.  You might've missed when Platinum Members picked up a 1BR in the building pre-market for $550K around New Year's.  You might've missed when a few duplex units went over $1M effortlessly.  So the asking price of $995K (roughly $900/sqft) - in the same building with a $1.2M and a $1.35M listing -  still isn't surprising at all in this market for this location in this condition.  This is a great apartment for dozens of buyers on the market.  Low maintenance fees, tax abatement, great vibe in the building...  we ain't in Park Slope anymore, Toto, and we wouldn't even WANNA BE!











The neighborhood keeps you laced with new & flourishing business on Washington Avenue, Classon Avenue, Franklin Avenue, and Vanderbilt Avenue.  Before half of you even tried Bar Corvo, there was Tooker Alley, Lincoln Station, Coven Hoven, Pete Zazz, Kimchi Grill... and so many more, with more to come.  When a 2BR condo went for $775K last year, the next one went for $810K, then next one went for $851K... if you really wanna all Da Vinci Code with the dang numbers (as so many of you are apt to do), that's an increase in the rate of increase from $7K/month in equity to almost $14K/month more in equity, which puts this condo squarely at its asking price by closing, even if the rate of rise levels off.  Condos have traded even further east than this for over $2M and over $1,000/sqft.  By the time you Brooklyn doubters get back from your Player Hater's Ball, it'll have already swept you by.





Pro's:  quintessential 2BR/2 bath, south-facing, great building with modest amenities and charges, PARKING SPACE, common roof deck and backyard, blossoming neighborhood, close to the train, fair price per square foot, totally turnkey new construction

Con's:  price increases hard to keep up with, kinda generic new construction, won't be undersold off-market

Ideally:  dozens of buyers will take a stab at it, but like Highlander, "there can only be one"




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