Real estate investment platform Sharestates recently published their list of the five best neighborhoods for ROI in NYC. Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn or Bed-Stuy, ranked number two with a record 12% ROI in 2017. Home Qualified’s Ralph DiBugnara takes it back to his home turf of Brooklyn to catch up with Bed-Stuy bred Hovain Hylton. Hylton is building his business and raising his daughters in the ever changing and gentrifying landscape of Brooklyn.
Hylton credits his home borough with building his character and his world view. “Brooklyn gives you a certain set of principles and morals, Brooklyn is a big melting pot as far as ethnicities and different groups of people. If you go to Crown Heights there are Hasidic Jews and West Indian people, if you go to Sheepshead Bay there are Russian people. If you take a trip around Brooklyn it’s the same as taking a trip around the world.”
When questioned about the borough’s resurgence Hylton had this to say. “Brooklyn now is very different. The things you wanted to look for in the past were a safe area and a school within walking distance. Now there are tons of new schools, charter schools popping up everywhere. There are tons of new parks and a lot of new activities, there are tons of new restaurants .”
For buyers and investors looking to own property in Bed-Stuy, Hylton says research is key. “You want to go to the area. Check it out in the daytime and the nighttime….ask the neighbors. You want to make sure that it’s kid friendly. Every block is different.”
These days, Brooklyn and Bed-Stuy have become synonymous with gentrification. For Hylton these changes are not wholly negative. “I can see the good aspects of gentrification. There are more police, there are better schools, there are more and restaurants. There’s more of a sense of community in certain areas.”
For Hylton the negatives are socioeconomic. “The bad part is some people who have suffered hardships and been through the bad times and the bad days of the neighborhood with rent and buying homes being at a higher price point they’re not there to reap the benefits because they’re being pushed out. There has to be some kind of balance. Still, there’s a lot more good than there is bad.”
Hylton was quick to point out the cultural and musical legacy of hometown Bed-Stuy hero and fabled MC Biggie Smalls. It is this legacy and others like it that Hyvolt hopes will continue to be respected and protected in the face of change.
Buyers and investors must always prioritize areas that are experiencing the most development. Areas that are gentrifying or on the cusp of gentrifying will inevitable yield higher returns. Bed-Stuy undoubtedly fills this requirement. If you are in market for real estate in this neighborhood and beyond, Home Qualified provides insight and resources into the best buys.
