Take It or Leave It: Is pre-war charm enough to sell this $3,200/month Fort Greene 2-bedroom?

Today, our Take It or Leave It renters focus their attention on a 2-bedroom floor-through apartment in a Fort Greene brownstone that comes complete with in-unit laundry, an outdoor grilling area and loads of pre-war charm. As always, our panelists—who have 43 years of rental experience between them—are RentHackr founder Zeb Dropkin, freelance writer Lambeth Hochwald, and BrickUnderground’s own senior contributing editor, Lucy Cohen Blatter.

The Apartment:

Size: 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom                                               
Location: 275 Adelphi St. between DeKalb and Lafayette Aves. in Fort Greene, Brooklyn
Cost: $3,200/month
Flexible Layout: No
Days on the market: 6 days
Subway: G at Clinton-Washington Aves.; C at Lafayette Ave.; B, D, N, R, Q, 2, 3, 4, 5 at Atlantic Ave.; 2, 3, 4, 5 at Nevins St.; B, Q, R at DeKalb Ave.; LIRR at Flatbush Ave.

Pros and Cons:

Zeb: “Wide-plank wood flooring and exposed brick walls make this apartment look terrific, and in-unit laundry and a yard make it a great place to live. A con might be that it's a street-level apartment, and privacy can be hard to maintain when your windows are open to passersby.”

Lambeth: “Put me in a kitchen like this and I don’t think I’d ever want to leave—the subway tiles and cobalt blue accents are enough for me. But while there’s something pretty great about living in an extra-wide brownstone on one of Fort Greene’s most fabulous blocks, there is a catch: This floor-through 2-bedroom appears to be on street level, which means zero privacy, potential for noise and bars on the windows.”

Lucy: “I’m loving the pre-war-charm-meets-modern-chic aesthetic going on in this apartment. Plus it has outdoor space (!) and a washer-dryer in the unit (!!). But at 850 square feet, it's a little on the smaller side (though each bedroom looks fairly equally sized). Also, it’s at street/semi-underground level, which probably means it’s pretty dark.” 

Who would this apartment be perfect for?

Zeb: “This could be a great starter apartment for a family looking forward to outdoor barbecues under the hot summer sun.”

Lambeth: “Since no shares are allowed, this is a nice space for a young couple who have been dreaming of living on a tree-lined Fort Greene block.”

Lucy: “A young family—parents and a baby. Or a single person/couple who want an office space and some outdoor grilling space, too.”

The Verdict(s):

TAKE IT “The place looks great and the price is on the money. As long as you don’t uncover any unpleasant surprises along the way, it seems like a keeper to me.” —Zeb

TAKE IT “What well-priced (cozy) charm!”—Lambeth

TAKE IT “It’s both charming and reasonably priced. Hard to say no to either of those things.” —Lucy

Ready to rent? Check out our How to Rent Guide...and if the apartment you like requires a guarantor that you don’t have, see if the landlord accepts Insurent, a guarantor solution from one of BrickUnderground’s sponsors.

Take It Or Leave It is a weekly column in which a panel of long-time renters weighs in on the pros and cons of an apartment that’s currently on the market.