A brick home in NYC is one of the most durable and desirable property types you can own—but it also comes with hidden costs and responsibilities most buyers don’t see upfront. Whether you’re walking through Brooklyn or Queens admiring those classic brick buildings, or considering buying one yourself, it’s important to understand what you’re really getting into before making a decision.
One of the typical housing options in New York City is a brick home. They are strong, handsome and full of personality. Not just anybody can own one. Maintenance costs, structural realities and renovation expenses are things most people do not hear about until they are in the middle of them.
You see you need to know a lot of stuff – the stuff that is actually there and not in the glossy brochure.
What is it that makes a Brick Home Different?
When you enter a rowhouse, brick or not, in Flatbush or Park Slope, you will notice something immediately: the walls are solid. That is not in your head.
Brick material is made of fired clay and it is masonry. A real structural brick house is one with load bearing walls such that the bricks are not merely decorative, but supporting the building. The majority of rowhouses and brownstones that were built in NYC between 1880 and 1950 have been built in this manner and are still in great condition today.
Take that and contrast it with wood-frame building and brick veneer -which is one layer of brick cemented on the outside to provide appearance- and you have a lot of difference. Veneer resembles brick, but does not provide the same durability and insulation.
Types of construction with bricks to be familiar with:
- – Solid brick masonry – Two layers or more of brick, completely load-bearing. Typical of pre-1950s NYC houses.
- – Brick over wood frame – Modern construction; the brick is decorative, not structural.
- – Cavity wall construction- Two layers of brick separated by air; more insulated, more recent, after 1970.
In Brooklyn, in the Bronx, in Queens, in Staten Island, there are excellent chances that you are looking at the real thing: at solid masonry to endure generations.
The Actual Advantages of Brick Home-Owning
Here are the top reasons why these houses stand out, and not just visually.
1. It Lasts a Long Time
Properly maintained brick homes may easily last 100-150 years. We have worked on Bay Ridge and Bed-Stuy buildings that were constructed in the 1920s and can still stand today. The bricks themselves hardly break down, it is the mortar joints that erode over time and that can be repaired. The biggest advantage of a brick home in NYC is its lifespan, often exceeding 100 years.
That would be compared to wood-frame construction which normally requires significant structural repairs after 40 to 60 years. Brick just gets older.
2. Fire Resistance
Brick is non-combustible. That is more important in a big city such as New York, where houses are side by side. Brick walls provide a natural fire break, which slows down the transmission of fire between units. A majority of the insurance companies are aware of this – you will pay less premium on a solid masonry house than a wood framed house.
3. Natural Insulation
Thermal mass is something in brick. It receives heat in the daytime. Slowly it releases through the night. This thermal control will keep your house cooler in July and will keep it warmer in January.
Research indicates that the amount of energy required to heat and cool solid brick homes is 15 to 25 percent less than that needed to heat and cool light-weight structures. In the case of a typical NYC rowhouse, it can result in savings of $300 to 700 a year in energy bills – actual money over a 10-year ownership period.
4. Noise Reduction
Reside along a busy street in Manhattan or near the elevated train in Jackson Heights and you will soon realize the importance of thick brick walls. Compared to wood-frame and vinyl-sided houses, solid masonry is a much better sound absorber. A large number of people who own brick houses report their houses to be significantly quieter than others.
5. Low Day-to-Day Maintenance
Brick does not require a lot of maintenance compared to wood siding requiring the process of painting every 5-7 years, or vinyl, which may also crack and fade. You are not repainting it. You are not putting it in every season. The primary maintenance operation is the regular check of the mortar joints (after every 10-15 years) and repointing where necessary.
6. Strong Resale Value
Brick houses are always on a premium in New York City. The customers equate brick with quality, durability, and that vintage NYC look. Comprising an average of 5 to 10 percent, the average price of brick homes in NYC is higher than the same wood-frame homes in the same area. A well-maintained brick home in NYC can significantly increase resale value.
Get to know the Real Cons You Need to Know
And yet there are some downsides of owning a brick house that you must know before considering this decision.
1. Wearing of Mortar Joints.
Bricks themselves are everlasting. The mortar is not. The mortar joints break, become soft and begin to crumble with time, on average, after every 25 to 30 years. This is referred to as spalling and when you do not take care of this, water enters.
It is a serious problem that there is water in your brick wall. It results in interior damage, mold, and in the cold climate such as New York, freeze-thaw, and split the bricks internally. The silver lining is that when timely, brick repointing is an easy repair.
Professional brick repointing in NYC would cost between $8 and 20 per square foot, depending on the borough and the severity of the damage. In order to have a complete facade repointing on a standard 20-foot wide rowhouse could cost between $6,000 and $15,000.
2. Harder to Insulate
Pre-modern insulation standards were used to construct older solid brick homes. Insulating an old 100-year-old brick wall without making any disturbance to the construction is a challenge. You will lose interior square footage by furring out the walls, or you will add exterior insulation – each of which has cost and aesthetic consequences.
This is not a dealbreaker but something to consider when budgeting when purchasing an older house and intending to have a complete renovation.
3. It is more expensive to renovate
Fancy opening up a wall in a brick house? Move a window? Add a new door? All those tasks are more costly and laborious in a masonry building than in a wood-frame building. Specialist masons, not carpenters, are required.
In NYC, it would normally cost 2-5,000 dollars to cut a new window opening in a load-bearing brick wall based on its size and location. Budget accordingly.
4. You Have to have the Right Contractor.
This is where many of the brick homeowners are burned down: no pun intended. To hire a person who is not an experienced mason to help in your brick house, may do more harm than good. For instance, using the wrong type of mortar.
Newer mortars contain Portland cement, and are stronger than older lime mortars. The old soft brick cracks when you use them, rather than the mortar joint. That comes at too high a price.
How Much it Will Cost to Maintain a Brick House in NYC
We should speak of real numbers, vague estimates are no good to anybody.
Brick repointing:
Small section repair (10–20 sq ft): $500 to $1,500
Full front facade (typical rowhouse): $6,000 to $15,000
Full building repoint (multi-story): $15,000 to $40,000+
Repair of brick walls (damaged or spalling bricks):
Minor crack repair: $300 to $800
Replacing broken section of bricks: $ 1,200-4000.
Major structural repair: $5,000 to $20,000+
Repair parapet wall (roofline brick):
One of the most frequent problems in New York: $2,000 to $8,000 depending on extent of damage
Waterproofing and sealing:
Breathable masonry waterproofing: a typical facade costs between $1,000 and 3,500.
Timeline: The majority of repair and repointing of bricks on one rowhouse requires 3-7 days. Repointing a complete building may be 2-4 weeks.
The trick is to spot issues at an early stage. A 1000 dollar repair will save a 12000 structural repair in three years.
Here’s What to Know Before Purchasing a Brick Home
Assuming you are in the market to purchase a brick house in NYC, this is what we would advise a friend:
Have a masonry inspection and not a general home inspection. Clearly apparent problems will be mentioned by a general inspector. A mason inspector will detail the type of mortar, its remaining lifespan and what needs to be done and when. Owning a brick home in NYC offers long-term durability but requires proper maintenance planning.
First look at the chimney and parapet. These are the most exposed and generally the tallest points of the building and the first to demonstrate issues.
When was the last repointing done? When the response is to never or I do not know on a 60 year old building, allocate between 8,000-15,000 to that work.
Inspect the basement walls. Efflorescence or dampness in the basement will inform you of the effectiveness of the building in dealing with water. Many homeowners underestimate the repair costs of a brick home in NYC.
Don’t be intimidated by age. An old 100-year-old brick house in good structural condition can be a better investment than a 30-year-old wood-frame house with undetected problems.
Conclusion: Profile of a Brick Home Owner?
Owning a brick home is ideal if:
- You desire a long lasting, durable property in NYC.
- You want a lower maintenance home
- You’re willing to set aside money for masonry repairs
- You appreciate sound-reduction, energy-conservation and resistance to fire.
- You are purchasing in a borough where the brick type of housing is predominant.
It is unlikely to suit you well should you wish to have a home that you can do up cheaply and within a short period of time; or when you have a thorough change of layout plans in the floor plan.
For most New Yorkers in need of a home that will outlive them and their kids, there’s simply nothing like a brick home. But you have to know what you’re getting into, and have a good mason.