This investor is looking to turn a Bedford-Stuyvesant brownstone into some quick green.
Eric Mann (pictured) bought a four-story historic brownstone on 196 Hancock St. from an aging couple for $1,200,500 on Feb. 18.
Three days later, the Upper East Side investor put the multi-family home back on the market for an astounding $1.85 million.
That’s a 54% increase!
“I created so much value, so quickly,” said Mann, 43, noting that he knocked down a partition wall to open space on the first floor inside the 3,600-square-foot Queen Anne-style home, which was built in 1899.
That renovation unearthed 19th century moldings and mahogany wood panels.
“It’s a hidden gem,” Mann said.
When he first saw the building the inside was in disarray with clothes strewn all over.
“It smelled like a cat,” he recalled.
The prior owner, Winston Smith, died in 2001. His family inherited the building but spent little time inside, Mann said.
Two female tenants rented a two-bedroom apartment on the upper floor for $1,600 a month.
Mann paid them $5,000 to leave after their lease was up following the purchase, he said.
Median sales prices for homes in Bedford-Stuyvesant range from $1.28 million to $1.68 million over the last month, according Zillow.com. The site predicts that homes in the super-hot area will rise 9.4% next year, compared to a 4.2% increase for the city as a whole.
Mann had prior experience in the art of the rollover rodeo.
He owns 40 buildings throughout Brooklyn, including 25 in booming Bedford-Stuyvesant.
“He has a good eye for identifying good areas in demand,” said Andrew Barrocas, the CEO of real estate brokerage firm MNS.
As for the brazen flip, which was first reported by Brick Underground, Mann predicts he’ll find the right buyer.
“I’ll sell it quickly,” he boasted. “There’s a tremendous demand and few properties out there.”
And in the interim, he has no intention of renting it out.
“Tenants will never take good care of it as it should be,” he said. “I want to sell it to someone who will enjoy it. This is a house of love.”