Fixer Upper Friday: 1 BR in Carlton House Converts to 2

Via Streeteasy

This week's fixer upper special is 1,000 sq ft 1 BR in the Carlton House—with a terrace!—that could convert to a true 2 BR with grace and ease. Comparable two-bedroom homes in this neighborhood go for upwards of $650k, and that's without the outdoor space. This home is listed at $465k, so at the very least there is $185k of instant equity on the line—and that will pay for a nice renovation, indeed. Let's take a look.

Fixer Upper Friday: 2 BR + Office in Laburnum Court - $559k

This week's Fixer Upper find is a 2BR + office, located in Laburnum Court at 37-16 80th Street, #42 in the Jackson Heights neighborhood of NYC, asking $559k. The same classic 6-room layout in this co-op building just sold for $670k in February of last year, so there is at the very least $110k of instant equity on the line—likely more, as sales prices have been climbing this past year in this architecturally significant neighborhood. For a prospective buyer willing to tap into that instant equity and renovate a home exactly to their taste, it's certainly worth a look.

Fixer Upper Friday: Roosevelt Terrace 2 BR

Typical terrace at Roosevelt Terrace via RedFin

Hey, I'm back with another installment of Fixer Upper Friday, scouting a 2 BR at 35-31 85th Street, 4h, in Jackson Heights. This home is located in a four-building co-op down the block from where we live, so I get to see quite a bit of it and I can tell you that the outdoor spaces are sweet. I'm going to breeze right over the photos in the ad on StreetEasy and instead show you this of a neighboring home in the same co-op that gives a better taste of how great this home could be. Can't you just see yourself sipping a latte or glass of wine here? Righty-ho, then — let's jump right into the floor plan, where the potential to open the kitchen into something spectacular is pure Renov8or gold.

Fixer Upper Friday: 35-45 82nd Street 2BR

Streeteasy

Hey, I'm back with another installment of Fixer Upper Friday. Seeing what I see in this home at 35-45 82nd Street in Jackson Heights is going to take a bit of imagination on your part. There's not a lot of history of past sales in the building on Streeteasy, so I don't have any "after" photos to show you of similar units on other floors, the way I like to do. But several things pique my Renov8or interest:

Fixer Upper Friday: Linden Court 2BR

Zillow

A Zillow alert caught my eye this morning, because it's exactly the kind of home that I look for when I'm on the hunt for my next fixer upper. It's listed for $335,000, when most two-bedrooms of similar size in this neighborhood list for $450,000-$550,000, depending on the quality of the renovations. Given the price differential, this means the buyer of the fixer upper will have roughly $215,000 to work with to bring it up to market. That's more than ample to do what's needed: skim coat and paint the walls, refinish the floors, update the wiring, and gut renovate both the kitchen and bath. Built in 1919, the home retains some beautiful detail. Let's take a look.

Fixer Upper Friday: Large Studio in Jackson Heights for $160k

Photo: Streeteasy

If I had my way, I would move every year, just for the sheer fun of getting to renovate another home with Renov8or potential. Sadly, Ross does not share my penchant for "fresh starts". Little did I know that when I found our current home - a 2BR with parking and a doorman - I was setting the bar pretty high for me ever convincing him to move again. Try finding another deal that that in New York City.

It doesn't stop me from "looking" of course. I'm always culling StreetEasy for new homes on the market that have good Renov8or potential. Some of these I send to friends who are looking. Others I simply ogle and dream about.

Take this large studio in Jackson Heights, for example, that recently showed up on StreetEasy:

Fixer Upper Friday: Cost of Renovations $0

Our $0 renovation

This isn't going to be a post about scouring the internet for the best deal on fixtures. Or how to find upcycled goods at salvage yards. Or even how to cut your contractor costs by doing some DIY yourself. (Though, I can readily get behind any one or all of those things.)

This is about something very real that you don't hear too much about in the home blogs. How to buy a home that's equity will pay for your renovation.

If I were to add up the cost of the renovations to our new home - contractor fees, materials, and fixtures - it totals more than $40k. But it didn't cost us a cent.

Wa-wa-what what? That's right. Here's how we did it.

Linden Court Fixer Upper

I received a Zillow alert this week on a 2-BR fixer upper in Jackson Heights for an unbelievable $219k.

 3759 84th St APT 32, Jackson Heights NY 11372

Photo: Zillow

Unbelievable, because when I track the address in Streeteasy, it turns out this apartment is located in the lovely Linden Court. Linden Court is one of my favorite prewar co-ops in all of Jackson Heights for it's gorgeous oversize windows. It's credited with being the first co-op built in the neighborhood in 1921, when both light and air flow were considered essential to good health and architects paid attention to such things.

Photo: Zillow

The unit does need a substantial amount of work, judging by the photos (the tile laid over the hard wood floors is in my opinion, criminal). But at $219 per sq ft and with that amazing wall of windows in the livingroom, this apartment has big Renov8or appeal.

Moving From "Hip" Carroll Gardens to Jackson Heights

Credit: Streeteasy.com

Our offer on an apartment today was accepted! It's a 2 BR in Jackson Heights, where I think Ross and I will be very happy. For half the price, no, one-third the price of a Carroll Gardens 2 BR we're getting 1100 square feet in a full-service building, with a live-in super and porters and a doorman and — yes! — a parking garage!

It's a fixer upper, of course. This photo above is actually the same apartment two floors down, already renovated. But it gives you an idea of how lovely ours will be when I'm through with it. The one we're buying sadly looks like this right now: