Once an isolated Brooklyn enclave that only received attention for its ethnic tensions and their ugly aftermaths, Crown Heights is on the cusp of a real estate revival.
The 1991 riots between the neighborhood’s Orthodox Jews and Caribbean- and African-American residents belong to another century. Today, brokers say Crown Heights feels much like Harlem seven years ago, just before it established itself as the fastest-growing section of Manhattan.
As northwestern Brooklyn neighborhoods find themselves awash in luxury residential development while prices in Brooklyn Heights, Dumbo, Park Slope, Fort Greene and Williamsburg approach Manhattan levels, savvy buyers and investors are looking east to central Brooklyn, including brownstone-rich Crown Heights, just east of Prospect Heights and 25 minutes to Manhattan by any of several subway lines.
According to Michael Ettelson, a broker specializing in Crown Heights, “A lot of people are coming in with money, compared to the people who live here now. They’re coming from Fort Greene and Clinton Hill, selling their co-ops or condominiums over there, taking out equity and looking for two- or three-family brownstones here something with a little rental income.”
If they can find them.
“Inventory is the biggest problem,” says Ettelson. “People in the community tell me they’re being offered $1 million in cash, but they’re just not interested in moving.”
The turn-of-the-century brownstones and limestones selling for $950,000 to $1.2 million sold for $800,000 just a year ago. And, says Ettelson, “some blocks have doubled within the past two years. Houses that were $400,000 are now going for $800,000.”
Apartment prices have followed a similar trajectory, with some doubling in the last two years, but prices remain attractive compared to neighborhoods to the west. One-bedroom co-op apartments go for around $200,000 to $250,000 on the better blocks, and, according to Ettelson, “you can get a steal in a co-op which is not on the best block. Some one-bedrooms sell for $130,000 to $140,000.”
The prime rib of New York City real estate the newly built luxury condominium has been slow to arrive in Crown Heights, but a few enterprising developers have entered the kitchen.
“Well, it’s not luxury luxury,” says Alex Berkovitch, developer along with Mendy Braun of a new 21-unit condominium at 575 East New York Avenue. “But it’s a little bit better than the common building.”
The project, scheduled for completion early this fall, does have the requisite amenities, including 9-foot ceilings, spacious 17-foot-by-18-foot living rooms with crown molding, eat-in kitchens with granite countertops, custom wood cabinets, stainless steel appliances and balconies in each apartment, and onsite parking.
Residing in the southern part of Crown Heights, which is largely populated by Orthodox Lubavitch Jews, the building incorporates some details that appeal to that family-oriented community. First, the apartments are large enough to accommodate family gatherings, offering two- and three-bedroom layouts, ranging in size from 1,300 to 2,100 square feet, with spacious living rooms and kitchens.
The balconies are specially designed to accommodate a sukkah, a temporary makeshift hut used in post-Yom Kippur celebrations. Kitchens are arranged to help Orthodox families keep kosher, but, observes Berkovitch, “among the non-Jews who bought there, nobody has complained about having two sinks.”
Marketed by Aguayo & Huebener, a prominent Brooklyn brokerage firm, the apartments range from $534,000 for a 1,300-squarefoot, three-bedroom, two-bath unit to over $900,000 for a penthouse with a 50-foot terrace.
The partners gained confidence in marketing higher-end condos in an Orthodox Jewish community from their experience with an earlier project in Washington Heights, at 114 Bennett Avenue. Similarly, they built it with the Jewish community in mind. “But,” recalls Berkovitch, “once we put it on the market, maybe one observant family bought there. Everybody from the Upper West Side came in with their checks and bought it all up.”
Berkovitch and Braun are looking for more property in the neighborhood, eager to build another condominium, despite soaring land costs. “We bought the land for this project in 2003 for close to $90 a square foot,” says Berkovitch. “Now they’re asking close to $200 per square foot and $250 is not uncommon.”
Manhattan-style restaurants and shops have yet to take a chance on Crown Heights, but residents can walk to nearby Prospect Heights for their nouvelle cuisine, or stop by Caf Boulevard, a restaurant opened by Crown Heights resident Itchie Gross and partners, “because we wanted a nice place for ourselves. We brought in a really upscale Manhattan architect.”
The cafeacute; is kosher. “The area is still predominantly Orthodox Jewish,” says Gross, “so it would be a little premature to open something that isn’t kosher.” But it offers a broad menu, including seafood, salads, rustic breads and Dean & DeLuca-type sandwiches, to appeal to an emerging young professional demographic.
“This used to be a very ethnically diverse area with a lot of West Indian and Jewish people,” says Gross. “Now you see just the type of people you have in Park Slope moving here. The area is only going up. It’s just a matter of time.”