Closings of Note: You Snooze, You Lose

While people were busy chasing the beauty next door on the NYTimes for over $900K, the 4-Family winner at 1379 Pacific Street in Crown Heights was swooped up for $693K last month.  $5K+ in monthly rental income, for under $700K, with no major rehab work to be done?  Yes, please!

On Platinum Member radar before it went to foreclosure auction a few months back - this vacant, boarded-up brownstone at 91 Macon Street in Bed-Stuy sold for $600K last month.  Four stories plus a cellar, on an extra-deep floorplate?  Cha-ching!  Where were you just a few months ago, people??  Now we're told they're doing work without permits behind those boards, and gearing up to sell it with its new listing for $900K.  Not a bad turn around.

Around the corner from the new stadium and on the same block as Newswalk and other successful condo projects in Crown Heights, 509 Dean Street sold for $1.5M last month.  Check the rentals, yo!

167 Lafayette Avenue is some straight-up vacant land on a corner in Fort Greene that sold for $895K, or $179/buildable square foot.

Listed for $699K, and on Platinum Member radar since last November, the huge 20' x 53' 3-Family brownstone in Bed-Stuy at 159 Monroe Street closed last month for $782K.

A year ago, we told you about the tiny SRO at 20 St. Felix Street.  Due to its small size and SRO encumbrance, we guessed it'd go for less than its $949K list price.  It closed last month for $782K.  That's right, a literal plot of dirt a few blocks away at 167 Lafayette sold for over $100K more than this house.

Open House this Saturday: Reader "Exclusive"

One train stop past the Franklin Avenue & Eastern Parkway hub of Crown Heights that everyone loves, BK to the Fullest is scheduling an exclusive open house this weekend on Saturday, September 15th, 2pm - 3:30pm for our readers.  E-mail us at bktothefullest.com@gmail.com to register.  The listing broker who's given us the chance to schedule this open house says this 2-Family limestone home is looking to move quickly, and we think it is priced accordingly.  For less than $675K, you can have this move-in ready home that's in great condition with upgrades you can make as you go along.

It really only has 2 floors in use now, but it's 20' x 52' on a 100' lot with plenty of FAR and a basement with windows that are above-grade.  Can you move into this place and do nothing to it for a few years?  Sure!  Any money you spend on fixing it up is better than a higher purchase price or maintenance fees on a condo.  The kitchens and bathrooms are dated, but functioning.  You may want to pull down the fake-exposed brick paneling in one of the kitchens:

But it's not a gut job.  The listing agent tells us a plumber and an electrician have estimated a budget of $26K to upgrade the heating from oil to gas and to upgrade the electrical system.  Lots of houses need 10 times that.  You may want to get adventurous and play with the long layout:

You get a variety of patterns in the nice wood flooring...

You may be able to get an old-timey piano, stove, and 'fridge in the deal too...

But the porch & yard in the back are what really set this apart from a condo for the same price 2 miles West...

Among the dozens of bidders well-beyond $925K on quaint 2-Families Corcoran had in Crown Heights around Franklin Avenue like 355 Eastern Parkway and 10 St. Charles Place, there has to be someone who was beat-out out by a cash offer or 50%+ down offer who realizes that a do-able deal for a quarter-million less that's one train stop further is actually a great compromise in this market.  Or you can feel free to chase their next $899K fixer-upper that may still be more than some want to pay, further east than some want to go, or both.  Which, mind you, is still a value over its smaller, fixer-upper counterpart at 412 Sterling Place, just 1 mile west for almost double.

Pro's:  move-in ready, priced to sell, 2 & 5 trains around the corner, great residential area, solid house with details, beats almost any condo we can think of

Con's:  only 2 furnished floors, dated kitchens & baths, & mechanicals, we can't see this lasting more than a few weeks,

Ideally:  it's good to know that value propositions are still available in this market.

Bed-Stuy Open House Tomorrow: Final Bids This Week

Not on your Streeteasy or your New York Times, this weekend we toured a 4-Family in Bed-Stuy with an open house tomorrow (Tuesday) and we're told they're taking final bids this week.  $975K might sound like a steep price for a fixer-upper, but you'll be slow on the uptake if you only look at comps (an indicator that lags by as much as 6-9 months), because a whole new batch of pricepoints are already in the pipeline on the best blocks of Bed-Stuy.  The sale of 271 Jefferson Avenue for $1.2M, which was recorded last month, has set off a chain reaction among sellers in Bed-Stuy.  Insiders have told us that $1M was a psychological threshold that many owners were eager to achieve, but now an Elliman listing selling for $1.2M has set the bar even higher than that.  More & more of the people who wanted to sell around $1M just a few weeks ago, now say they'd rather sell around $1.2M, and many are willing to hold out until they can get it.  And places such as this 4-Family fixer-upper are among the next-best houses to drop accordingly.

On the same block as this open house tomorrow, there are some serious mansions.  Cousin John recently finished out a 4-Family renovation for around $250K on this same block, on a house that sold for this same price this time last year.  They got new mechanicals, some new kitchens & baths, and pretty much pimped their ride.  And that's a budget that's been thrown around for this house, which we think would more than bring it up to speed.  Lots of details are already intact, along with some janky updates...

Getting a 20' x 42' brownstone on a 100' lot for a standard 4-Family with details for under a million is spot-on with this market.  Some floors are livable, even if their updates aren't that tasteful.  And most of the major repairs can be isolated on the lower floors, where you may be doing mechanical work anyways.  There are some leaks and some rough spots.  You'll definitely have to do a few repairs if you want to move in soon, but nothing that isn't happening all over this neighborhood these days.

Pro's:  not on everyone's radar, not asking an absurd $1.2M, original details, not far from the train

Con's:  really short notice for final bids, some funky updates, some funky configurations on some floors, needs work, won't last long

Ideally:  definitely worth a look if you're even considering anything in this genre

Topics: Tale of the Tape, 1142 Dean Street

Readers of the blog and serious buyers in Crown Heights are no strangers to the 2-Family frikkin' castle that is 1142 Dean Street.  After its sale last month, the listing broker Michael Corley contacted us to give a little behind the scenes glimpse into what he called one of the strangest sales he's encountered in 10 years of doing real estate.  Amidst rumors and broker hijinks, Corley had 40 showings and fielded 33 offers in 29 days, ranging from $750K to $1.095M, and was able to execute the sale at a very reasonable $930K in a timely manner.

We first entered 1142 Dean Street with Platinum Members on a freezing day in December last year.  The list price at that time was $999K.  We were told there was already an offer around $950K-$975K, and that any offers would have to exceed that for consideration.  We were floored by the beautiful interior, the size, the wood, the stained-glass windows, the pocket doors, the interior staircase giving the front bedrooms the entire width of the building, everything.  5 stories of amazingly-maintained beauty on a healthy 20' x 50' flooplate?  These pictures don't even do it justice:

Platinum Members passed on it, the existing offer went in contract, and late-comers thought they'd missed it.  But "it ain't over 'til it's over".  Contracts do fall through, and sometimes buyers get a 2nd chance at a place - as Platinum Members had when gems like 270 Sterling Place and 71 Irving Place had their contracts fall through.  In fact, as we speak, there are some Crown Heights winners back on the market ready for a 2nd chance.

Barbara Haynes, the listing agent at the time, notified us that the contract had fallen through and they were now accepting offers again.  But her time was up just a few weeks later, and Corley was commissioned to be the exclusive listing agent on the sale

Corley was reluctant to take the listing since he felt it had been overexposed.  Many are familiar with a version of the graph that depicts real estate activity is highest when a listing is new & fresh, and recedes as time goes on:

Corley says 75% of those interested in 1142 Dean during his time as the listing agent were people who had already seen it before.  Corley says he only takes listings that are priced appropriately, "not collect trophies".  He says his firm has never had a listing for over 90 days before executing a sales contract.

In addition to potential overexposure, there was a rumor-mill circling 1142 Dean Street.  Many had told us they'd heard stories such as "the seller held on to the previous bidder's earnest money deposit."  Corley adds that firms were spreading other rumors saying the seller couldn't actually convey title.  Corley tells us that it simply came down to a particular title company needed to be used because of a previous husband/wife conveyance that few title companies would touch.  So, whereas traditionally the buyer's attorney chooses the title company, the seller was designating the particular title company that could do this deal.

In addition to the rumors, this deal featured brokers behaving badly (any shock there?).  Corley received inquiries from brokers at major firms pretending to be buyers.  These joker brokers went as far as to create fake e-mail addresses to perform their sneaky operations.  Some even tried negotiating with the owner directly, even though Corley had the exclusive - a huge no-no in the highly-regulated world of REBNY (the real estate board to which those brokers belong).  One by-product of these hijinks was a dispute as to whose buyers were whose, which is an easy trap in this industry even when things are done with more transparency than sneakiness.  In the end, however, Corley ended up co-broking the deal with a fair commission split with some of the very joker brokers misbehaving.  Compare that to your brokers running around with questionable methods for assuring themselves as much commission as possible by angling for both sides of the deal, while failing to honor their fiduciary responsibility to their clients.

How on Earth did an offer of $1.095M get passed up in favor of a $930K offer?  The highest offer was contingent on another sale, which is a huge no-no, especially after a commitment letter and contract had fallen through previously on this deal.  Other bidders who had come up from $850K to $935K at the last minute were already too late to the party when Corley had a firm offer the seller was ready to proceed with.  Yes, that's right, even during the exact same time that the smaller, jankier 1139 Dean Street came out directly across the street for $1.149M and went in contract in a matter of weeks, some people still thought it was time to bid $750K-$850K on 1142 Dean.  In the end, the sellers even threw in the pool table as one of the negotiating pieces, and everyone was happy:

It's refreshing to see a truly professional broker who's actually working in the best interest of their client, and not worried about petty details like co-broking affecting their bottom line.  A lot more than we can say for some of these folks - even at the top firms - giving the industry a bad name.

Flip or Be Flipped: 588 Franklin Avenue

When you think about purchasing in Prospect Heights around $1.5M, do you think "gorgeous 2-Family restored with all the fixin's on a great residential block around the corner from the 2/3 train"?  Well, that was two years ago, so you can scratch that.  The next year you needed $1.4M just to get a fixer-upper on that same block.  This year you need $1.6M for a fixer-upper on that block.  We're willing to bet when searching Prospect Heights at these pricepoints what you don't think is "vacant, boarded-up, on the edge of Crown Heights, right on a busy stretch of Franklin Avenue with cars that just crossed Atlantic Avenue zooming by."  But that's what the flippers of 588 Franklin Avenue are happy to bring you.

Since 2004, this home has seen a few purchase prices that didn't work out for its owners, selling in pre-foreclosure a few times.  While some were still sleeping on Franklin Avenue as recently as last year, some great purchases were being made right here at 581 Franklin Avenue, and around the corner at 1077 Dean Street & 1054 Dean Street.  And poor ol' 588 Franklin was out for well under $1M for a long time last year.  They swooped it up for a paltry $580K in June of this year, and now they're quickly happy to offer it for $1.4M mid-renovation.  Why has the price doubled?  Well, the renovation's coming along just fine... right?

This is truly an adventure in "Extreme Homes".  Not that these guys don't deliver on their "you bid now, we fix later" promises, but it can certainly feel like shaky ground in this already high-stakes game where it's hard to trust anyone.  And this price isn't a steal or anything.  You can get a pimped-out corner two family with a garage and an even better renovation for this price around the corner from the Franklin 2/3/4/5 trains, on a more residential block, and in the more preferable stretch of this recently-booming avenue.  So if you're still thinking "gorgeous 2-Family restored with all the fixin's on a great residential block around the corner from the 2/3 train" - we've got you covered - just one train stop further down.  588 Franklin is just 20' x 40' on an 80' lot and looks pretty far away from stainless steel appliances and granite counters so far to us.  If you could buy this place today for $580K yourself and put your own reno into it, would you?  On this deal, we'd pass.  As a flip, even worse.

But PLEASE don't sleep on "Pro-Cro".  Just this week we see the budget brokers of Weichert setting up shop on Nostrand:

When we saw Connecticut Muffin going in on Nostrand, we told Platinum Members, "There goes the neighborhood."  A few days later, the Brownstoners agreed.  This week, Platinum Members toured a huge, vacant limestone around the corner from the Nostrand stop that will be a killer renovation project for someone - and will make a cash-cow 8-Family after a ton of renovation and a little restoration.


Pro's:  umm...

Con's:  busy avenue, pricepoint, someone else's flip, small-ish floor plate & lot, bidding on a mid-renovation piece?

Ideally:  don't write these quick & dirty flips off entirely, but make sure you go in with eyes open.  And if you sleep on a hood, don't be surprised when someone else doesn't.

Bed-Stuy Undercover: The Next Shoe to Drop

You won't find this listing on your Streeteasy, or your New York Times, or even the listing broker's own website!  But Platinum Members had the lead on this Bed-Stuy estate sale months before it dropped from $950K to $750K a few weeks ago.  At that point, we put the "Bat Signal" out that this was the next shoe to drop in the neighborhood.

Now it takes about $800K to take down this 16' x 50' 2-Family fixer-upper one block from the Nostrand A train in the opening corner of Bed-Stuy on a beautiful quiet street.  It's currently set up as a triplex over a garden rental, which makes the best use of its narrow width with 2 entrances and an interior staircase.

All this on a block with a pretty row of them...

The exterior features some great historical details like stained-glass windows, and a bust with the face of 1800's singing sensation Jenny Lind:

And it doesn't stop there.  Step inside to see 5 original mantles, pocket doors, wainscoting, parquet woodfloors, more stained-glass windows...

With $100K-$200K in work, this place will twankle & glisten, and rent for $5,000+/month or flip for over a million.  But it's really best suited for a user who wants to live in it, and we think that's where it ends up.

Pro's:  curb appeal, location, original details, best use of a 16' x 50' 2-Family, not being bid-up by the masses

Con's:  needs fixing, undercover, won't last long

Ideally:  Platinum Members passed on a contract at $750K last week, and now it'll take a little more to "gitter done", but it's still well worth it & won't last long...

Closings of Note: Above Asking Price in the Heart of Bed-Stuy

This tiny single-family in Brooklyn Heights at 16 Hunts Lane came on the scene for $999K and fetches $885K last month.

53 Dean Street is a large 4-Family rental income property in Boerum Hill that's got "buy & hold" or "condo conversion" written all over it.  Listed as a package with 51 Dean forever at a combined $3.75M, then $4M, 53 Dean fetches $1.99M last month.  It will be interesting to see what happens, and to find out where 51 Dean goes.

152 Lafayette Avenue in Fort Greene fetches above its $3.05M asking price, closing for $3.1M last month.

360 4th Street in Park Slope is a huge single-family with a nice renovation and a great backyard.  Fetches $2.75M last month.

197 Prospect Place is a 2-Family on an extra-deep lot in Prospect Heights that sold for $2.35M.

A 4-Family in Carroll Gardens at 189 Sackett Street lists above $2.2M and manages to fetch $2M last month.

579 Bergen Street is an uninspiring 3-Family in Prospect Heights that listed for $1.195M last Winter and closed for $1.1M in June.

300 Greene Avenue is a 4-Family between Classon and Franklin on the edge of Clinton Hill and Bed-Stuy listed with Corcoran and gets $1.285M.

Just down the street, 316 Greene Avenue also listed with Corcoran for $1.25M.  We were told the 3-Family "does need updating although it has been freshly painted" - that's a nice touch.  We were also told, "Seller is only considering cash offers."  The house sold last month for $999K.

37 Brevoort Place was a nifty-but-narrow 2-Family on a nice block in the opening corner of Bed-Stuy.  Brown Harris brought it out for $945K, had a contract in 2 months, and sold for that price last month.

742 Franklin Avenue, mixed-use space in Crown Heights right by Franklin Park sells for $990K - which used to be Vanderbilt Avenue prices just last year!

Now in case you're keeping score at home, that's 4 Bed-Stuy/Crown Heights plays at or above $945K, including a $1.285M (that's nothing to write home about inside) and a fixer-upper for $999K cash.  Now get ready to move further east into the "heart of Bed-Stuy" and see the pricing there.   Today the NY Times reports simultaneously that "Nets will play in Brooklyn but will practice and live outside borough" AND that "Nets players may find Brooklyn a tempting place to live" and that "the average housing sale price is $612K" here.  While Nets player Joe Johnson will pay 10 times that amount in taxes this year, please don't be surprised to see townhomes in Bed-Stuy continue to trade at what is still mere condo pricing just 3 miles west.

466 Hancock Street was a 17'-wide quick renovation asking $629K pretty far east into Bed-Stuy for many people.  This 2-Family sold for $640K last month.

The same company listed 457 Lexington Avenue, also in the heart of Bed-Stuy for $599K.  It sold for $610K in July.

The 2-Family 783 Greene Avenue listed for $579K and fetches $614K last month.

Another 2-Family at 615 Decatur Street listed for $590K east in Bed-Stuy and sold for $570K last month.