building at 12 Monitor Street

Hi - we're in contract, closing soon, on this property. Haven't met any owners yet, but we're doing our walk through next week. What are you looking for specifically?

1bkchk - did you close yet? how do you like living there? i'm currently in contract.

We closed a couple weeks ago. Like it very much. Some minor issues but so far mgmnt co has been very responsive. Neighborhood is awesome.
Which unit are you in contract with?

I just went into contract for 4F. Which unit are you living in? Anything in particular to look out for or issues to make sure to address in the walk-through?

We really loved the building and the neighborhood, not so much the walk to the subway. But there are always tradeoffs to everything!

We are in 1D; we looked at your unit, it's beautiful! For closing make sure your attorney is familiar with how the sponsor calculates his portion of closing costs; they like to play games with the numbers a bit. Make sure you create a detailed punchlist that they sign. Owners on the fourth floor on the A/B side had issues with leaks from their upstairs roof patio to their downstairs ceiling, but I havent head anything from the E/F side. Some dishwashers were installed poorly; not enough room between the hose that drains out and the back wall of the breakfast bar, which causes a leak as the hose breaks, though this is may now be fixed in all units. Make sure they have had the guys come through to finish everything, like tightening hinges and all. We had a few "finishing" issues, but probably due more to ours being the model unit and needing more of a refresh than unused units. Honestly, it's all pretty minor stuff. It's a new building, but it was empty for a bit. Stuff is going to happen; that's what the warranty is for.
Have fun at closing; it's quite the adventure. There's a great bakery across the street with the best black and white cookies...you'll need a break, trust me. And come knock on our door and say hi sometime. When do you close?

Well, we just went into contract, so I have to do the walkthrough and get the mortgage. But I'm hoping asap -- ECC (preferred lender) tells me they can do it in 4 weeks? Not sure whether to believe them or not, given the finicky state of banks these days. Do you think I should bring an inspector to the walkthrough, or would that be a waste of my money?

also - thanks for being so helpful! can't wait to meet!

With respect to using an inspector - totally your call. We didn't, but if it will give you peace of mind then it would be worth it. I think contract-to-closing should be 4-6 weeks; we went in contract end of January and closed end of March, but it could've been done sooner, i think - we needed to close as late as possible. We used a mortgage broker and they were invaluable in getting everything taken care of on schedule, and dealing with all the bank stuff. Most important though is a good attorney who really knows Brooklyn real estate - the developer deals with a large volume of buildings and is a machine, so you want someone who can be sure to understand the nuances involved in dealing with them and how to best protect you.

I asked the broker about getting a sign-off on the punchlist, but was told, "as for work to be done, although I'm told we can't get you a sign-off on the punchlist, again this is not a common request, I'm assured the work will be completed." That seems odd to me - what did you do to get a sign-off?

good luck to all of u....i looked at that building a few days after a major rainstorm & there was clearly water on the cellar floor. the douche bag from apt.& lofts told me that its been there for a while... whatever that means. i didnt look back or let the door hit me in the ass. they cut corners just like 99.9% of all the dev. that didnt get built pre 2007. sooo again i wish u all the best of luck. i c a lawsuit coming at some point tho when the poor construction shit hits the fan!!

akka - talk to your attorney - it's more a cover your ass type of thing - they DO have a legal requirement to close out punch items, but you do want to take care to ensure you have a list, that they've seen it, and that they agree to repair/replace as needed.

Our attorney wrote into the contract a few items that clearly needed correction prior to move-in, and then at closing there were a couple minor other items, which we wrote down and had the sponsor attorney sign off on. Everything was completed within a week of move-in.

helphome - sorry you had a bad experience. The building was vacant for a bit when the economic downturn hit, and the current sponsor is not the original. But, they fixed the leak that was occuring in the cellar level - haven't had a single leak in our basement during all the recent storms. As for cutting corners, not sure why you're making such blanket negative comments on a building you looked at for a minute, but we're pretty pleased with everything. good luck in your...whatever.

it wasnt a minute.. i was there 3 times as i was ready to put an offer on 1f. i really loved the unit & i think if it all works out then u got a good price for the area. i just personally feel that almost all listings that apts& lofts represents are shady. thats just my take on it thus far. i dont wish u bad omens just clearly stating what i observed. it mostly had to do w the pompous (& downright nasty) listing agent...good luck once again.