The Umbrella Factory (710 Metropolitan Avenue)

The old building and the addition. Before construction the property was classed as a factory on the tax roll (class F5, light manufacturing), per the offering plan's tax letter. The conversion kept the original brick facade, and the building uses four facade materials in all, per the builder. Floors one through three sit inside the original building and hold 38 of the residences, with seven apartments on the first floor and fifteen or sixteen on each of the next two. The four new floors hold the other 31: eight apartments on each of floors four through six and seven penthouses on the top floor. The count by floor comes from the unit designations on the Department of Finance roll.

The residences. Department of Finance unit areas run from about 450 square feet for the studios to about 1,690 for the largest apartments. Sponsor press materials describe exposed heavy-timber beams and ceilings, wide-plank floors, matte black hardware, and Bertazzoni and Bosch appliances. Some units have private balconies, courts or terraces; the offering plan's first amendment revised the terraces for three fourth-floor units on the south side.

The commercial unit and parking. The commercial unit is on the ground floor with its own storefront. The 17 parking units are indoors, with EV charging per the builder, and separately deeded. The Department of Finance roll shows all of them held by residential owners.

Taxes. On the fiscal 2027 roll the residences carry taxable assessed values of roughly $24,000 to $85,000, with a median of about $40,000. At a class 2 tax rate in the 12 percent range, that implies annual taxes of roughly $3,000 to $10,500 per residence, before the co-op and condo abatement that a qualifying primary-residence owner may receive. Those figures are well below what the offering plan projected once the building was fully assessed. Assessments on a new condominium can still move as the Department of Finance revalues it, so model the current bill and allow for increases.

Certificate of occupancy. The building is still operating on temporary certificates of occupancy. DOB records show the first issued in June 2023 and renewals through April 2026, all for 69 dwelling units. No final certificate is on record. Ask the board and managing agent what remains open before a final certificate can issue.

Sponsor position. All 69 residences sold between June 2023 and October 2024, to separate buyers, per ACRIS. All 17 parking units sold with apartments. The sponsor still holds the commercial unit. No sponsor-held residences remain.

Structure. A heavy-timber building behaves differently from a concrete one. Wood moves more with humidity and can carry sound between floors; the builder's announcement says the project team designed for sound and fire protection. Ask for any post-completion engineering reports and for the history of noise complaints.

Recent sales

Sales sourced from NYC Department of Finance recorded transfers (BBL 3-02764-7502) and verified listing data. Apartment-level facts (line, condition, asking-price context) curated and cross-verified by The Roebling Team research desk. Not all transactions cross-verify with ACRIS records — sponsor and LLC purchases sometimes record at stipulated values rather than market price.

There is no abatement to lose. The current tax bill is the tax. Run True Monthly Carrying Cost on the actual bill, and allow for reassessment.

Ask about the final certificate of occupancy. The building is still on renewed temporary certificates. Find out what is outstanding.

Understand the timber. Ask about sound transmission between floors, the fire-protection design and any engineering reports since completion.

Check the deed for every lot. Apartment and parking unit are separate tax lots. Confirm which ones the contract conveys.

Get the house rules. We did not have the full offering plan text for this building. Confirm the pet policy, leasing rules and any right of first refusal with the managing agent.

Sell the building's story. The factory history, the preserved facade and the exposed timber are what no nearby new building can offer.

Show the tax bill. Moderate, unabated taxes are a selling point against buildings facing a 421-a step-up.

Price a parking unit separately. Indoor parking with EV charging is scarce at the Graham Avenue L. Showing it separately makes the apartment price easier to defend.

If you're considering the Umbrella Factory, also evaluate:

• Olive Park (100 Maspeth Avenue) — an 87-residence condominium nearby in East Williamsburg
• 338 Berry Street (The Williamsberry) — a 1914 industrial building converted to condominiums on the Southside
• 330 Wythe Avenue (The Esquire Building) — a 1914 factory converted to 75 condominium residences
• The Gretsch (60 Broadway) — the 1916 Gretsch factory, converted to condominiums
• The Mill Building (85 North 3rd Street) — an early-1900s industrial conversion on the Northside
• 55 Berry Street (Berry Street Lofts) — a 1900 loft building converted to condominiums
• 1080 Lorimer Street — a 1906 banking hall converted to condominiums
• 342 Wallabout Street — recent new-construction condominium in the Broadway Triangle section of South Williamsburg