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Seen a Bat Lately?

July 29th, 2009

Thank you, Prospect Park Alliance volunteers and program coordinators, for making our dusk this Tuesday, July 28, a memorable one! First, we learn some trivia about invasive tree species, then we cool off by the Dog Beach, then we get served on a platter to the local (innumerable!) mosquito population, then we SEE BATS!!!

We learn that the bats we’re seeing are most likely of the little brown variety (Myotis lucifugus). Many a myth is dispelled. Bats are not blind. Bats see very well, day, or night. They don’t fly into your hair (unless on a quest for a mosquito hidden in your frizzy). They don’t drink your blood. They don’t turn into humanoid bloodthirsty creatures. They live up to 30 years! They can eat up to 1,000 mosquitoes (or other insects) in an hour! Nursing female bats may eat up to 110% of their body weight… each night. Roughly 25% of all mammal species on our planet are… really!?… bats (there are nearly 1,200 species of bats out there – that fact in itself a testimony to the crucially important role these little creatures play in our ecosystem!)

WATCHING bats fly is fascinating – they seem to constantly change their mind as to direction and speed. But HEARING bats is simply magical! Thanks to the Prospect Park Alliance and their volunteer tour guide Paul Keim, we get to hear the world of bats. Paul holds his bat detector (device that converts bats’ echolocation ultrasound signals to frequencies us humans can hear!) up in the air, his machine producing clicking sounds whenever a bat is near.

Apparently each and every bat has its own, unique ultrasonic call – and Paul seems to be able to explain a host of nuances in sounds we hear these lovely mammals produce… by way of Paul’s bat detector.

Paul also has a Beanie Baby-like bat toy (which he says was given to him by his daughter the first time he started doing the bat tours) that he uses to explain to the youngest in our group of bat watchers how bats hang upside down… Paul’s Q&A with the youngest in the group also produces a memorable “We (humans) can’t hang upside down for long because if we did our heads would explode.”

Paul’s machine clicks, and makes buzzing sounds every time a bat catches an insect. We all cheer for the bats – and we hear quite a few buzzes.

“An Evening with the Bats,” Prospect Park, July 28

Enter at 9th Street and Prospect Park West, 718.965.8965; save the (next) date: August 4. Free for Prospect Park Alliance members.

 

Chronicles of an Ideal Intern

July 28th, 2009

Café Regular du Nord

In my pursuit of neighborly destinations, I decide that getting to know my immediate neighbors might be just what the neighborhood doctor ordered. I walk straight into the new coffee shop that just opened in the building also occupied by Ideal Properties. Ideal is on the corner, and this little neighbor of theirs protrudes out of the building’s Berkeley Place facade.

Café Regular du Nord is the name. I’m not so sure, from the get-go, if anything is regular about this brand new – however mignon – addition to Park Slope’s enviable list of coffee shops. And I’m not sure if regular is what they hope each one of their patrons becomes. But I presume I’m sure about “du Nord” clearly drawing the passerby’s attention to the Café Regular’s presence in Park Slope North.

Either way, Café Regular’s original incarnation (du Sud?) is on Park Slope’s Eleventh Street. Having spotted the little store, just recently vacated by Zuzu Petals, Café Regular’s owner Richard realized that the area simply needed a new café.

It seems that the café’s miniature size works to its advantage, emphasizing its comfortable feel. Adequately scaled tables and chairs, carefully grouped outside the café, lend this place an almost Mediterranean sense of ease and a definite allusion to instant joie de vivre. Ah, I just know that Ideal’s agents would love nothing more than to have enough time during this crazy rental season to sit down and enjoy their coffee, simply taking delight in letting the time slowly pass them by on this oddly memorable, baronial, tree-lined street.

Richard tells me he knew he made the right choice, because the people in the neighborhood have been nothing but super friendly. I feel totally comfortable talking with Richard and his staff and I delight in the fact that I have found it!!!! I have found the place where I am going to be a regular (pun intended). This is where I’ll be buying my morning coffee, yeay!

Jackie the Intern Over and Out

 

Chronicles of an Ideal Intern

July 24th, 2009

That Beastly Bite…

Pet lover to the bone, and innately attracted to stores bearing curious names, I walk into Park Slope’s latest addition to retail establishments that cater to all things pet: Beastly Bite.

I learn that Beastly Bite opened its doors to the neighborhood’s pet-loving public 23 days ago. Despite the scary name evocative of mauling and gore, Beasty Bite is extremely unbeastly and wonderfully friendly in its behind-the-counter demeanor.

Predictably, the store carries endless pet paraphernalia, toys, food, and medicine for the majority of usual suspects in the local pet world. Beastly will also help pet owners with prescription diets, and the store prides itself in entertaining special orders.

The third in the line of Beastlies (the other two are at 140 Court Street and 490 Carroll Street), this Beastly Bite is also home to Smokey, possibly the cutest gray kitten around…

I meet Beastly Bite’s Cindy. Cindy lets me in on the fact that after following a lengthy period of research, the owners (Tim Miller) realized that Park Slope was one of Brooklyn’s supremely pet-friendly neighborhoods. The realization prompted them to open the store right here. Cindy was also excited to report that ever since the opening, the business has had a constant flow of customers. “There are so many pet owners in the area, and the people are very friendly,” Cindy is optimistic about the store’s future.

I wish Cindy well and promise her that I will be coming back as a customer. Almost instantly, in my mind’s eye I envision my beloved cats purr in gratitude.

I wonder about Cindy’s business. My immediate thought is that pets need love, care and attention despite their accompanying human’s economic hardships. I toss the thought aside as I’m not really sure how the pet business might be affected by a quirky economy, but I’m happy to learn that for Cindy, business is good.

Beastly Bite, 139 7th Avenue (between Carroll and Garfield), 718.399.3535.

Jackie the Intern Over and Out

 

Chronicles of an Ideal Intern

July 21st, 2009

The Neighborhood…

When I started my marketing internship with Ideal Properties, I decided to first explore the well-publicized neighborhood around the firm’s Seventh Ave office.

I admit. I’m one of those. I’m unfamiliar with Park Slope, and this office is where I’m supposed to start my professional career-to-be – so this haphazard and superficial exploration of my immediate surroundings kind of made sense to me. And besides, if you don’t know where you work, then how do you know where to buy your coffee when the going gets tough?

What I found was a neighborhood filled with very friendly, outgoing people – in complete contrast to its tarnished (stroller mafia? WHAT?) reputation.

As I walked along the streets of Park Slope I passed stranger after stranger, and most of them said hello to me (!)

What is this – Diaries of Ms. Alice in Wonderland!?

I walked from one store to another – and again, people were very friendly and had no problem speaking with me about their little geographic heaven of choice. Everyone (and I mean EVERYONE) I spoke with… loved living and working in Park Slope! Most labeled the neighborhood as a kid-friendly and pet-friendly community, the proof to which I found in countless happy-go-lucky kids and dogs I saw while walking around… sweating in the merciless July sun.

I spoke to many singles – and, in unison, they too all claim to love and take joy in living in the neighborhood. They attributed their love for Park Slope to its many cafes and its proximity to the majestic Prospect Park… Apparently, some of their love lives’ started thriving almost immediately following their move to the area. Okay, I get it. They really, really like living here.

I too start quickly believing that I am going to enjoy interning in Park Slope, not only because of the great community, but also because of where I am interning! Ideal Properties is a great place to work, everyone is surprisingly friendly and helpful. I feel comfortable and at ease the first day I start my internship with them…

Okay – you’re free to think whatever you want. This is Ideal’s blog, and I am writing it to post on their company’s blog. But what the heck, I can still tell the truth, right?

I admit to having expected worse – much worse. Sales environments are known for competitive, aggressive, arrogant people. Somehow this particular one seems immune to the stereotype. From the training I receive I understand why: assimilation into the existing collegial environment and positive, optimistic attitude is part of Ideal’s associates’ JOB description (!)

Who would have thought? Really? Really.

My foot hurts because I kind of broke one of my toes a few weeks ago so I have frequent coffee breaks. This gives me a good excuse, and a chance to slowly take in the ease of the sunny Slopian afternoon.

I quickly learn to love thy Slope.

And I love Ideal. They actually WANT ME to do this.

Jackie, the Intern

 

The End of an Era

July 17th, 2009

It is with great sadness that we learn that Tom’s Restaurant on Washington Avenue has changed hands. On the bright side, its long-term proprietor and neighborhood’s staple, Gus Vlahavas, finally gets to spend his days gardening and enjoying life outside of diner business.

As much a legend as the place itself, Gus is not only the one who brought us fancy pancakes (before his reign, during his father Tom’s time, the pancakes were simple and unadorned with blueberries, bananas, walnuts…), but he is the very reason this greasy spoon diner is a destination.

Tom’s is where most of the neighborhood gets their morning coffee, or enjoys a breakfast replete with morning newspapers. The diner’s claims to fame, besides Gus and his infectiously friendly personality, are wacky 1930’s approach to interior design, kitschy memorabilia, framed and autographed lyrics to Suzanne Vega’s “Tom’s Diner,” Gus’s mom Stella (the queen of the register, peppermints and lollipops), and free cookies, coffee, and wedges of oranges that you will be showered with by busboys while you wait on line to get in.

As we ponder the (bleak?) future of Tom’s without Gus, we get lost in predictions that the garden will be redone to accommodate additional tables, and we are convinced that the new owner will have Tom’s opened on Sundays. We can only hope that the new owner doesn’t put an end to egg creams, cherry lime Rickeys and flavorful pancakes.

Barely a Saturday goes by without a line winding out of Tom’s. We are used to seeing it and we hope to see it for as long as Tom’s is our reality.

No matter what the future may hold, the ring master will be dearly missed…

(New owner pictured above)

 

Park Slope to Open Its Doors – Annual-House-Tour-Time!

April 23rd, 2009

 

Halloween 2008 at our 7th Avenue office…

November 3rd, 2008

… we ran out of candy and threw in the towel at around 8:30 pm. Truly a valiant effort given the never-ending waves of trick’r'treaters coming down to 7th Avenue for Park Slope Civic Council’s Costume Contest (read: Parade.) We’ll let pictures speak louder than words. And we’ll even admit that we never wanted the night to end. As the long day of handing out candy came to the grand finale of the Parade, we joined in.

 

We hope you had as much fun as we had… and we hope to see you next year, wearing even wilder costumes.

 

 

Divorced… or about to get single again? Now what? What do you do with your rental apartment?

June 20th, 2008

On June 14^th, Brooklyn Paper cited Kings County Supreme Court sources and declared Brooklyn the city’s “Splitsville” central. The borough’s divorces are up 30% in four years—and the “sad trend” was graphically illustrated through an appropriately colored, blue chart.

 

 

It’s not too big of a secret that divorce and real estate often mingle in not-so-pleasant ways: disposition of a formerly happy family home often causes a host of problems in a divorce proceeding and divorcees’ life-to-come.

 

When it comes to marriages, real property is typically an emotional possession; but from the practical point of view, it is extremely difficult to divide between formerly emotionally engaged parties. Real property is not easily converted to liquid funds; it is expensive to maintain, and implies tax liability. Rental apartments, on the other hand, are not as emotionally imposing on either party, and could be fairly easily replaced with a smaller, more appropriate unit in case of urgent need.

 

From a point of view of real estate professionals, we get typically involved in rentals to divorcees with the acute awareness of the utmost of urgency and tightest of deadlines. Divorced people need to rent immediately, and tend to be less demanding in terms of amenities—what they traditionally require is speed, and immediacy of attention.

For the sake of brevity, we will only address situations involving rental properties; broken relationships are hard enough—can you imagine when a mortgage is involved? Ouch.

 

First, what to do when one person must go, and the other decides to stay? If the lease cites both yours, and your ex (or ex-to-be) spouse’s names—have it redone. Most landlords will want to have only the remaining spouse’s name on the lease. Most landlords will also be understanding of the situation and would want to make sure to make the process relatively painless.

 

Whichever party stays in a rental apartment—covering the rent can become an issue, and so what are they to do…

 

…but get a roommate! Picking up a stranger or a friend to split the cost of a rental apartment in the heated Brooklyn rental environment is the most logical course of action; as agents, we find this to be the most frequent path taken. Living with a loved one—and usually a combined income—normally allows one to live in a preferred neighborhood in a decent size apartment. When love goes to hell in a hand basket, however, suddenly affording the same type of domicile can become tricky without the help of a second party.  Picking up a roommate can boost your budget from, say $1,300/month, to $2,600/month, thus allowing one to stay in their neighborhood of preference, close to friends and favorite hot spots. I, personally, have been with my roommates for quite some time at three different abodes, but all have been in the area we love precisely because of the point mentioned above. It’s much, much easier to get a two- or three- bedroom place for a $1,000 each than it is to find a one-bed (or a studio even!) for $1,000 by yourself.

 

Divorces and split relationships are traumatizing and painful enough, so moving out alone can realistically only compound the situation. One should attempt to keep the stress level to a minimum by picking up a roommate and getting a new place to call home immediately. Who knows, it may just end up being the ultimate bachelor/ette pad!

 

 

Mike Colombo

Licensed Real Estate Salesperson

Ideal Properties Group LLC

mcolombo@idealpropertiesgroup.com

917.757.4958

 

Who Recently Moved to/within Downtown Brooklyn***?

June 16th, 2008

 

 

This report examines the profile of tenants who moved to (or within) Downtown Brooklyn in the first quarter of 2008…

 

(***For the purposes of this Report, “Downtown Brooklyn” includes nine neighborhoods in the borough: Boerum Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Carroll Gardens, Clinton Hill, Cobble Hill, Fort Greene, Park Slope, Prospect Heights, and Windsor Terrace.)

 

Let’s meet Downtown Brooklyn’s typical tenant of Q1 2008… He or she:

 

- is 21 to 25 years old

- is one half of a couple (roommate or family)

- lived in Brooklyn before

- works freelance in entertainment industry

- makes $50,000

- needs no guarantor to be approved for an apartment.

 

 

Age

 

According to Ideal Properties Group LLC documentation, it would seem that young adults prefer to move during cold months. 93% of those who rented an apartment in Downtown Brooklyn were 21 to 35 years of age. The single largest sub-group within this category is that between the ages of 21 and 25—this age group makes up 42% of all those who moved to (or within) the area from January 1, 2008 through March 31, 2008.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Status: Singles v. Couples/Roommates

 

Singles appeared to prefer staying put during the cold early months of 2008. Couples and/or roommates make up three quarters of those who moved into a rental unit during Q1 1008.

 

 

 

 

Previous Residence

 

Brooklynites kept on dominating the rental market during the first quarter of 2008. 47% of all those who rented an apartment during this time—previously lived in Brooklyn. The second largest group were Manhattanites, at 27%.

 

 

 

 

Occupation

 

Freelance writers and entertainment occupations were on the move in the first quarter of 2008. 33% of tenants who moved to (or within) the area were employed by the entertainment industry. In general, creative professions seem to have moved more than others—24% were those employed in art, design, and architecture fields; and 9% in advertising and media.

 

 

 

 

Median Income

 

Median income of people who moved to (or within) Downtown Brooklyn in Q1 2008 was $50,000.

 

 

 

 

Gender

 

It seems that moving didn’t discriminate along gender lines during the first quarter of 2008: 51% of those who moved were male, while the remaining 49% were female.

 

 

 

 

Guarantor***

 

18% of people renting in the area in Q1 2008 used a guarantor during the rental approval process. Half of the guarantors were female (the other half male), and a guarantor’s median income was $425,000.

 

 

 

 

***Guarantors are usually required by local landlords when an applicant for a rental unit either makes less than 40 times the rental amount, has blemished credit, or no credit. Should a tenant default on rent payment, a guarantor would guarantee rent payment by assuming full financial responsibility associated with the rental… for the entire lease term. An income of approximately 80 times the monthly rent is required to qualify to act as a guarantor.

 

 

research@idealpropertiesgroup.com

 

 

Comments: Who Rents Here?, Brownstoner

 

Bay Ridge is for Bay Ridgians*, Peace, Quiet, and Lots of Rental Space for Your Money

May 30th, 2008

 

 

When I moved to New York City two years ago—and caught up with some of my old college friends—their responses to me living in Bay Ridge ranged from the sardonically witty “So are you going to have babies?” to the predictably humorous “Isn’t that like really far?”

 

I’m happy to report that my answer to either question is a big fat “No.” After a true apartment hunting frenzy (we literally hit the pavement for a week!) my boyfriend and I realized that as much as we love Park Slope, the deals were to be found elsewhere… We were your conventionally demanding duo: we wanted lots of space and we wanted to pay next to nothing for it. We landed in Bay Ridge, and realized we were only 15 minutes—by train or car—to Park Slope.

 

Without even a dab of regret, we went for it… and now I’d like to enlighten our readers as to why exactly Bay Ridge turned out to be a great choice for us. As in any other dizzyingly plotted fable: in Bay Ridge, you get twice the space for half the rent you would pay in Fort Greene, Cobble Hill, Park Slope and similar rental environments.

To illustrate my point: my friend lives in a fabulous building on Shore Road (read: Bay Ridge in its prime!), and rents a 900-square-foot monster of an apartment for $1,300. To intersperse this fable with reality, her apartment has brand new kitchen appliances, a gargantuan bathroom and living room. To add financial insult to rental injury, she pays no utilities (EVERYTHING is included in rent!)!

 

My friend walks outside of her apartment, and hops on the express bus to Manhattan, which takes about a half hour to reach its destination. To most of us mortals in NYC, this may seem like an eternity—but if you happen to be in possession of inexhaustible optimism—you can think about unique opportunities to catch up on all of those endless stacks of books you’ve been meaning to finish, or think about quiet one-on-one time you get to tune out… OK, come on, you can make your iPod your best friend… and watch the Brooklyn scenery go by with a “whoosh.”

 

It is true: Bay Ridge has all of the shopping, restaurants, and bars you will ever need.  Within a 20-block radius you have four Starbucks, four grocery stores, and a whole (Third) avenue of delicious, mouth-watering eateries. (Just counting them makes me ravenously hungry!)

 

Add to the list two New York Sports Clubs, a host of boutique shops, numerous hair salons—my personal favorite being the Bodhi Salon—and a couple of great spas, yoga classes, and body-and-soul pampering massage parlors…!

 

Of course there is also the 86th street with its lineup of unavoidable institutions of American taste: Gap, Century 21, Nine West…

 

Another great amenity is Shore Road, home to early morning joggers, bikers, and your everyday Bay Ridgians enjoying their cups of coffee, relaxing on benches, and starting their days by taking in the gorgeous landscape.

 

Bay Ridge is a neighborhood with a strong sense of community—Bay Ridgians take pride in being a part of Bay Ridge. When street fairs or parades occur everyone comes out to join the festivities and it all turns into a real-life version of that TV show Cheers: you get to know everyone’s name and they all somehow become an extension of your family.

 

A lot of people haven’t really caught on to the fact that Bay Ridge exists. Maybe that’s exactly what’s keeping the community intact in its authenticity.

 

The truth is that it’s great to spend your workdays in this hectic pretext of a city of ours, but that it’s equally great to come home to the peacefulness of the Ridge.

 

* Bay Ridger or Bay Ridgian? We had a lengthy discussion about this in the office—if you have a better handle on this, let us know. And let us know what would make you the ultimate expert in the matter.

 

Martine Shandles

Ideal Properties Group

310-795-4596

mshandles@idealpropertiesgroup.com