To buy in Bed Stuy?

anonymous

Hi all, I am looking at buying a home within a month and am also looking at a limited budget. I have stumbled across a couple of Brownstones that are within my price range but could use a little elbow grease. Currently I live in Williamsburg, but have lived in Williamsburg for a good 10 years now. When I first moved out to WB I lived on Metropolitan by Havemeyer which was sketchy for years until the neighborhood picked up. It was not the safest, you just needed to pay attention to your surroundings.

The only area I am familiar with is Stuyvesant Heights which is well out of my price range.

The question is, how are streets like Madison, Monroe, Gates, etc around Stuyvesant, Malcolm X, etc?

Are there any areas to avoid? I dont want to waste my time with agents bringing me to properties that are in areas that are obviously not safe. I dont mind putting the work into a building in a reasonably safe area, would rather not restore a home in an area I wont want to stay in.

Thanks much in advance.

vaguynny

I just brought a house in Stuyvesant Heights and it was not a arm leg and a tooth. If you look around the area and talk to people they will tell you what houses are going to be comming on the market. I live on MacDonough Street in Stuyvesant Heights and my neighbors are going to be putting there house on the market later this year. If you can catch people before they put there house on the market, you can safe a ton a money. I found my house this way… I just went around talking to people asking if they knew of any homes for sale. I hear two other homes will be put on the market this year on my block. Most of the southern end of Bedford Stuyvesant is going to do well in the long run. From Madison south to Fulton bounded by Stuyvesant and Bedford Ave most of the blocks are going to be fine in the future. I really would not go north of Monroe. I would also look at the Foreclosure list. On Decatur Street between Tompkins and Throop there are three house in foreclosure under 400K. I love the area so far.. I have only been in Bedford Stuyvesant for 9 months but so far so good. I really hope that you find a nice home there… I would go to 119 Bainbridge. I know the owner of this house is selling and she is willing to work with you, plus she is a very nice person. I hope you kind your house soon and you will be fine. I think it is really rare that anything happens to people that don’t know each other. It seems like crime in that area is between people that know each other and it tends to happen in the northeast closer to the Williamsburg Bushwick boarder…

anonymous

I live on Stuyvesant and Van Buren, closer to the J (Myrtle or Koskiuzko) than the AC Utica stop. I walk Stuyvesant to both trains all the time and love the character of most of that street.

FWIW, I think houses up closer to where I am are cheaper than anything in Stuy Heights, AND you still get the convenience of being near an express(ish) train and a street with some things you want to buy on it. It takes me 35 minutes to get to the middle of Manhattan Monday through Friday. Living around Madison/Monroe/Gates, IMHO, would just give you a really long walk to potential amenities. Bleh.

Deciding to stay near the J train means you can actually pick up groceries at the Mr. Kiwi on Myrtle and Broadway (a genuinely great small grocery store that stocks things you need like 7th generation detergents); walk to Bushwick and eat tacos with your wealthier or still-renting friends; and walk into the more gentrified area of Bed Stuy near the G train and Von King Park. Tiny Cup is really nice.

I don't feel like I miss out on any Stuy Heights action. I am a short bike ride from Restoration Plaza, Shakoor's sweet tooth and Olivino. In fact, I wind up feeling like I get the best of Bed Stuy at my fingertips... it's just that none of it is in my backyard.

There are a few houses for looking at on Van Buren between Throop and Stuyvesant. If I were you, I would take a J train to Myrtle/Broadway and start walking around and talking to people.

The coolest thing about this neighborhood is that people are mostly really nice. Start chatting and you will find yourself making friends.

This is the best way to find a good deal. Go talk to people--talk to strangers. Find out information (like how long a house has been on the market) that you can use; and most important, find out the character of the block. I freaking love Bed Stuy because I live on a really good block with tons of pride and interest. Not every block is nice like that. You want to nose around a little bit, find out how many old ladies are watching out for stuff all the time (this is secret to my block being so great), how many people have teenage sons with big stereos (either a positive or a negative, depending on your taste and the taste of the teenager in question...) how many people are getting together on the weekends to pick up trash and plant bulbs in the tree pits, etc. etc. etc.

vinze

What s ur price range