Listing of the Day: 1 Bedroom for Less Than $50K

814 Tilden Street, 1 Bedroom, 1 Bathroom - $45,000

This is literally the cheapest co-op I've ever come across in my real estate listing sojourns. Gun Hill Road is not as cool as Bedford Park, or Van Cortland Village, or Mott Haven, or Pelham Parkway, but the price on this unit can't be beat.

The pics actually show a unit that has been maintained and doesn't need much work. If you were to get a 30 year fixed rate mortgage with 20% down, you're monthly would be a mere $215. Throw in a guestimated maintenance fee of $125/month and you'd have a one bedroom for only $340. You can't find one bedrooms for that price anywhere in the City.

There is some shopping on Gun Hill Road itself, and Bay Plaza is reasonably close. You also be somewhat near Bronx Park and the Botanical Garden.

Of course transportation is pretty sweet with the 2/5 at Gun Hill Road and the Williamsbridge Metro North stop a few blocks west at the Bronx River.

FULL LISTING

~ErLu

Listing of the Day: $100K Price Chop

3341 Bouck Avenue, 3 Bedrooms, 1 Bathroom - $299,000

Here is a house that has been chopped down from its March listing price of $399K. There is nothing overly stunning about the place; in fact there aren't any interior shots. What got me was how steep the percentage chop was. As a dedicated real estate listing junkie, it is just very difficult to ignore 25% chops in a 3 month span of time.

I might agree with the argument that a house in Williamsbridge should never have been listed at almost $400K, but it was, and now we're seeing a real deal normalization. $299K is a pretty reasonable price for a house in an average, quiet-ish, residential hood.

Your closest subway would be the 5 train at Gun Hill Road.

FULL LISTING

~ErLu

Listing of the Day: Flop House Friday

742 E. 214th Street, 6 Bedroom, 2 Bathrooms - $184,900

Usually BoogieDowner brings you an opulent, castle-like house that is beyond the reach of most normal Bronxites. Well, sometimes I get tired of scouring the mansions of Fieldston and I start to look for the opposite end of the spectrum. Sometimes Fancy Friday becomes Flop House Friday - like today.

This house is over in Willamsbridge a few blocks from the 2/5 Gun Hill Road station.

I wonder how a house gets to this point? A few questions flutter through my mind: 1) Who looted the sink and why? 2) Who owns this thing and why would they try to sell it now in this market? 3) When did the last person live here?

Check these pics out...Hall of Shame material:
FULL LISTING

~ErLu

Listing of the Day: Two Bedroom Bargain

4049 Carpenter Avenue, 2 Bedrooms, 2 Bathrooms, - $1000/month

This is one the cheapest two bedrooms I've ever seen. At this price point you would expect small, old, and dirty. But it appears that this is big, new (or at least not ancient), and clean. The pics show a decent unit (or at least a unit that exceeds its paltry price tag). The second bathroom never hurts.

The nabe would be Williamsbridge. This is far west in the hood, near the Bronx River. The cross street is 228th. There would be some shopping on White Plains Road and also on 233rd Street. Across the River is Woodlawn Cemetery and a bit further north and across the river is the nabe of Woodlawn, with some good eating and imbibing options. The lack of massive apartment buildings can make Williamsbridge feel less crowded than other parts of the Bronx.

For transportation you'd have the 2/5 at 233rd street. You would also be somewhat near the Woodlawn Metro North stop at 233rd and Webster Avenue.

FULL LISTING

~ErLu

Listing of the Day: Williamsbridge Co-op

836 Tilden St 1C, 1 Bedroom - $99,000

If you're bargain hunting this Christmas season check out this lovely one bedroom for under $100K. This is a co-op just north of Gun Hill Road in Williamsbridge.

There seems to be exposed brick and a decent kitchen. In addition, the pics seem to indicate an actual bedroom. When BoogieDowner first saw this we were assuming that it was a studio being mis-listed as a one bedroom. Also, did anybody else notice Good Times playing on the one flat screen in the pics? If I were listing this I might turn the thing off, but that's just me. At least you know that the previous owners have damned good taste in television shows.

The neighborhood isn't the most happening hood in the world, but it's pleasant enough. You'd have shopping on Gun Hill Road and also on White Plains Road. You'd be close to Woodlawn and pub grub or Arthur Avenue and Italian. You'd still be close to Bronx pillars like the Botanical Garden and the Zoo.

Transportation is solid: 2 and 5 trains at Gun Hill Road and White Plains Road (not sure why it's called Pugley's Rd for this stretch?). The Williamsbridge Metro North is also only 2 or 3 blocks away.

Full Listing

~ErLu

Listing of the Day: Williamsbridge Rental

East 219 Street at Willett Avenue, 3 Bedroom, 1 Bathroom $1,500/month

This apartment is a three bedroom and is crazy cheap.

Williamsbridge isn't the most happening hood in the world, but this wouldn't be a bad split for three people trying to save a little dough. Williamsbridge is a very residential neighborhood in the north central Bronx. Not a lot of apartment buildings. You'd have some shopping down on Gun Hill Road and also on White Plains Road.

Right across the river is Woodlawn Cemetery (spooky!) and a bit further north and across the river is the Woodlawn neighborhood and all those imbibing and convivial Irish attitudes. You might even rub elbows with the rising star that is Cousin Tommy if you decide to cross the river and have a few pops.

Nothing too amazing about the apartment itself, but hey what do you want for $500/month per bedroom? On the other hand, there is nothing all that bad about the apartment either. For this price you might expect a converted meth lab or sex farm of some sort. But alas, the unit seems to be free from any nefarious past incarnations and ready for move in.

Transportation is really close - like a block to the 2/5 219th Street stop. You're also kinda sorta near the Williamsbridge Metro North stop on Gun Hill Road.

Full Listing

~ErLu

Listing of the Day: Williamsbridge Wonder

731 East 226 Street, 4 Bedrooms, 2 Bathrooms - $271,900

We know this thing looks like some sort of a sad soviet courthouse in occupied Poland, but look at that price. Seriously. No really, look at it. That is less than $70K per bedroom. More than enough money would be saved to put the necessary TLC into this house.

This house is located in Williamsbridge, which is a very residential neighborhood in the north central Bronx. Not a lot of apartment buildings. You'd have some shopping down on Gun Hill Road and also on White Plains Road.

Right across the river is Woodlawn Cemetery (spooky!) and a bit further north and across the river is the Woodlawn neighborhood and all that imbibing.

The 2 and 5 trains both stop a block away at 225th Street and White Plains Road, so transportation is pretty nice. You'd also have a garage so having a car is actually feasible.

Four bedrooms for less than $300k - only in the Bronx people, only in the Bronx.

Full Listing

~ErLu

Neighborhood, What Neighborhood?

The Bronx seems to hold the singular distinction of having very blurry lines when it comes to defining neighborhoods. Most of the time people will give you a street, rather than a neighborhood name as an answer to, "Where do you live?" You're much more likely to hear, "I live in Pelham Parkway," than I live in Williamsbridge or Allerton. A more common answer to a question of a Bronxite's neighborhood would be "On the Concourse," rather than Highbridge or Morris Heights.

This rant about indistinct neighborhoods and their boundaries was engendered by an NY Times article about the Bronx Borough historian, Lloyd Ultan, professor at Lehman College, and his search for what actually constitutes the North-Central Bronx hood of Williamsbridge. (photo courtesy of Marilynn K. Yee/The New York Times)

Link to: As Maps and Memories Fade, So Do Some Bronx Boundary Lines [NY Times]

Even my own home neighborhood has ambiguous borders. I consider Bedford Park to be its own neighborhood bordered to the north by Mosholu Parkway, the west by the Grand Concourse, the south by Bedford Park Blvd., and the east by Webster Ave. I've heard people say Bedford Park runs all the way down to 196th, some even further to 192nd. Some put the western border as as far as Goulden Ave near the Reservoir. I've even heard people say that Bedford Park doesn't exist as it's own neighborhood; it is Fordham-Bedford or North Fordham - I disagree with both assertions.

So Boogiedowner asks, what neighborhood do you live in, and what are the borders? Do you agree that the Bronx neighborhood borders are blurry? Let's get this straight.

~ErLu

Listing of the Day: Pelham Parkway 2 Bedroom

$230K for this two bedroom, which also has 2 Bathrooms. Cross streets of Boston Post Rd. and Williamsbridge Rd. allow for easy access to beautiful Pelham Parkway and lots of greenery. If that's not enough green, take a walk to the New York Botanical Garden or hang with the animals at the Bronx Zoo (if you're conformist friends still think the Bronx is stuck in 1986 and won't come North of 125th Street).

Sunken living rooms are pretty cool, as are built in shelves with original detail. At $230K this two bedroom co-op is about right for the area.
There is lots of shopping on Williamsbridge Rd. and the 5 and 2 trains are close by. The only negative aspect is that the maintenance is a little high at $910/month. No doorman, and I don't think any common space, so I am not sure what this $910 goes to , but really, who has two bathrooms?

As an added bonus you could always wow your friends with your nabe's serious yuletide pride. This annual spectacle on the corner of Westervelt and Pelham Parkway is not to be missed, but often overlooked.

Link to Full Listing

~ErLu

Lourdes of America in the Bronx

In a Bronx Grotto, Seeking the Virgin Mary’s Help [NY Times]

The above link is a quirky story about a little grotto at St. Lucy's Parish in Williamsbridge in the Bronx.

Located at the cross-section of Boston Rd and Mace Ave, this grotto is one of two places to claim the title "Lourdes of America" (the other is in New Mexico). It seems people flock to St. Lucy's for cures or solace or the comfort of traditional Marian devotion. In any case, it seems that this little place in the middle of Williamsbridge has some major spiritual charisma.

Forgotten-NY's Take on "Little Lourdes" (click for link)

Aside: Forgotten NY calls this intersection (Boston/Mace) "Allerton." Anyone want to weigh in on the boundaries of Williamsbridge?

~ErLu