From $1 Million Fully Renovated (or $650k as is) in 2008 to $1,075,000 as is Today

by Prince Of Petworth August 23, 2016 at 2:55 pm 21 Comments

nostalgia t st 1 mil reno

This is wild – I found the above photo from 2008 when I was going through my photo archives and today when I was looking for a GDoN I found it listed again – in the same condition:

today

Though the price has changed at 1442 T Street, NW. Today it’s going for $1,075,000:

“LOCATION,LOCATION, LOCATION— RARE OPPORTUNITY TO PURCHASE THE PROPERTY AT 1442 T ST NW WITH PLANS FULLY APPROVED BY HISTORIC PRESERVATION FOR AN AMAZING HOME . PERMITTING IN PROCESS . PLEASE CONTACT LISTING AGENT, ELLEN KLEIN”

Belinskaya

Windows are a $75,000 premium? Good to know.
smh

according to the OTR database, TST PARTNERS LLC bought it in January 2015 for $750,000. So I guess it went for over the as-is/where-is asking price?
- anon29
  
  It actually sold twice since 2008. It also sold in 2013. The tax record says is sold for $450K, however; the transaction history states it sold for $625K, $25K below the $650K list price.
  - James W.
    
    This is bubble written all over it. The “greater fool” approach is alive and well in DC real estate.
ET

Clearly someone who doesn’t want to sell but is trying to game the vacant property rules.
- ustreeter
  
  YES since their new tax bill is for $17,000 with special assessments over $1,000 probably due to trash.
- Shaw Guy
  
  +1 hence all the architect’s plans, etc. each ploy has probably bought them an 18-24 month delay in being declared vacant/blighted.
  
  Keep up the good work reporting and reporting on this property, T St neighbors.
  - LedroitTigah
    
    That is TERRIBLE! What can be done?!
Petworth Landlord

Why all the bathrooms? Trade two and one-half of them for extra closet space.
U neighbor

Ha Redfin is saying it has a “Gourmet Kitchen”. And 1,200 sq ft, at $900/sq ft.
But hey, it’s only 20k above its Redfin estimate. And that kitchen!
ruby7

can somebody explain the whole gaming of the vacant property rules—and why somebody wouldn’t want to sell? is there some financial advantage to leaving the house in ruin? just curious, i never really understood this.
- anon
  
  They must think they can get more for it later, and as long as they’re gaming the vacant property rules, there’s little cost in waiting.
- Yes
  
  Sure, if you have no mortgage, and you expect the market to go up. It will be taxed at a lower $$$ because the interior is crap. So a $1.2M renovated house might be only $400-500K in the tax records yielding a very low monthly carrying cost. When the market is going up 10% a year, you make out. If the market stays flat you still don’t have to pay much per month to hold it.
- minimalist
  
  The owner is probably trying to time the market and can’t (or doesn’t want to) make the costly renovations necessary. The owner is trying to game DC vacant property rules because vacant property is taxed at $5 per $100 of assessed value instead of $0.85 per $100 of assessed value. “Yes” is wrong on being taxed less. Per tax records, this property owner is now being charged $34k a year for a property classified as vacant instead of $6k per year for an occupied property or a property that is actually being renovated.
  - anon29
    
    “Minimalist” is correct. There is an outstanding tax bill of $17,026 on the property as it is currently classified as vacant by DC.
also anon

I like the “As-is Where-is” part…. as if you could buy as-is but somewhere else?
- Jane
  
  The Fannie Mae MoveStyles loan allows you to roll the costs of physically transporting your house via helicopter fleet into the loan!
tam

There is no more chronologically meaningless term in DC than “permits pending.” Sure…DCRA’s gonna be right on that. See: 8-year permit delay in PoP’s water tower post.
.
This is actually a brilliant vacancy evasion strategy. Just keep filing permits. Better yet, file complicated permits that will take forever to get approval. Better still, file nonsensical permits that will get rejected (after the really long delay) so that you also never actually build anything.
.
If you’ve got grandma’s paid-for house, some AutoCad software, and can afford the (low) tax bill, good on you.
Jack5

Looks like it’s deemed historical as well? So much for installing a solid gold hot tub setup in the master bedroom… :i
Paul Williams

Ha! When I moved into the neighborhood in 1992, houses on that row were selling for $45,000. Really. They were the last to be renovated because they were so small. And it was a great block back then (and still is!).
minimalist

This post says the picture was from 2008 but I see this previous post from 2013 with the same picture: https://www.popville.com/2013/07/final-t-street-row-house-shell-for-sale/. $650k in 2013 isn’t that bad of a deal. $1,075,000 today is way overpriced.

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