Williamsburg landlords may have found a solution to their L train worries: attracting tenants rich enough to take a helicopter to work.
An apartment at XIN Development’s Oosten [TRDataCustom] condo development on Kent Avenue is set to hit the market for $18,500 a month – the highest asking rent in the neighborhood. The duplex sports 13-foot-high ceilings and a private garden with a plunge pool.
Williamsburg’s second-priciest rental, a converted 19th century firehouse, clocks in at $13,750 per month. The neighborhood’s asking rent in the fourth quarter was $3,668, according to Citi Habitats.
Williamsburg has seen rapid gentrification in recent years, but the MTA’s decision to shut down the L train tunnel connecting the neighborhood to Manhattan for over 18 months in 2018 threatens to slow the pace.
At any rate, the neighborhood is still a relative bargain compared to Brooklyn Heights, where a townhouse is currently asking $50,000 per month.
In October, a six-bedroom, 5,000-square-foot penthouse at the Oosten sold for $6.5 million – reportedly a Williamsburg neighborhood record. XIN, an affiliate of Chinese firm Xinyuan Real Estate, is seeking a nearly $381 million total sellout at the Piet Boon-designed building, and invested $270 million into the development. [NYP] — Konrad Putzier