THE TOWNHOUSE ECONOMICS OF LIC

January is over, the days are getting longer and sometimes it’s now light out when I leave work.  Who cares about some groundhog’s prediction, here in LIC we have our own harbinger of Spring: the fruit guy has re-appeared on 49th Avenue.  Which given that it’s early February, is probably not a good sign for global warming. Nevertheless home-purchasing season is around the corner, so here’s an offering that comes with a real estate lesson.

In last week’s profile of The Editor in Brick Underground, I ran some numbers as to why the purchase of a townhouse in LIC, was a relative bargain versus Manhattan.  Today, I will share an example of this.  10-49 49th Avenue is a centrally-located, newly-renovated, 6,000 square foot brownstone built in 1890.  The asking price is $4.875 million, but it’s been on the market there since July, so I wouldn’t be surprised if a bid for $4.5 mil would make you the owner.

At that price, we’re talking $750 a square foot.  Sure, like with most real estate deals there are some pluses and minuses. Probably of greatest significance is that in this particular case it’s multi-family, whereas your typical hedge-fund analyst with four years in the workplace is ready to step (up) into an abode where his brood takes up the whole building – none of this sharing stuff.  Nevertheless that would still leave you, the master, with a 2,500 square foot master apartment1 with three additional fully renovated 1,200 sq. foot rental apartments.  On the plus-side, there’s an as-of right to build an additional 4,000 sq. feet on top of the brownstone, an option which somewhat reduces the $750 a foot price tag.  On the negative side, the units are a little narrow, but on the plus-side, the master unit has 14′ ceilings.

Probably of greatest relevance to it’s selling price, is that the renovation has been completed.  It’s a turnkey purchase: cut check -> get move-in-ready home, and avoid all the angst, agita, and delays of construction.  I’m guessing that’s worth on the order of $1 million2.  Anyway, we could go back n forth all day, as real estate is idiosyncratic and unless you’re buying a penthouse on 57th Street or CPW you’ll always be making compromises in NYC real estate.  As sacrifices go though, 10-49th Ave is a pretty good deal.

10-49th Ave Listing – how about a rec center for the townhouse w/o a gym?

10-49th Ave, The Movie – they don’t do this for $150K ranch homes in Topeka

Snow Storm Jonas, Before and After Videos in LIC – oh so long ago, thanks to Mihkel in HP for these and the pic above

MoMA PS1 Chooses Weaving for It’s Summer Installation – trippy Warm-up props

LIC Resident Alan Capper, Who Captured Local Arts Scene, Passes Away – former Brit moved to NYC in ’95

Total LIC Street Rebuild Garners $40 million – timeline unknown

AG Approves $364 Million Condo Plan for 44-Story Court Square Tower – haha, but they’re going to keep it a rental anyway

Checking in On Three LIC Towers Rising in Ct Square – all on the same block

David’s Barbershop on Vernon to Close, Nail Salon Coming In – barber had been there for 20 years

Tromaville: the Horror Store of LIC – film fans delight

Conquering the Mid-Air Crisis on Trapeze – or did they mean mid-age?

Friday Night Fights Scorecard – who won the fights in LIC, who lost, and who was there at the 5-Star Diner

1. like, double the size of the average family-of-four apt. in LIC, so you’ll be (one of) the kings of the hill [↩]
2. and given that the home was sold for $1.5 million at the height of the previous RE bubble, and $1-2 million was put into it, that gets one a rough price of ~$3.5 mil to do it from scratch today [↩]