Decrepit Brooklyn mansion where a widow once lived for decades asks $2.59M
A rare Victorian-era home in Brooklyn is looking for a brave buyer — one who will certainly need to bring an architect.
This turn-of-the-century property on the outskirts of Victorian Flatbush, as its shocking listing images show, has languished in disrepair for decades.
Now it’s on sale for a whopping $2.59 million. Laura Rozos of Compass holds the 1000 Ocean Ave. listing.
The landmarked home belonged to the same owner since 1978, according to city records, until it changed hands for $1.25 million in 2021.
The former owner, an elderly widow, resided in the derelict building until the 2021 sale, Rozos said. The interior conditions were unfortunately much the same as they appear today, and the woman largely resided in a single room with limited utilities.
The buyer in 2021 planned to renovate the property for his family, Rozos told The Post. It appears little to no progress was made.
The buyer-turned-seller was overwhelmed by the extensive landmark restrictions, Rozos explained. Altering a landmarked facade entails a mountain of paperwork and lots of money.
The Colonial Revival home was once the provenance of Brooklyn elite. It was built in 1899 by prolific architect George Palliser for a stockbroker named George Van Ness. Palliser also designed its fraternal twin next door, 1010 Ocean Ave., for Van Ness’s father-in-law, Thomas H. Brush.
While the Brush house has largely stood the test of time, the Van Ness residence is in a crumbling state, making its status as one of Brooklyn’s few surviving Victorian-era homes all the more tragic.
Today, the two Colonial Revivals stand in stark contrast to their Ocean Avenue neighbors, but the elegant facades and spacious interiors were once in good company. A 1903 ad in the Brooklyn Eagle dubbed the Ditmas Park neighborhood “the place for elegant homes in Flatbush,” and cited Van Ness’s home as a particular example of the neighborhood’s suburban beauty.
Many of the elegant homes that sprung up along Ocean Avenue at the turn of the century have been replaced by apartment buildings and bungalows, but the twin homes at the corner of Newkirk Avenue have held out — to varying degrees of success.
The near-decade since 1978 saw little work done on the home, and it shows. Paint has chipped away, windows have been boarded up and the slate roof has seen better days. The once-stylized portico columns were replaced at some point by plain white blocks and the glass over the entryway is long gone.
But stylized flourishes remaining on the facade show signs of enormous promise — composite pilasters with hand carved-capitals and leaded glass windows.
Inside shows potential, too. A network of interior archways are lined with detailed millwork, each supported by composite columns.
“Even in the current condition, the house is beautiful,” said Rozos, who partly specializes in selling historic properties. “It feels like a privilege to be in these houses.”
The listing advertises four fireplaces, large parlor rooms, a library, a formal dining room and a billiards room upstairs. The interiors also feature the original grand staircase with three distinct spindle patterns.
Market comparisons make clear that the price of the property is unrealistic given its dereliction. The $2.59M price tag also asks for cash-only offers, and the home’s inclusion in the Ditmas Park Historic Landmark District means redevelopment is impossible.
“The buyer has to be somebody who either wants to buy it and flip it or live there themselves,” Rozos said.
But the unloved property has already gotten a few bites, according to Rozos, all from foreign-born buyers with multiple properties. Rozos said these potential buyers who have an appreciation of the kind of historical provenance.
Hopefully, they have enough funds and renovation know-how to revive this relic of Ocean Avenue.
