My Brooklyn Report

A funny thing happened on the way to buying this turn of the century row house in Bedford Stuyvesant. Well, at least one buyer won’t find it funny when they learn they purchased their home on Mac Donough Street in a property flip. If that isn’t bad enough … it gets worst. They paid $230,000 [...]

Bed Stuy Blog, the imprint in the cloud that made the neighborhood I was born and raised in a popular destination, is signing off.

Since March 2007, The Changeling embarked on telling a neighborhood’s story through words and pictures, with a little help from the blogosphere.

Prior to its launch, the only thing reported consistently by print and broadcast media outlets were negative depictions of Bedford Stuyvesant and her residents.

Instead of offering the same fare heard and said in the news, she decided to invite you on her journey in search of … Bed Stuy, where she discovered places to eat, things to do and people to see.

What she and others accomplished in each post would change the perception readers had of an entire neighborhood.

And the neighborhood is better for it.

Few people get the chance to talk about the place they grew up. I’m fortunate to have that opportunity provided by the good people at Bed-Stuy Blog, Bedford Stuyvesant’s window to the world for visitors to get a glimpse of the place mentioned in Jay Z’s lyrics, Spike Lee’s movies and Charles Hobson’s television broadcasts from [...]

Just as we were going to publish the first installment of our 7 part series on Short Sales in Brooklyn Real Estate, our editor wanted to make sure our readers were not only receiving great information about short sales, but also knew where these opportunities were. I thought the suggestion made a lot of sense [...]

This mixed used, 2 story property at 698a De Kalb Avenue in the northern section of Bedford Stuyvesant has a lot in common with other homes in the neighborhood. It is exhibit A in an 82 count indictment brought by the Kings County District Attorney’s office against 7 co-conspirators in a mortgage fraud ring that managed [...]

In May 1970, the movie world witnessed Hal Ashby’s directorial debut of his adaptation of Kristen Hunter’s novel titled, The Landlord. A story depicting the experiences of a young suburbanite from Long Island, New York who bought a house in a Brooklyn ghetto. The hero is a young white male who is influenced by the [...]

The Home Buyer Tax Credit is about to expire.

Anyone interested in buying a home must have a signed contract of sale dated on or before April 30th 2010 and close on their purchase by no later than June 30th 2010.

If you have the above in order, then your close to being eligible to receive $8,000 as a First Time Home Buyer or $6,500 if you’ve been a homeowner 5 out of the last 8 years.

While a buyer’s income and other factors will also determine eligibility, those eager to become homeowners are rushing to make offers and contract their purchase before the deadline.

But are there enough people buying in Brooklyn to purchase the enormous number of homes for sale?

Councilman Vann has served in office long enough to witness his constituents become the target of Ponzi schemes by unsophisticated operatives who have mastered the loopholes in New York City’s deed recording process. And having lived in Bedford Stuyvesant for many years, he’s seen Mortgage Discrimination occur in central Brooklyn in different forms: Redlining in the 70′s and Predatory Lending in the 90′s. Since his re-election, what should we expect from the incumbent?

Over the last 10 years we’ve seen New York City politicians align their political futures with well financed real estate developers. However, none will come close to the reach and wealth that a recent entrant into the real estate landscape possess. Goldman Sachs comes to Bedford Stuyvesant with money and influence (and a real estate investment strategy that politicians favor). Here’s why.

As reported in the New York Daily News [Bed Stuy Residents Furious over Condo Project once slated as Dorm], it appears another luxury condo has gone the way of becoming five star accommodations for the homeless. How is it that Real Estate Developers continue to be bailed out by New York City while countless families face the threat of becoming homeless due to foreclosure?