building at 660 Bergen Street

Do you have anymore information?

not a bad layout, and the prices weren't bad, but i saw things at the open house that just screamed shoddy construction - obvious/significant water damage, numerous holes ripped into the walls to correct, other evidence that "measure twice, cut once" and "use a level" were NOT part of the workers' skillset.

that neighborhood is going to take a few years to be less than gross. might take that long for the building to get its CO.

I have visited the place and would like to see it when it is finished. I like the fact that it is not overwhelming but I am just concerned about what is going to be built around it. The place itself looks like it will be a good bang for the buck. I would love to hear from some people in the area.

I saw this place today and was shocked at the shlocky construction. I guess they figure they can throw in some stainless steel appliances and an elevator and we'll be distracted so much that we won't notice the brand new terrace that collects water (not sloped properly) the shoddy woodwork and details. I'll bet in a year or two the walls separate because of settling and poor construction.

Interested in your comment TasiHagisavas, as I was impressed superficially by the apartment layouts but truly don't know a thing about evaluating construction. Obviously if I find myself more serious I'll bring in an inspector. But can I trouble you to be more specific about the shoddy wordwork and details you observed? Do you have a sense of how this building might do in terms of internal conducting of sound from neighboring apartments (though I suppose this will be easy enough to test since one would have access to the other apartments). And was there anything else you saw that raised concern? I'd love to keep these in mind as I look at the apartments again this weekend. Likewise any other concerns, construction-related or not, that you, or anyone else following this building, might have. Thanks very much!

k

Activity this week: About 15-20 refrigerators were delivered yesterday. Also the marketing banner covering the front 3rd floor windows is being either fixed or taken down. Also C/O's were issued for 658 and 660 bergen...but not 662. looks like paperwork stands in the way, but does anybody have any info?

662 C/O came in yesterday so closings soon?

The building looks nice and is in a good location. But sadly, it is a shoddy construction promoted by a bunch of shady brokers. If I were you, I'd stay away from Aguayo and this development. Did you realize that the 4th floor duplex with attic is actually being sold for a lot lesser $ per sq.ft compared to the actual 1 bed units on 2nd and 3rd floor? Don't let that fool you. It's coz they can't sell the top floor unit as 2 bed legally (yet they tell you it is just like a 2 bed). The broker will tell you that you can put a bathroom up in the attic but according to DOB it's illegal. Ask the developer to put the bathroom for you illegally. Let's see what the broker has to say to that! I went there when it was raining and noticed the roof decks and terraces collect water and just sit there. Leaks are imminent. Shoddy construction!!! These are the same people who managed to sell the shady development at 35 Underhill. Stay away!!

What makes the attic in this building not a bedroom? I always thought it had to do with having windows? Is it that the building is only zoned for 4 floors?

What would the penalties be if you're caught with an illegal bathroom? or for re-selling with an illegal bathroom be? Could you even find someone to build it?

Regarding the terrace's, is there any way to fix them?

Sorry for all the questions.

Hey LookingBK, the attic is not a bedroom because of FAR (floor area ratio) restrictions. Based on the site area, buildings are allowed to be a certain height, area and occupancy (total number of people based on apartment size), so in this case if the attic becomes a bedroom its area will be
counted towards the FAR and hence will be over the allowed limit. So most definitely it can not be counted towards a bedroom and any alteration will be illegal. The penalties can be severe (almost 25K fine or 1 year imprisonment) because the city (DOB to be precise) will deem it unsafe living. When you go for a resale or refinance, most likely the illegal alteration will be noticed and the owner then has remove the alteration (in this case, has to remove the bathroom!) and restore the original condition. You will also have a lot of trouble with home insurance if your unit gets damaged in flooding or catches fire becasue the insurance will not cover your home if there is illegal alteration made to the units. I found out more about these things after spending hours investigating. The broker who is selling this development will never divulge this information (because all they care for is to make their share of money). Regarding finding someone to build an illegal bathroom, it is actually quite scary that the developer will give you a plumber's information who will do it, and that plumber is the same person who did the plumbing for the development. I find it so shady that the developer and broker even go to the extent of providing referrals to build illegal bathrooms!! I would really stay away from these crooks and the building, which by the way already is showing some signs of leaks and rust!!!

#1B, after 164 days on SE, and after 3 weeks of being de-listed, has been re-listed, this time for $1,499,000 instead of $1,500,000.