The bad rap on Long Island is that there’s no affordable housing. Not true.
The yards of a 1930s bungalow in Mastic Beach were designed for outdoor living, from a tiki bar by the reeds in the back to a three-level bird fountain in the front, by the circular driveway.
But the four-bedroom property is what real estate agent Antonia Flaherty calls a “diamond in the rough”, listed at $195,000 because it needs a heating system, a portion of the roof repaired and flooring leveled in the dining area.
For many who can’t afford dream homes on Long Island, handyman specials may be a way to buy, said Flaherty, who works for Mill River Realty in East Moriches.
“You can fix the heat and live with it for a while,” she suggest, “until you have the money to fix something else or improve something else.”
But Flaherty tells potential homeowners to do their homework: “You really need to know what you’re getting into. You need to have somebody who does boilers to come in and tell you how much it is . . . so you know what your expense is before you purchase the house.”
Getting a mortgage for the full value of certain handyman specials could be a problem, the agent said. Especially in this tight credit market, most lenders won’t make loans on houses that don’t have something as key as heating systems operating, she said, or they’ll just offer smaller loans. That means buyers will have to pay in cash, she said.
All that said, the house on Lafayette Avenue is within walking distance of Forge River, and with the state owning the land right next door, it’s unlikely there’ll be neighbors in the future, the agent said. The half-acre property does not have wetlands building restrictions, unlike a lot of properties near protected waters.
“Especially in the backyard, you are really like on you own private island,” Flaherty said. “It’s very pretty back there and garden like. It’s like you’re down there by yourself.”