Bed-Stuy condo sports a hefty $1.3 million price tag, but for a hefty space

By Lucy Cohen Blatter | July 15, 2014 - 12:59PM

Finding a large, family-sized apartment in New York City is no easy task, and what might pass as a small one-bedroom in another city is often shared by families of three, four and more here. That's why we gravitated toward this Bed-Stuy duplex condo at 238A Franklin Avenue, which rings in at over 2,000 square feet. In New York, that's a mansion.

Plus, there are kid-friendly touches throughout. The layout means that the living and entertaining areas are separate from the two bedrooms, meaning you can watch TV, hang out with friends or down some much-needed wine at day's end without fear of waking the little ones.

There's also an eat-in kitchen useful for prepping lunch and feeding kiddies breakfast at the same time, and an outdoor space for al fresco dining (though the concrete ground may not quite answer your prayers for a real backyard).

Pro: the outdoor space. Con: the stone ground.

The four-story boutique condo building is also pet-friendly and has a common roof deck (so you can meet the neighbors!), storage, and a super.

The apartment is currently configured as a two-bedroom with a den, but it was once a three-bedroom (there are six rooms total). And there are a whopping three bathrooms.

Sure, the price is on the higher side, especially for the up-and-coming Bed-Stuy, where entire townhouses have recently sold for the same dollar figure. A three-bedroom, two-bath that's half the size is on sale for $995,000 in the same building.

Also, the common charges of $448 a month are comparatively low, and according to the listing, buyers only need to put down 10 percent (just under $130,000 if you pay the full asking price), or about half the typical down payment at buildings across the city. There's also a tax break in place through 2019.

The living areas are set off from the bedrooms: good news for parents who want to entertain sans children.

The The garden view from the bedrooms is another welcome touch.

The place used to have three bedrooms, and the listing claims it would be easy to convert the place back from its current two-bedroom configuration.

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