Feb 16
25
I recently took a random survey of homeowners and asked if they would be happy if I sold their Brooklyn home for a million dollars or more. I walked the streets and took a sampling in Bensonhurst, on 18th Avenue, Park Slope, 8th Street, Sunset Park 3rd Avenue and Bay Ridge 5th Avenue. The answers might surprise you but it answers why senior homeowners might for instance have the least amount of homes for sale on the market than any other age group in the boro. This is what the majority of owners said to me as I approached and asked strangers if they were homeowners while walking their neighborhoods. The most common answer from the people who would stop to talk to me and who were mostly seniors (6 to 1 and I’ll paraphrase) Frank I never thought when I bought this home I would be a millionaire from it. I’m living here forever, I’ve raised my children here, my Doctors are here where would I go? Another answer from younger homeowners was it’s too expensive to move and start over again where would I go?. I said to myself how do I tell this person unless you move to Staten Island or NJ there is no place for you that’s cheaper. Back in the day, these were easy question to answer. You would upgrade to a larger home in the same neighborhood or maybe move to a more upscale neighborhood in Brooklyn using some of the money you received from the sale. Today, you might need more money than you get from the sale to accomplish that.
Some years ago I was invited to speak at the NY Learning Annex. Some of the invitees before me were the likes of Donald Trump, Russell Simmons, Ed Koch, Larry King, Suze Orman and many more. The class was called ‘REAL ESTATE DEALS IN BROOKLYN’. If the class were held today, it would be called ‘WHAT, REAL ESTATE DEALS IN BROOKLYN?’
