Virginia K. Smith

Applications opened today for two (yes, only two) affordable rentals in the Ocean Hill section of Bed-Stuy, per a listing on NYC Housing Connect. (It's probably best not to think too much about the odds on this one.) There are two $1,071/month two-bedrooms available to qualified applicants at 880 Macon Street, a newly built eight-unit rental building near the Halsey stop. As Brownstoner reported last year, "the owners tore down a small, decrepit 19th century brick house next to an empty lot to build a four-story, eight-unit apartment house."

In this week's 'Ask an Agent' column, the experts at The Agency--a tech-savvy brokerage that gives buyers and renters access to the same database of listings used by the city's real estate agents, and pays their agents bonuses for client satisfaction--examines whether New York City buyers should drop the extra cash it takes to get a second opinion before signing on  the dotted line. 

Granted, every street in New York is something of a landmark in its own right, even if only as the place where something particularly incredible (or insane) once happened to you. But we've got no problems playing favorites. With the help of some of the city's foremost real estate and architecture buffs, we've rounded up 9 historic byways that still beckon for a detour, and have fascinating back stories to back up their good looks: