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APARTMENT SEARCH APRIL 19-23 2006:

Hello! This page is to obtain ongoing opinions about the apartments/neighborhoods Natalie and I are currently exploring for our first owned home!

4/19/06:

Today I biked along the B/Q train right-of-way... from Beverley Road to Avenue P:


Where Beverly Rd. passes over the tracks, the station house is attached to the overpass and provides access to the stairways descending to track level,








Look at the trees, uniformly planted along the road over 100 years ago!


On Cortelyou Rd., not far from the train, I found a realty place that had a bunch of promising listings in the window. These folks would give me tours of places on Sunday the 23rd.




This one is moving to contract.












Across the street from the realty place was a cute firehouse.


Looking fown Cortelyou Rd. at Westminster Rd.




The houses along the side streets are Victorian Gems!


Looking down to the tracks from a street that crossed the tracks without a station. Check out the EMPIRE STATE BUILDING all the way in the background between the trees!


The back yards of the houses abut the tracks





Some streets have gate-posts at the corners.







Then I headed down to Newkirk Avenue, just above the train tracks.


Looking down to the train.


Above the train station is a pedestrian mall with shops on both sides.


On the station house at Newkirk is a plaque that commemorates the time when this steam railroad line was elevated and cut under the crossings in the neighborhood. Amazingly, the work was done from 1904 to 1908. The first subway line in Manhattan opened in 1904 and wouldn't make it to Brooklyn until 1918!








This street dead ends at the train line as it rises from underground to the elevated nearby. There's a station entrance in the back.


DiFarra's Pizza is on the corner. I've eaten here before. DiFarra has been making the pizza here since the 1940's personally!!!


The Q train is elevated by the Avenue J stop, and I'm a bit farther south here than the area we're looking in.










I bike back home via Ocean Parkway's bike path. On the other walking path are two mounted police!!!



I bought some pizza for Natalie and I for dinner and was able to attach the box to my bike...




4/22/06:

Here is the $300,000 900Sq. Ft. $600 Maintenace apt we saw on Saturday:


Bedroom.


Bedroom looking back. Second window on another wall. Small closet behind entrance door.



Very nice bathroom.






Looking from huge foyer into massive living room.


Looking back to the foyer and entrance hall with closets.


Closet at corner of foyer and dining room.


Really really nice new kitchen.










Living Room windows with view.


The view. Very cute.


Red fire escape at Kitchen window.




















Hall


Eek.


Common courtyard for tenants.


Cool elevator indicator on outside of elevator.




Bike storage in basement... a bit full, ya/?




Basement walk to laundry room.








Pretty etching on elevator door in Lobby.




Exterior.




House going up next door


Across the street!


4/23/06:

A look at far more reasonably priced apartments along Cortelyou Rd.:

Natalie and I started at the only trendy restaurant in the area... Picket Fence.







Sweet potato fries.




They had knitting, mostly for kids, on sale on the walls.

The realtor showed us her own apartment and I noticed a cat sleeping high on a shelf in her closet!





We saw a place for $199,000 that was pretty good in a lot of ways:


Bedroom


Living Room


Space for A/C in wall.



Not a bad view of some houses from a high floor. Light and air good.


Looking back towards entrance. It is a plain box, though, and barely 700 Sq. Ft., with limited closet space. Probably the reason for the low price.



Also, the kitchen, though nice, was shoved into a corner.



Then we saw an apartment for $220,000 with a maintenance of $450. This would be very affordable:


Natalie hates the bathroom. I don't mind it. It's all been re-done with questionable taste.


Bedroom big enouch for bed and baby crib.


Hallway to bedroom lined with closet space on both sides.


And the main room, though in need of a de-wall-papering, is big enough for office and den, I think.


The Kitchen is lovely and open.


Walking down the hall...


This building has two elevators and about 100 units.


In the same building as the above two is this 1980's time machine duplex from which they were staging their open houses.


The lobby






There is scaffolding outside as they are re-pointing the brick-work.



The broker and another couple walk ahead of Natalie and I to another building along Cortelyou Rd.







I liked the entrance to this building. It attempted to match the ornate decoration on the houses nearby.


The lobby. The apartment was immediately next to the entrance on the first floor.


The elevator door, which we wouldn't need, is all wood.


The living room has an arch leading to a big foyer.


The office has killer charming bay windows. I loved this room.


The kitchen was lovely but in its own room. This is no modern apartment layout.




Looking to the side of the living room into the office.


The office also has a window behind an ocagon opening in the brick facade.


Small closet by the entrance.


Funny diplay rack on left of foyer. This is the view from the entrance to the back of the living room.


The bedroom was HUGE but had only this one window in the corner.



Looking to the bedroom entrance.


Trying to capture the size of the bedroom.


Looking from the bedroom entrance to the window.


Bathroom was good, but 4 faucets is funny. Two are for the head and two are for the tub.






Frosted window in the bathroom looks out to the building entrance.

The above apartment is on the market for $269,000 which is a bit much for us. I don't think we need all of that space, though I LOVE the office. Natalie is concerned about the sparation of the Kitchen from the rest of the place, and I too would always be wanting to knock through the wall between the kitchen and the living room. But can it be done? Is it worth it? If only the price were a smidge lower.

Natalie and I then headed for the one coffee shop, which is also a book store.






Awesome! Tin ceiling. Liberal Books. Coffee and snacks.





Natalie and I were most excited about the $220,000 place at this time, and went back for a second look:









Looking from Kitchen to back of living room. The light was a bit reduced by the large brick building across the courtyard.


Wood on wall in dining room area next to kitchen.


Bathroom. Natalie was offended by the colored grouting.








Bedroom closet was fairly large. Not a walk-in, but sizeable.


The view.


The windows were fairly modern, which is good.

Looking back from the living room windows to the kitchen area.




They had one AC in the bedroom.


The closet-filled hallway was nice.


The realtors.

We ended up less excited about the place than we were before we saw it the second time... Natalie mostly because of the bathroom and the layout of the living room and the wood on the walls, and me mostly because of the lack of good light and air, and the wallpaper. Some of these things we can fix, but we each had at least one concern that we cannot, like light&air and layout.

So, we think we're going to keep looking, via Brooklyn Hearth Realty and get some more options on the table.

Yay!