After months of pausing during the pandemic, open houses have returned and a number have popped up for this weekend. There are still cautions in place: There’s no just stopping by, appointments are required to view the houses during the scheduled open house times, and presumably social distancing and other measures are in place. We found four 19th century row houses — two of brownstone and two of brick — that if sold will change hands for the first time in decades. They are all north of a million, ranging in asking price from $1.325 million for a Bed Stuy brownstone to $3.495 million for one in Fort Greene.
Up first, this Neo-Grec brownstone is in the Fort Greene Historic District and dates to 1879. The two-family row house at 282 Vanderbilt Street is set up with an owners triplex over a one-bedroom garden rental. Inside there are plenty of original details, including a pier mirror, wood floors, plaster medallions. What’s not clear is the condition of the wet rooms as none of the 3.5 baths are shown in the listing photos and there’s just a glimpse of a kitchen on the parlor level. That level is set up with a galley kitchen in the middle parlor, a dining room at front and a parlor with a bay window facing the rear garden. It’s on the market for $3.495 million.
This brick row house in Boerum Hill is a melange of 19th and 20th century styles. Just off the shopping stretch of Court Street at 23 Wyckoff Street, the exterior has plenty of curb appeal with a Federal Revival-style facade boasting shutters, dormers and a wooden fanlight above the entry. There’s a heavily bracketed cornice and iron work at the low stoop. A landscaped garden out back holds a fig tree imported from Italy by the family that has owned the property since the 1970s, the listing says. The two-family house is set up as two duplexes, both with living rooms at the front and kitchen at the rear. The interior is in estate condition with a mix of 20th century design choices along with some original wood floors, fretwork and other details. The house is on the market for $3 million.
While the Lefferts Manor Historic District in Prospect-Lefferts Gardens is a single-family enclave, the listing claims 78 Rutland Road is “one of only a few, legal two-family homes” within its boundaries. Dating to 1898, the house has a light brick facade with an angular bay extending to the cornice, elaborately ornamental stone keystones at the first floor and a high, dog-legged stoop. The floor plan shows four kitchens, one per floor along with a corresponding full bathroom. The kitchens shown have fairly standard rental finishes but elsewhere the interior retains some original features, including a pier mirror, wood floors, stained glass and built-ins. A certificate of occupancy from 1950 shows two apartments and four furnished rooms or single-room occupancies (SROs). A potential buyer might want to check into the house’s tangled occupancy history, since it potentially could pose challenges for financing, renting and renovating. The townhouse is asking $1.999 million.
Finally in Bed Stuy is a three-family brownstone with one floor-through unit per floor. The late 19th century row house has a rough-faced brownstone bay, a bracketed cornice and a door hood with delicately incised foliate ornament. The interior is another one in estate condition but there are parquet floors with inlaid borders; two mantels; and door, window and wall moldings. The kitchens and one bath shown could use an update. The garden level unit has the bonus of access to the basement with storage and another full bath. The house is listed at $1.325 million.
282 Vanderbilt Avenue
Price: $3.495 million
Area: Fort Greene
Broker: Corcoran (Bernard Gifford)
Sunday July 19, noon-1 p.m.
See it here ->
23 Wyckoff Street
Price: $3 million
Area: Boerum Hill
Broker: Douglas Elliman (David Rosen, Jsun Laliberté)
Friday, July 17 and Sunday, July 19
See it here ->
78 Rutland Road
Price: $1.999 million
Area: Prospect Lefferts Gardens
Broker: Douglas Elliman (Rebekah Carver, Nancy Slavin)
Sunday July 19, 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m.
771 Macon Street
Price: $1.325 million
Area: Bed Stuy
Broker: Douglas Elliman (Danielle Mickiewicz, Erion Ahmetaj)
Sunday July 19, 12:30-1:30 p.m.
See it here ->