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Some Suspect East New York Rezoning has Triggered Speculation

2 Comments

  • Sarita
    Posted March 12, 2016 at 10:19 am

    I worked in East New York with United Community Centers from 2003 to 2013, and have stayed involved as a volunteer and board member. Through my work with hundreds of dedicated gardeners, teenage interns, entrepreneurs, and health advocates, I developed a love for this community, such that when my husband and I considered buying a home this year, we looked first in East New York, specifically in Cypress Hills. It’s also a reality we could never afford to buy any property in the other neighborhood where might have liked to buy a place – Prospect Heights where I’ve rented for 12 years.

    Our search has been disheartening. Of the dozens of properties we looked into, almost all had been “flipped.” People who’ve made their homes in this community, and likely contributed to it in a number of ways, walked away from their properties bankrupt and possibly homeless, while investors who barely know where East New York is stand to make two, or three, or possibly four hundred thousand dollars almost overnight. Realtors who showed us two-family homes suggested we could get $2,200 rent for a three-bedroom apartment, some of them specifically mentioning the proposed rezoning. Given the average income in East New York, that would constitute 76% of the median family income. We watched these same realtors hand their cards to homeowners sitting on their stoops, telling them that they could pay all cash, encouraging them to consider selling.

    And this is the situation that has emerged just from the suggestion of a rezoning.

  • Scott Petricig
    Posted March 12, 2016 at 10:37 am

    “The De Blasio administration doesn’t deny that the real-estate market is getting hotter in East New York, but says these trends proceeded the announcement of a rezoning”

    Did you mean “preceded”?

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