FAQ
Selling Property in Brooklyn & Staten Island: Frequently Asked Questions
Straight answers about who buys property in Brooklyn and Staten Island, how a direct sale works, and how rent stabilization and 421-a affect your building.
Selling to Red Hook Development
Who buys property in Brooklyn and Staten Island directly from owners?
Red Hook Development is a Brooklyn developer that buys houses, buildings, brownstones and development land directly from owners throughout Brooklyn and Staten Island. We buy as-is and off-market, and you choose the closing date.
Do you buy properties as-is?
Yes. We buy occupied, vacant, distressed and gut-renovation properties. You don’t need to make repairs, clear violations or clean out the building before selling. We account for the work needed in our offer.
How quickly can you make an offer?
We respond to submissions within one business day, usually walk the property within about a week of our first conversation, and deliver a written offer shortly after reviewing the key records.
How fast can you close?
Timing depends mostly on title and the property’s situation. When title is clear we can move quickly. If you need more time for an estate, a 1031 exchange or a move, we close on your schedule.
Do I pay a commission?
Not on a direct sale to us. We purchase as a principal for our own account. Sellers still pay their own attorney and customary transfer taxes. If you already work with a broker, we’re glad to work with them.
Do you buy co-op or condo apartments?
No. We buy whole properties: houses, brownstones, multifamily and mixed-use buildings, lots and development sites. We don’t buy individual co-op or condo apartments.
What happens to my tenants when you buy?
We take over the tenancies at closing. Leases, rent-stabilized registrations and security deposits transfer to us, so you don’t need to deliver the property vacant or resolve tenant issues before you sell. See selling with tenants.
Do you buy from owners who live out of state?
Yes. Many Brooklyn owners and heirs live elsewhere. We can arrange access to the property for our review, and you can sign and close remotely through your New York attorney, so you don’t need to travel to Brooklyn.
Is my information confidential?
Always. We don’t list, advertise or share your property details. There’s no sign, no public listing history and no open house.
Do you ever renegotiate after signing a contract?
Only if we discover something new and material during due diligence that wasn’t known when we made our offer — and if that happens, we explain exactly what and why. Our goal is for the written offer to be the price at closing.
What if I just want to know what my property is worth?
That’s fine. Many owners request an offer simply to understand their options before deciding whether to sell, hold, refinance or renovate.
Rent-Stabilized Buildings
Who buys rent-stabilized buildings in Brooklyn?
Red Hook Development buys rent-stabilized and mixed-regulation buildings in brownstone Brooklyn with tenants in place. We value them on actual registered rents, expenses and capital needs rather than assuming units will deregulate.
Can I sell a building with rent-stabilized tenants?
Yes. Stabilized tenants keep their leases and rights after a sale, and the new owner takes over subject to those leases and DHCR registrations. A sale does not end rent stabilization.
How did the 2019 rent laws change stabilized building values?
The Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 ended high-rent vacancy deregulation and the vacancy bonus, limited Major Capital Improvement and Individual Apartment Improvement increases, and extended overcharge look-back periods. Most stabilized apartments are now expected to remain stabilized, which buyers price in.
What did the Rent Guidelines Board decide in 2026?
In June 2026 the Rent Guidelines Board voted 0% increases for both one-year and two-year rent-stabilized leases beginning between October 1, 2026 and September 30, 2027. The prior year’s increases were 3% for one-year and 4.5% for two-year leases.
What are the current rules for apartment improvement increases?
Under rules implemented by DHCR after the 2024 state budget, owners may recover up to $30,000 of qualifying Individual Apartment Improvement costs over 15 years, with a separate path up to $50,000 for certain long-vacant units that meet eligibility and documentation requirements. The resulting increases are permanent.
Do you buy stabilized buildings with incomplete DHCR registrations or violations?
Yes. Missing registrations and open HPD or DOB violations add risk that we factor into our offer, but they don’t prevent a sale.
421-a Tax Abatement Buildings
Who buys 421-a buildings in Brooklyn?
Red Hook Development buys completed 421-a rentals, buildings in or near their tax-benefit phase-out, 421-a condominium inventory and stalled 421-a(16) projects in brownstone Brooklyn.
Is the 421-a program still available?
No new projects can enter 421-a. It closed to projects starting construction after June 15, 2022 and was replaced by 485-x, enacted in April 2024.
What are the 421-a(16) completion deadlines?
Projects generally had to obtain a temporary or final certificate of occupancy by June 15, 2026. Projects that filed a letter of intent with HPD by September 12, 2024 and selected Options A, B, D, E or F received an extension to June 15, 2031. Missing the applicable deadline can mean losing 421-a eligibility.
What happens when a 421-a exemption ends?
Real estate taxes rise, often in steps during a phase-out and then to full taxation. Depending on the program version, leases and affordability commitments, some apartments may remain rent stabilized after the benefit ends.
What is 485-x?
485-x, known as Affordable Neighborhoods for New Yorkers, is the tax incentive that replaced 421-a for new multifamily projects commencing after June 15, 2022 and by June 15, 2034. It requires affordable units at set income levels, sets construction wage minimums for larger projects, and keeps restricted units permanently affordable and rent stabilized.
Neighborhoods
Who buys property in Gowanus?
Red Hook Development buys Gowanus warehouses, garages, lots, Fourth Avenue walk-ups, rent-stabilized buildings and 421-a projects, pricing in the 2021 rezoning, Superfund cleanup and affordability requirements.
Who buys property in Carroll Gardens?
Red Hook Development buys Carroll Gardens brownstones, stabilized walk-ups, Court and Smith Street mixed-use buildings and inherited family properties, as-is and off-market.
Who buys property in Cobble Hill?
Red Hook Development buys Cobble Hill landmarked townhouses, carriage houses, walk-ups and Atlantic Avenue and Court Street storefront buildings, pricing landmark approvals into every offer.
Who buys property in Brooklyn Heights?
Red Hook Development buys Brooklyn Heights townhouses, walk-ups, carriage houses and Montague Street mixed-use buildings, including landmarked properties needing restoration and estates.
Who buys property in Red Hook?
Red Hook Development buys Red Hook warehouses, industrial buildings, lots, row houses and flood-impacted properties, and offers sale-leasebacks to operating businesses.
Who buys property in Downtown Brooklyn?
Red Hook Development buys Downtown Brooklyn development sites, air rights, retail and older office buildings, and 421-a rentals.
Who buys property in Park Slope?
Red Hook Development buys Park Slope brownstones, stabilized walk-ups, Fifth and Seventh Avenue mixed-use buildings and Fourth Avenue development sites.
Costs, Taxes and Closing
What costs does a seller pay in New York City?
Sellers typically pay the New York City Real Property Transfer Tax and New York State transfer tax, their own attorney, and payoffs of mortgages, liens and open charges. Income taxes on any gain may also apply. Confirm specifics with your attorney and accountant.
Can I do a 1031 exchange when selling to you?
Yes. We can coordinate closing dates to support your exchange. Federal rules generally require identifying replacement property within 45 days and acquiring it within 180 days of closing.
Can I stay in the property after closing?
Often, yes. We can discuss a short post-closing occupancy, a delayed closing or, for businesses, a sale-leaseback.
Can I sell if the property has a mortgage or liens?
Yes. Mortgages and liens are typically paid off from the sale proceeds at closing.
Brokers & Company
Do you work with brokers?
Yes. We work with licensed brokers representing sellers, respect their client relationships, and confirm representation and compensation in writing before substantive discussions.
Are you a real estate broker?
Red Hook Development buys property as a principal. Its principals include licensed New York real estate brokers, and a sale to us does not create a brokerage or agency relationship.
Are you a wholesaler?
No. We are a developer that buys properties for our own account to renovate, reposition or build.
Glossary
Brooklyn Real Estate Terms, Explained
Selling a Brooklyn building often means encountering unfamiliar acronyms. Here are the terms we use most often, in plain language:
- Air rights: Unused development rights on a lot — the difference between the floor area a building uses and the maximum its zoning allows. They can often be transferred to an adjacent lot through a zoning lot merger.
- Certificate of Occupancy (CO): The Department of Buildings document stating a building’s legal use and occupancy, including the number of legal apartments.
- DHCR: The New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal, the agency that administers rent stabilization and maintains annual rent registrations.
- E-designation: A city designation placed on certain lots requiring environmental review — for hazardous materials, noise or air quality — before new development or certain changes in use.
- FAR (floor area ratio): The ratio of a building’s total floor area to its lot area; zoning sets the maximum FAR for each district.
- 485-x: The tax incentive that replaced 421-a for new multifamily projects, with affordability tiers and, for larger projects, construction wage requirements.
- 421-a: A New York City property tax exemption for new multifamily construction, closed to new starts after June 15, 2022.
- Good Cause Eviction: A 2024 New York law covering many unregulated apartments that limits presumptively reasonable rent increases and requires good cause for eviction, with exemptions.
- HSTPA: The Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019, which substantially strengthened rent stabilization.
- IAI: Individual Apartment Improvement — a permanent rent increase for qualifying improvements to a stabilized apartment, subject to caps and documentation requirements.
- LPC: The Landmarks Preservation Commission, which reviews exterior work on buildings in historic districts and on individual landmarks.
- MCI: Major Capital Improvement — a building-wide improvement that can support limited, capped rent increases for stabilized tenants.
- MIH: Mandatory Inclusionary Housing — a zoning requirement in certain rezoned areas that new residential development include permanently affordable housing.
- Rent Guidelines Board (RGB): The city board that sets annual maximum increases for rent-stabilized lease renewals.
- UAP: Universal Affordability Preference — a City of Yes provision allowing additional floor area when the extra space is permanently affordable housing.
- Zoning lot merger: Combining adjacent tax lots into a single zoning lot so that unused floor area can be used anywhere within the merged lot.
- 1031 exchange: A federal tax provision that can let a seller defer capital gains by reinvesting proceeds in like-kind real estate within set deadlines.
Choosing a Buyer
How to Choose the Right Buyer for Your Brooklyn Property
Different buyers suit different properties. A traditional listing with a broker can reach the widest audience and may produce the highest price for a well-maintained, easy-to-finance property with few complications. End users buying a home to live in often pay the most for single-family houses in move-in condition. Passive investors focus on stable income and typically pay for what a building earns today.
A developer is usually the best fit when value depends on work, approvals or expertise: a building that needs a full renovation, a lot with unused floor area, a rent-stabilized building that must be underwritten carefully, a 421-a building approaching a tax cliff, a property in a landmark district or flood zone, or an estate that wants a private, certain sale. Whatever you choose, ask each buyer to explain the assumptions behind their price, whether their offer depends on financing, and how often they renegotiate after inspection. Those answers tell you more than the headline number.
Before You Call
Five Questions to Ask Yourself Before Selling
- What matters most? Highest possible price, speed, certainty, privacy, or minimal disruption to tenants — ranking these clarifies which buyer and process fit best.
- Who needs to sign? Identify every owner, heir, trustee or partner whose consent is required, and whether court approval is needed.
- What are the big upcoming costs? Roofs, façades, boilers, gas lines, compliance deadlines, a maturing mortgage or a 421-a phase-out can all change the math of holding.
- What is the tax picture? Talk to your accountant about capital gains, depreciation recapture and whether a 1031 exchange makes sense.
- What timeline works? Decide whether you need to close quickly, prefer to wait, or need time to move out or relocate a business.
You don’t need all the answers before contacting us, but thinking them through will make every conversation — with us or anyone else — more productive.
Next Steps
Ready for a Number?
If you’ve read this far, you probably have a specific property in mind. The simplest next step is to send us the address through our property form. We’ll reply within one business day, answer any questions not covered here, and explain what a written offer would involve. Brokers can submit deals through our Brokers & Wholesalers page.
These answers are general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult your own attorney and accountant about your specific situation.
Still Have Questions?
Send us your property details and ask anything in the notes — we’ll get back to you within one business day.