Sale at 65 Montague Street #5D

Agreed. Both prior sales were almost $200k less, although there's no floorplans available for ready comparison. Brooklyn Heights owners seem to be among the more stubbornly resistant to the idea that prices have come down. I've almost given up waiting for them to come down.

Shall we place bets on the final sale amount? My guess is $649K, but I think it will take a few months for the sellers to acknowledge that they're going to get something around that amount.

I'd give this apartment $800K on the VERY high side. Nearly a million dollars and the "master bedroom" doesn't have an en suite bath. I'd say $725K.

Boss_Tweed, based on watching the sellers' competitors in BH, it will take them 6 months on the market to concede even a 3% haircut. The few well-priced apartments in BH were getting snapped up during the spring rush, but the majority of sellers are just sitting on their apartments. Maybe a few making pitiful chops, but most are content just to let their listings stagnate. It's fairly depressing.

My bet is in the mid-$700s, maybe up to $785k. Then again, there's always the flukes.

Thanks for your thoughts. I agree that somewhere in the mid-700s is about right given recent closings in BHs. I'm just surprised that someone has priced it this high.

Couldn't you get something like that for somewhere in the mid-700s in Manhattan, these days?

Boss - maybe in way uptown or far East side Manhattan - I think that property in prime Manhattan goes for between 850 - 1.1M depending on location.

Boss, tough to find a 2-bedroom of equivalent size in Manhattan for that. OTNYC's right - maybe in less desirable areas like the LES on Grand St., but a lot of the supposed 2-bedrooms on the UES are actually converted Jr.4s and thus not actually 2-bedroom apartments. Even so, $900+ does not present a big enough discount from the Manhattan premium in my mind.

evnyc, starting to see real 2/2s in the $700ks.

http://www.streeteasy.com/nyc/sale/405230-coop-120-east-36th-street-murray-hill-new-york

$735k.

There's definitely a few out there, AR, but I was speaking generally. Either way, that Brooklyn apartment is quite large but still overpriced.

http://www.streeteasy.com/nyc/sale/449684-coop-301-east-22nd-street-gramercy-park-new-york
For a combination, this one isn't so bad maintenance-wise.

that's the tempo block. wonder which, if any, units will lose light.
parts of brooklyn are being very stubborn.

Ah, I hadn't realized. I'd bet 3rd floor would be a light-loser, though I suppose it depends on where it is situated in the building and I'm not familiar enough with it.

Parts of Brooklyn seem to think the crisis of 2008/9 never happened. Weirdly, some people seem to be aiding them in their delusions by continuing to buy some of the apartments. I don't get it.

I think this is considered a more "exclusive" and stable area within B-Heights (the stretch from Grace Court to Pierrepont, past Hicks), and some of my friends have families that have lived there for generations.

Perhaps because of that sense of exclusivity and rarity, I frequently hear about sellers being unrealistic in that neighborhood. A realtor friend has some listings in the area, and she often complains that the sellers demand pricing that equals or exceeds the Manhattan prices because of the trees, etc.--and threaten to go w/ another realtor if she suggests otherwise.

"I think this is considered a more "exclusive" and stable area within B-Heights (the stretch from Grace Court to Pierrepont, past Hicks), and some of my friends have families that have lived there for generations."

Oh Puh-LEEEZE.

Look, i lived in Brooklyn Heights for a decade. I'll be the first to say it's probably one of the nicest neighborhoods in the entire city. But let's get real here about "exclusivity", "rarity", and even "stability". Those friends whose families have lived there "for generations" can tell you that as recently as the 1980s, Brooklyn Heights was an absolute cesspool, almost as dangerous as Bed-Stuy. Or are they rewriting history as they try to cultivate this sense of "exclusivity" and "stability" about their own neighborhood?

>Or are they rewriting history as they try to cultivate this sense of
>"exclusivity" and "stability" about their own neighborhood?

Yes, I believe they are, Matt. (Oh, wait -- your question was rhetorical. Sorry.)

I think there's also a smidgen of "if we price it too high, maybe we'll preserve our current, if slightly deluded, sense of exclusivity and stability."

LOL, thanks Boss.

Again, it IS one of the nicest, most gentrified neighborhoods in the city. But let's get real -- less than a generation ago, it was practically a war zone.

Beekman Place it never was.

NYCMatt, I am not really sure about your dramatic reaction to my post.

It sounds like you and I are in agreement. I used quotes for the word, "exclusive," and I clearly articulated that I was talking about the SENSE (vis-a-vis "reality") of exclusivity and rarity those UNREALISTIC sellers have.

And yet, even Brooklyn Heights traded at a discount to Manhattan. Currently most sellers seem to be pricing it at equivalent or sometimes higher. Of course, Manhattan is composed of many mini-markets, so comparing one Brooklyn micro-market to an aggregate isn't that helpful, but sellers do seem to be completely out of touch with the market. And it shows, since anything well-priced moves fast and everything else just sits there.

Well, that was quick: reduced to $899K. Only $250K to go....

I still say based on recent sales this should sell between 750K-800K--closer to 750K. So I'd say another 100K reduction is needed before the seller is taken seriously.

And then again, what was Tribeca but cobblestone streets and trailer trucks delivering to warehouses (and believe me, N. Moore St, the "fifth avenue of Tribeca" was exactly that in 1995

This apt needs lots of work...
Both baths are fairly grungy & next owner would probably want to make one bathroom ensuite & make the half bath a full bath. The kitchen needs a redo as well. Plus, I'd want to knock down some walls to open up the living area to the kitchen. Wonder how much this reno would cost? The building's lobby & elevator are also depressingly dated & done in that a-few-days-too-ripe avocado color.

probably will sell for high 700's but i think Brooklyn Heights is underpriced considering how nice the area is and so easy to get subway into manhattan.

I'm on henry street and within 3 blocks i have 4 subway lines, most places in manhattan aren't even that connected.

"Plus, I'd want to knock down some walls to open up the living area to the kitchen."

Why the hell would anyone want to do that??

I disagree that BH is underpriced. It's a nice area, but there's very little in the way of decent restaurants, particularly take-out and similar - the kind of places you'd visit mid-week when you just can't be arsed to cook. It also isn't easily walkable to places that do have such amenities as similar neighborhoods in Manhattan often are. It's been a while since I've been out there looking for grocery stores, but I don't recall there being many options. Given those drawbacks, and that it now commands a premium over Manhattan (or tries to, with little movement), I conclude that it is actually overpriced.

I have to agree that ever since D'Agostino's pulled out of BH, there's really no real grocery stores to speak of unless you schlep all the way to Key Food (yuck) on Atlantic Avenue.

Or knock down the wall to open the LR to the foyer, which is a nice size. Why would I want to do that? To give a more open feel....the way LR is now feels too compartmentalized though I also get the concept of not wanting an open kitchen.
There is also a Key Food on Montague btwn Henry & Hicks which is less yucky than the Atlantic Ave one.

Look, look! It's in contract! Something happened! But at what price?

Sale recorded for $879,000, significantly more than every person thought on here. Does everyone automatically assume that apartments are grossly overpriced? Demand is still extremely high in this area. I've been looking myself in Brooklyn Heights/Cobble Hill and the inventory is still very small.