reno stories! finding the apartment…

yes! my reno posts are here!! i’ve broken this up into a few different posts: finding the apartment, demo and reno, and on the hunt. there’s a lot that i want to share, and i felt like it was way too overwhelming to put into one long post.

for all those who don’t know, dave and i are moving into a new apartment. this has been in the works for a while, though we really just got access to the apartment for renovation at the end of july. it has come so far, and even though it’s still a construction zone, it will be an actual apartment by the end of next week!

we found this place in our neighborhood, in great need of repair. ok, i found it. and fell in love. see, this is brooklyn. the land of compromises. if you want a big space but don’t have a lot of money (ahem), you have to make sacrifices. no, we don’t live in the hottest neighborhood, but we do live in a safe, family-friendly neighborhood that is very close to the hottest neighborhoods, good trains, and decent schools. honestly, the only reason this area (kensington) is so inexpensive (relatively speaking, of course) is that it’s wholly residential. mostly apartment buildings and houses, no real storefronts except for on one main thoroughfare. as such, we don’t have a huge pick of restaurants or bars — though, as direct neighbors to ditmas park, we are but a 10 minute walk from them. we’re happy here, and happy to get MUCH more bang for our buck.

our current apartment is a 900 sq ft, open floor plan, renovated 2br. we’ve loved it for 5 years. we love our building and worship our super. but with my growing business and our growing family, we knew we needed something much larger. a big 2 bedroom, preferably 3, with a dedicated office space for me. preferably ground floor (we have kids, and we hate worrying about the noise that we cause those below us). and, if possible, we wanted a separate entrance — excellent for both children and clients alike.

and then i found it. this… awful, horrible looking apartment. i often tell people that it made your eyes bleed when you walked in. it was used as a doctor’s office, and had been lived in by said doctor when he bought it 41 years ago. the place hadn’t been updated in 40 years either — except for a few additions made by the doc, though i’m not sure you could call them updates. yes, it was frightening. but it had ENORMOUS potential. as in, it was ENORMOUS. at least by brooklyn standards. folks, this apartment is 1375 sq ft!! that’s bigger than some houses! and it had a separate entrance from the street. and 2 HUGE bedrooms, a dedicated office, a dedicated dining room, seven big closets, and 2 full baths (one in the master bedroom). for all of that alone, i had to jump on it. or, at least that’s what i thought. all of this insanity has followed…

up next: demo and reno!