Williamsburg

It looks like the East River Skyway is getting a big boost from local elected officials. Three politicians have jumped on the idea, including U.S. Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, City Councilman Stephen Levin, and State Assemblyman Joseph Lentol. The trio together drafted a letter to Mayor de Blasio, encouraging him to back the transit initiative as a solution to impending L train closure. "This is the coolest thing we could do for the neighborhood," Lentol, told DNA Info. "I don’t want to denigrate the BQX but this is even a greater plan to have a gondola going from Brooklyn to Manhattan forever."
find out more here

Transit

November 10, 2016

NY1 anchor Pat Kiernan keeps townhouse, sells duplex condo in Williamsburg

Popular NY1 news anchor Pat Kiernan made news himself when he and his wife Dawn and their two children moved from an Upper West Side co-op to a four-story townhouse at 135 Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg. The Kiernans bought the house for $2.03 million–a neighborhood record for a single-family home–and proceeded to undertake major renovations. Turns out that in 2013 the Kiernans also purchased a two-bedroom, two-bath duplex at 171 North 7th Street for $860,000. The condo must have become one property too many; it was recently sold for $1.095 million (h/t Observer).
Have a look, this way

Celebrities

November 2, 2016

14th Street and Williamsburg no-car zones proposed for L train shutdown

Transit advocacy groups and politicians who have been promoting the idea of ridding Manhattan’s 14th Street of private car traffic during planned L subway tunnel repairs, and only allowing bus, bike and pedestrian traffic, have also suggested that the no-auto plan would be good for Grand Street in Williamsburg, the New York Post reports. Grand Street is a major neighborhood thoroughfare similar to 14th Street, and advocates say giving the streets to bikes, pedestrians and shuttle buses would be one way to lessen the impact of the shutdown.
Find out more

Transit

October 28, 2016

Domino Sugar Factory reveals renderings of creative office building The Refinery

Commercial landlords looking to compete with cutting-edge co-working spaces like the Navy Yard's New Lab or amenity-filled developments like Industry City have their work cut out for them, and it looks like Two Trees is pulling out all the requisite stops for their new office building The Refinery at Williamsburg's massive, under-construction Domino Sugar Factory complex. Curbed got its hands on the first set of renderings of the 380,000-square-foot office space, which show how tenants can work with architects Beyer Blinder Belle to customize their spaces for "innovation" and "authenticity." The interiors preserve the former industrial details (exposed brick, ceilings beams), while incorporating creative perks such as suspended glass-and-steel office pods, an indoor skate park, and a bevy of common areas.
More details and renderings ahead

October 18, 2016

Modern $4.5M townhouse by the Williamsburg waterfront has an art studio, parking and four terraces

6sqft previously featured this unusual property at 257 Berry Street, in the heart of trendy Williamsburg two blocks from the waterfront, when it was being offered as a $12,000/month rental. Now, just 14 months later, the glassy townhouse—whose exterior more resembles the neighborhood's ubiquitous new construction apartments—is on the market for $4.5 million. Though it may look nondescript-contemporary, the five-story single-family home packs a few impressive surprises, including an adjacent two-story art studio with direct street access and a loading dock.
Investigate the many interesting details in this modern townhouse

Distinctive Homes

October 7, 2016

41 affordable units up for grabs in Williamsburg, starting at $788/month

The city's latest affordable housing lottery is for 41 apartments in a newly constructed Williamsburg building just two blocks east of McCarren Park. A project of Dunn Development, the Meekerman is the second development in the state completed under the LIHC Mixed-Income Pilot Program, and it provides housing for those earning less than 40, 50, 60, and 80 percent of the area median income. Rents in the energy efficient building--it employs high-performance systems and appliances, as well as solar panels--range from $788/month for studios to $1,403/month for two-bedrooms.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

September 28, 2016

Modern Williamsburg condo with its own fire pit asks $1.89M

With its giant windows and 808-square-foot landscaped backyard, this Williamsburg condo marries indoor and outdoor space quite well. Located at 550 Grand Street, the two-bedroom duplex spans over 1,500 square feet and has just hit the market for nearly $2 million. Big windows that front the backyard bring a tremendous amount of light into the pad, including the lower-level bedroom area. And although 550 Grand is an older brick building, the interior has been completely redone with a modern, sleek aesthetic.
See more of the duplex

Distinctive Homes

September 19, 2016

Stay in NYC’s first shipping container home in Williamsburg for $96/night

There's plenty of cool shipping container architecture that's popped up around the city in recent years, from a retrofitted carriage house to the home of a radio station. But the title of first (legal) home built entirely of recycled containers goes to this architectural gem in Williamsburg, made of six stacked containers totaling 1,600 square feet. The lovely, 320-square-foot ground-floor apartment is now up for rent through Airbnb for a surprisingly affordable $96/night.
See the whole place

August 30, 2016

$4M 19th century brick townhouse in Williamsburg masquerades as a loft

Williamsburg is best known for its stock of new condo buildings and converted warehouses, but the neighborhood boasts its share of historic gems in the form of 19th century townhouses. They don't come on the market very often, so that's why this one at 130 North 1st Street is asking nearly $4 million. Inside, it looks more like a loft than a townhouse--this is still Williamsburg, after all.
Take an interior tour

Distinctive Homes

August 26, 2016

With $2.5 billion in Brooklyn real estate, Hasidic investors are a formidable gentrification driver

We hear so frequently about the players behind Manhattan’s billion-dollar real estate projects and how foreign investors are pouring a global vault's worth of currency into New York City property, often shielded by LLCs. It's illuminating to get a closer look at the city’s larger real estate landscape–one that has changed so much in recent decades–and learn who's behind the soaring property values, skyrocketing rents, frenzied flipping and veritable horse-trading that has driven the unprecedented and transformative gentrification beyond Manhattan’s rarified development scene. A recent story by The Real Deal titled “Learning and earning: Hasidic Brooklyn’s real estate machers” reveals that a huge slice of the borough’s real estate pie is owned by the Hasidic community. The ultra-orthodox sect reportedly includes some of Brooklyn’s wealthiest property owners, to the tune of $2.5 billion.
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Real Estate Trends

August 25, 2016

Will a (rent stabilized) Williamsburg address make a shower in the kitchen hip?

It's always fun when yet another listing with a shower in the kitchen surfaces; 6sqft has covered versions of the quirky New York City phenomenon previously. The East Village and LES are the usual suspects, and this Bed-Stuy brownstone home makes the kitchen shower look positively chic. But once again, lovely, expensive Williamsburg draws the short straw. For a mere $1,574 a month ($1,604 for a two-year lease), you, too, can discover the joys of the shower beer. To be fair, the one-bedroom at 18 Skillman Avenue has some definite selling points. It's rent stabilized, for one, and the neighborhood is popular, convenient (except for that year without the L train) and fun.
The apartment's actually pretty cute

August 9, 2016

Tons of Sun at This Corner Duplex, Asking $1.2M in Williamsburg

One of the big perks of many duplex apartments is that the layout allows for double-height ceilings. It's a striking apartment detail, especially here at the hip Williamsburg condo 134 Powers Street. This apartment, asking $1,225 million, boasts double-height ceilings in the living room and since it's a corner unit, gets light on all sides.
Take the grand tour

Distinctive Homes

August 5, 2016

Perfume Heiress Pauline Rochas Lists Trés Chic Williambsburg Loft for $2.6M

Perfume and fashion heiress Pauline Rochas and partner Carole Beaupré, the impossibly chic and creative photographer couple who currently own this 2,082-square-foot, one-bedroom-plus-office in Williamsburg’s Mill Building at 85 North Third Street, have listed the fashionably renovated loft for $2.585 million. Ms. Rochas is the granddaughter of the late Hélène Rochas, stylish socialite, perfumer and wife of couturier Marcel Rochas; she and Ms. Beaupré run a photography studio, Coolife, that specializes in shooting still-life beauty images for brands like Chanel and Ralph Lauren, and collaborated on a line of perfumes (h/t LLNYC). The pair purchased the home for $940,000 in 2007 and have since elevated it to a level of polished north Brooklyn cool befitting their lifestyle as well as their neighborhood.
Tour this chic Williamsburg loft

Distinctive Homes

August 2, 2016

$1M Williamsburg Condo Delivers on Location, Space, Price–and a Huge Backyard

This 1,077 square-foot two-bedroom garden apartment at 206 Montrose Avenue on a convenient and colorful block in "hot, hot, hot East Williamsburg" has two spacious and quiet bedrooms with covetable closet space, plus two baths; there's an amazing amount of outdoor space in the form of a big patio and backyard. And it comes in at (just a hair) under $1 million at $999,000.
Check all the boxes...

Distinctive Homes

August 1, 2016

Two-Bedroom Williamsburg Condo With Pool Views Gets a Price Chop to $1.5M

The Williamsburg development 135 North 11th Street probably starts looking good to buyers every summer considering it boasts its own private pool, complete with lounge chairs and cabanas. This particular apartment, a two-bedroom unit, looks down upon the pool from a private balcony. The funky space has just gotten a price chop, reducing from its ask of $1.62 million to $1.495 million last week. It last sold in 2011 for $728,048.
Take a look around

July 27, 2016

13 Chances to Live in a Cool Williamsburg Rental For As Low As $722/Month

Starting today, an affordable housing lottery is open for 13 units at Williamsburg's new rental the Brooklyn Grand. Located at 774 Grand Street, the Meshberg Group-designed building is eight stories tall with ground-floor retail and offers a total of 64 units, 20 percent of which are reserved for individuals earning 60 percent of the area median income. The units up for grabs range from $722/month studios to $900/month two-bedrooms, and tenants will have access to the building's roof terrace and fitness center and, for an additional fee, parking and bike storage.
See if you're qualified to apply

Affordable Housing

July 16, 2016

First Look at Williamsburg’s Tallest Building Not Planned Along the Waterfront

By Ondel Hylton

"Avid church and factory convertor" Yoel Werzberger and Watermark Capital Group are building a 19-story, 230-foot residential building in the heart of Williamsburg at 321 Wythe Avenue, reports CityRealty.com, and it'll be the tallest tower in the neighborhood not along its waterfront. The site was formerly a parking lot and single-story church owned by the Parish of Saints Peter and Paul Roman Catholic Church, who also owns an acre of property on the block between Wythe and Berry Streets. The struggling church entered a long-term lease deal with Watermark last year that will allow them to erect a residential tower while making payments to the Parish that begin at $2.1 annually.
More info this way

July 15, 2016

Looming L Train Shutdown Already Causing Williamsburg Condo Prices to Dip, Says Expert

Since word broke that the L Train would be shutting down for upwards of a year, many have been wondering just how this would affect real estate prices in the immediate term. Well it looks we may finally be getting a taste. As DNA Info first reports, The Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) released their quarterly findings this week, and REBNY found that although the number of condos sales were up in Williamsburg by 43 percent this last quarter over the same time last year, the average sales price dropped a considerable 13 percent to $937,000. To put this further into perspective, for Brooklyn as a whole, REBNY recorded a nine percent rise to $923,000 over the same period; Manhattan condos by comparison grew by 21 percent to an average $2.843M.
is there anything really to this?

Real Estate Trends

July 12, 2016

$1.4M Williamsburg Apartment is Surrounded by Greenery and Outdoor Space

This Williamsburg apartment at 16 Monitor Street is perfect for summer, as there's views of greenery pretty much everywhere you look. As the listing says, "Whichever window you look out of, you see lush foliage and flowers." The two-bedroom duplex spans about 1,500 square feet and is decked out with modern finishes and a very impressive walk-in closet. It's been renovated into a bona fide entertainment space, assisted in no small part by the 200 square feet of barbecue and lounge space outside.
Check out the inside and outside

Distinctive Homes

July 8, 2016

TBD Design Studio Converted a 19th Century Williamsburg Firehouse Into a Live/Work Haven

When a photographer recently bought this 19th century firehouse in Williamsburg, its interior was in a complete state of disrepair, though the historic facade was intact. To transform it into a live/work home, the owner brought on Josh Weiselberg and Selin Semaan of TBD Architecture + Design Studio, who turned the garage into a ground-floor photo studio and gallery, created a second-floor residence, and added a rooftop penthouse, lounge, and terrace (h/t designboom). The result is an open and airy haven that's sensitive to the original firehouse, but is also functional for its modern use.
See the entire home

Architecture And Design

July 7, 2016

$15,000/Month Firehouse Offers a Sprawling Live/Work Space in Williamsburg

Check out this 5,000-square-foot live/work space at 246 Frost Street, a former 19th century Williamsburg firehouse. While the historic facade remains intact, the interior has pretty much been transformed into a lofty, two-floor apartment with plenty of exposed brick to go around. And it's full of bonus space: a finished basement, an extra sleeping loft, a deck, parking garage, recording studio and fully-functioning dark room. For all that, it'll cost a cool $15,000 a month.
Take a look

Distinctive Homes

My 1200sqft: Inside Summer Rayne Oakes’ Williamsburg Oasis Filled With 500+ Plants

Our ongoing series “My sqft” checks out the homes of 6sqft’s friends, family and fellow New Yorkers across all the boroughs. Our latest interior adventure brings us to Summer Rayne Oakes’ plant-filled Williamsburg loft. Want to see your home featured here? Get in touch!

June 21, 2016

My 1200sqft: Inside Summer Rayne Oakes’ Williamsburg Oasis Filled With 500+ Plants

As far as multi-hyphenate models go, Summer Rayne Oakes may be the most impressive we've come across. More than being a cover beauty, Summer is also a writer, businesswoman, activist, chef (she's working on her first cookbook), and an ecologist by training (she graduated from Cornell with degrees in Environmental Science and Entomology). Unsurprisingly, this overachiever's multifaceted talents touch ever corner of her life, including the space she's called home for the past 11 years. On the top floor of an unassuming Williamsburg building is a 1200-square-foot loft that's been transformed into a veritable jungle with over 500 plants (and 150 species) and a handful of exotic insects, including African millipedes and Madagascar hissing cockroaches (they're confined to a terrarium, if you're wondering). While her home at first glance appears to be dominated by plants, Summer's space is also decorated with dreamy touches, carefully curated vignettes, and furniture she's built with her father using wood found on the street. Ahead Summer takes us through her unique loft and gives us some insight into the work she's done, her perspective on her changing neighborhood, as well as some tips for raising plants in the city.
Inside Summer's unbelievable home this way

June 20, 2016

Nine L Train-Adjacent Affordable Apartments Up for Grabs in Williamsburg, From $882

Starting tomorrow, qualifying New Yorkers can begin applying for nine brand new below-market pads in hipster Williamsburg, right off the G/L Metropolitan/Lorimer stop and in proximity to neighborhood standbys like Union Pool, Mccarren Park, and that bagel shop that birthed the cragel and rainbow bagel. Located at 11 Jackson Street (also known as 15 Jackson Street), affordable units are being priced at $882 for a studio, $945 for a one-bedroom, and $1134 for a two-bedroom. Currently, there aren't any market-rate units available (the last rented out just days ago) and it's worth noting that no-fee two-bedrooms have been going for upwards of $3,250 a month—meaning these are some very nice apartments.
find out if you qualify here

Affordable Housing

June 16, 2016

One Month Free at 76 North 4th Street, Steel Factory Turned Rental in Williamsburg

For the renter looking for a balance between Williamsburg's old warehouse buildings and its newer luxury development, the Lewis Steel Building beckons. This 83-unit rental was co-developed by Cayuga Capital and Jake Toll, the son of the developer behind Toll Brothers. They transformed a 1930s steel factory into modern apartments while keeping the 13-foot ceilings, exposed beams and factory-sized windows intact. Leasing launched last year and there are now six apartments left, ranging from a $3,117/month one-bedroom to a $5,683/month three-bedroom. And for any renters who pick up the remaining apartments, they're getting the first month of rent free.
Take a look around

June 14, 2016

$1.4M Williamsburg ‘Penthouse’ Has On-Trend Finishes, Two Terraces and Skyline Views

With its pretty, rustic-meets-modern kitchen, tons of outdoor space on two levels and glass accordion doors framing gorgeous city views, this 956-square-foot condo at 150 Richardson Street has the makings of a smart little home in a coveted Williamsburg spot. A $1.425 million ask for the top-floor walk-up is likely based on that location, in a neighborhood that has become one of the borough's–if not the city's–priciest. Let's take a closer look at what you get with your prime 'burg pad.
Outdoor space, views, and smart finishes this way

Distinctive Homes

June 14, 2016

One-bedroom With Shower in the Kitchen Wants $1,850/Month in Williamsburg