Harlem brownstone sells for $4M, snagging record

Central Harlem real estate is starting to give Park Slope a run for its money. A townhouse at 2036 Fifth Avenue, between West 125th and 126th streets, just sold for $4 million – a record in the rapidly gentrifying neighborhood, the New York Daily News reported.

“This is not a surprise,” Faith Hope Consolo, chairwoman of Douglas Elliman’s retail group, told the Daily News. “This is a natural expression of where the trend is going.”

The property, listed by Corcoran Group’s Fabienne Lecole, is a triplex with a commercial duplex downstairs, a total of 8,000 square feet. The upstairs comes complete with two terraces, a modern gourmet kitchen, a family room with floor-to-ceiling shelving, a large dining room and a rooftop patio. The commercial space boasts hardwood floors, exposed brick walls and high ceilings.

The average brownstone in Harlem now sells for $1.65 million, the Daily News said.

Consolo told the Daily News that she expects that a Harlem brownstone could fetch $5 million by the end of 2013. [NYDN] –Julie Strickland