West Tupper aka 'Resetarits Terrace'
The brother and sister team of Kate and Matt Resetarits have done what many people have called 'The Impossible'. They have purchased seven derelict (or nearby derelict) properties on one small street in the West Village and they are rehabbing each and every one of them. I asked Matt and Kate why they were investing in the city, and they told me that the city is an exciting place again. They were also smart enough to know that by purchasing a series of houses (the one you see here was purchased for $10,000) on the same street, they could control the future of the block and maybe the neighborhood.
When Kate and Matt first saw their first purchase on West Tupper, they looked at each other and said, "It's most likely a tear down, but let's check out the bones." The exterior had been stripped and mistreated for decades. The interior was virtually gone, and what was left was a mess. It was then that they decided to use the existing bones in order to create an alternative for loft-livers. This would become a prime living opportunity for someone who was looking to invest in his or her future - especially if the siblings were to purchase the rest of the rehab opportunities on the street.
True to their vision, the first house on their hit list has been converted into a beautiful loft-liver's dream conversion. The only difference is that it's within a house, in what is becoming (fast) a quaint residential neighborhood. It's a block from Elmwood, a block from Betty's Restaurant, and many of the neighbors have been living there for 60 years.
Those are the neighbors that stuck around - the rest, many of them out-of-town 'investors', began to call upon Kate and Matt when they heard that they were picking up the houses. "At first we began to knock on doors," Kate told me. "Then we started getting phone calls from owners who wanted to sell. Now we own six... we had seven, but one is already under contract. We also bought a deep lot where we intend to build two cottages. And we're buying two additional houses."
Already, neighbors have been stopping by to check on the brother-sister team. Kate and Matt have been hearing stories, both good and bad, about the history of the block. The old-timers talk about the generations of families that live there. That's why the investors want to keep the integrity of the houses intact. Did I mention that the brick house (photo) that is under contract came with another brick house on the property?
I almost fell over when they showed me the package deal - they turned the property within 45 days, selling it for a complete steal (after rehabbing it). Then they took the money and bought another house and are fixing that one up. Notice a trend yet? After they have conquered this block on West Tupper, they plan on looking at another block to invest their time, effort and money into.
Upon completion of their first house, Kate and Matt went over to Buffalo ReUse to pick out an appropriate old door. "When we sell this house ($149,000)," Kate said, "the new owners will be handed a skeleton key. Over the years, people stole the character of these houses. It's our task to return that character." "Two abandoned houses were killing this block, Matt added. "These houses date back from 1850 - we're even willing to work with future buyers to make sure that the work we're doing to the house is what they are looking for. We'll even build them a cottage on the lot that we purchased."
If you think about it, these two real estate investors just picked up seven+ great properties for less than what it would have cost for one house in the Delaware District. Welcome to Buffalo!
If you're looking to live in a restored house in the West Village, give Kate and Matt a call. They can be reached at 716-883-1980
*Kate and Matt also own Resetaritz Construction on Delaware Avenue. Past and present contracts include work on the Warehouse Lofts and Packard Lofts.
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flyguy
Its great to see people who actually care about the community putting love and mopney back into these "forgotten" and derelict areas with hopes to revitalize a slice of Buffalo and ideally a positive investment result as well. UNfortunately though I fear that those who let these homes get to this point and those who beat these properties into the condition they were in likely continue to bring such destruction and carelessness to other properties throughout the city and its a huge problem and damn shame. I think with more positive investment, economic development and a population increase we can finally expect to start winning the battle against those who dont give a damn and live like pigs.
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WCPerspective
Great job- keep going!
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thinker
Forever Elmwood, Elmwood VIllage, some color coded system of marginalization and now "The West Village?" There is no stopping the incessant desire to stratifying and delineate who is who and what is what out of fear that some have-nots aren't inadvertantly transformed into haves through inclusion in the EV generically when they're better singled out as part of the West Village.
Pretentious: 1: characterized by pretension: as a: making usually unjustified or excessive claims (as of value or standing) b: expressive of affected, unwarranted, or exaggerated importance, worth, or stature
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chrishawley
Matt's a really cutie, too!
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chrishawley
real*
:)
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chrishawley
Thinker...
The neighborhood has been called the "West Village" when Buffalo was a small berg, before your grandfather's grandfather was born.
It's historical fact, not pretense.
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Username
Thinker:
Think before writing.
Get off your self-righteous pedestal.
West Village is not a new moniker for this region...it predates "Elmwood Village" by many, many years.
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blackrocklifer
Great job- Efforts like this were unheard of just a few years ago. People are finally starting to recognize the value of these little islands of great old houses and good neighbors. All over Buffalo these places exist even in the poorest neighborhoods and continue to defy the common misperception of our city as being unsafe or unlivable.
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probuff
this has to be one of the single greatest things i have ever read on the internets. good for them and good for us! ordinary people making it happen!
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STEEL
The thing that is different about Buffalo these days is that people like this exist. In the not too distant past this would have been unheard of and unimaginable.
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gaustad
great job....must be nice to have a trust fund....
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skarnath
Great story! So how do we clone these two? Maybe we just go back to the parents and ask them to make more. Their dad has been in construction for over 30 years. Nice article in Business First last month - http://www.bizjournals.com/buffalo/stories/2008/08/11/smallb1.html
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mmiller
Kate is a board member of the Central Terminal Restoration Corp. for the last 3 years and we are really proud of her accomplishments. Among other recent projects are the completion of the Zoo's new Rainforest and Shawnee Landing in Wheatfield. Congratulations Kate and Matt!
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georged
If they are such champions of Buffalo why don't they go do this over on the East Side instaed of the "Village." The East Side doesn't matter, it is all about a few thousand people who live in the "Village."
This whole west village thing has to stop. Talk about a NYC wannabe name.
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nickatnite
Awesome job! This article gave me a smile this morning. Keep it going!
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MikeJW
@Gaustad...Are you serious? How do you know if they have a trust fund or not? How do you know what their financial situation is? Are you their financial advisor? Everytime something about money comes up on this site...new condos or this, you act very bitter towards people that can afford to buy or do this type of thing. It's ok though, I'm sure if you ask nicely, your Mom will buy you that new mini fridge you've been dying to get for your basement apartment.
Back on topic...Great job guys, keep it going....
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sbrof
george, it goes back to the market. They are planning to sell most of these homes once they are finished. The West side has a lot of local residents fighting and pushing back against crime and blight. This has created a different attitude about many areas of the west side. This improving image means that all those amenities that exist around there make it a very likable area which people would feel comfortable living in. AKA they will buy the homes. This area is well within walkable distance to Allentown, Downtown, Theatre District, Jobs etc.
The east side, whether it is based on reality or not, has a much larger image to overcome. Plus there are not too many places left on the east near downtown that need renovation. A solid 95% of everything east of Michigan has been demolished and rebuilt to Jefferson. Living past Jefferson probably doesn't offer the amenities that the people who will buy these buildings are looking for.
Taking an entire block of Buffalo and spending their own money to renovate it is a laudable task. No matter where the block is.
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GraphicRage
You know, it's really not THAT expensive to redo one of these houses for someone who does it wisely and does their research. Most of these houses with very solid bones can be had for $10k or LESS. Putting about $30-$40k into them, putting some old character back into them with the help of Buffalo ReUse while modernizing will bring you a nice profit or a really nice house to live in for a hell of a lot less than trucking it out to the suburbs. I know someone who had a double on West Tupper who simply updated the paint colors, installed a new fence and planted a garden - and made a $20k profit when selling the house only 1 1/2 years later. There are these little pockets around Buffalo, and all it takes is someone with the vision of Kate and Matt to make it happen. I know the person who owns most of the other half of West Tupper, and if you would have seen it 10 years ago compared to what he turned it into today with very little effort, and now rakes in a lot of $$ with solid, nicely maintained rentals. It's probably what most of the complainers on this board make in a month, and both he AND the city profit. Nice work Kate and Matt - now, please head over to the Hampshire/Grant street area!!
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RaChaCha
From the Buffalo Business First article (thanks, Skarnath):
In fact it was Kate Resetarits who convinced her father (David) to move the company's offices from Elma to Delaware Avenue because of her strong belief in the city. Resetarits said he is a true Buffalo believer. "It was one of the better decisions we made to move downtown," he said. "You see things everyday."
Way to go, Kate, Matt, and David!
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jstraubinger
I find all of the positive stories about the West Side and all of the activities of harvey garrett and the WSCC to be incredibly encouraging. Mr. thinker, the west village does back to the 1830;s. Buffalo's city limits at the time were at edge of the West Village and trhe area to the north of the West Village was all Black Rock. The reason that most of the buildings in the West Village that date back to that time are brick is because they were required to be so by the fire laws of that time. David Torke of Fix Buffalo mentioned in a recent post that there are rehabs going on in the area immediately adjecent to Artspace on the east side in addition to Coe Place. Two pictured in the post are at 1042 Ellicott and 91 Northampton. Check it out at
http://fixbuffalo.blogspot.com/2008/09/walking-around-artspace.html
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Sitler
Gaustad & Georged = haters. I would hate to live in your miserable world.
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Aloha
Since when is West Tupper in the West Village? I believe it's actually part of the Lower West Side between Allentwon and the West Village, but not in either of those historic districts proper.
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Sitler
This project is brilliant...hope it works out well for them. They have the right idea! One other thing about the West Tupper, it's footsteps away from downtown. A potential buyer could work downtown with no need to drive the car. Good luck Resetarits clan.
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jstraubinger
I find all of the positive stories about the West Side and all of the activities of harvey garrett and the WSCC to be incredibly encouraging. Mr. thinker, the west village does back to the 1830;s. Buffalo's city limits at the time were at edge of the West Village and trhe area to the north of the West Village was all Black Rock. The reason that most of the buildings in the West Village that date back to that time are brick is because they were required to be so by the fire laws of that time. David Torke of Fix Buffalo mentioned in a recent post that there are rehabs going on in the area immediately adjecent to Artspace on the east side in addition to Coe Place. Two pictured in the post are at 1042 Ellicott and 91 Northampton. Check it out at
http://fixbuffalo.blogspot.com/2008/09/walking-around-artspace.html
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fredrico
I aplaud these two people who are saving homes. As I have said in the past - saving homes (instead of demolition) saves precious materials and more importantly - it saves neighborhoods.
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crisa
Kate & Matt Resetarits: HELP! (I commented about you two here at Buffalorising at "6 secured at 19th".)
We concerned homeowners see that you are business owners with the finances, the right connections and know how we don't have.
Buffalo, NY has EIGHT geographic directions AND a center--that totals NINE geographic directions, and then, *Buffalo's influence branches far past it's border!
Most media exposure, though, is focused on only two areas within Buffalo, N and W, then trailing out short distances--ne, nw. Those two geo spots, N and W, are pretty much talked up, renovated up, filled up and thriving.
There are SIX more geo locations waiting for your expertise.
Three of those six are dong OKish (S, SE, SW and C) but many of those homeowners are in constant need of reassurance.
The last but not least of those nine locations is not only where the future is going, but, as far as massive renovations go, live-in homeowners, thousands of them, are delaying (this is where the 'massive' part comes in--count all of the houses as having financial gain collectively, not just a few at extreme prices) renovations because of deep concernes that way too much attention is paid and money sent to only TWO areas--while the other SEVEN create no wealth of interest at their most crucial time for survival.
*The other locations that branch out are the inner-rings that are in limbo because Buffalo's entire East Side is!
While HUGE profits, at least at first, would not generate quickly from the sale of ONLY ONE remolded house; tremendous profits would be spread out over a much larger homeowning area of more modestly priced renovations.
As far as shopping in Elmwood and all points N and W, there are thousand of people who don't go there. Reasons are:
No parking (coupled with tried to go there but couldn't find a parking space!)--#1 reason.
Don't live anywhere near there (coupled with not going to waste the gas again!)--#2.
Once is pretty much enough (coupled with tried once and once WAS enough!)--#3.
In the meantime, there are the seriously under-utilized shopping strips along Buffalo's E side on Broadway, Walden and Genesee, with Seneca, Clinton, Delavan and Kensington hanging in there waiting for progress.
There are tons of sturdy houses, tons of creative shopping areas; please, take a look in the loges.
Oh, and, what ever happened to The Walden Village?
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gaustad
MikeJW - did you guys every think that I post those comments to provoke people like you! And stop stealing my material, the basement apt thing was created by me two years ago....
I am happy that someone is cleaning up this sh!thole and I don't really care where the money is coming from. Drive to Toronto for a day then come back here....get a clue.
In regards to condos on the waterfront, for the record, I don't like realtors that artificially inflate prices; prices shoot up then the bottom falls out and people get hurt.....like the rest of the country. Read the paper genius.
Waterfront properties need to come down by at least 30%. There are 4 new projects with multiple tax free units coming on the market within the next two years. What did you study at ECC? Art?
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tudorguy
Gaustad - while I don't know these folks or their financial situation, I can attest that you are correct -- it IS nice to have a trust fund.
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Rebecca
Crisa - The west side is not "pretty much... renovated up, filled up and thriving." There are a lot of vacant houses, vacant lots, and properties in need of serious attention.
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MattCarlucci
I don't see any way that improvement of ANYTHING in the city can be seen as a bad thing.
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JohnB
Sigh. Great news about the renovations on West Tupper and throughout the rest of the Westside, and over on Coe. Yes, as some said, it does put a smile on my face, but then I also have to listen to the those stereotypical Buffalonians who were probably the same type of children who, when children, cried on Christmas morning. BUT WHERE ARE THE BIGGER PRESENTS. Sigh. Some people are never satisfied eh? Look, instead of complaining, why don't you invest yourself?
-John B
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JohnB
Sigh. Great news about the renovations on West Tupper and throughout the rest of the Westside, and over on Coe. Yes, as some said, it does put a smile on my face, but then I also have to listen to the those stereotypical Buffalonians who were probably the same type of children who, when children, cried on Christmas morning. BUT WHERE ARE THE BIGGER PRESENTS. Sigh. Some people are never satisfied eh? Look, instead of complaining, why don't you invest yourself?
-John B
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JohnB
Sigh. Great news about the renovations on West Tupper and throughout the rest of the Westside, and over on Coe. Yes, as some said, it does put a smile on my face, but then I also have to listen to the those stereotypical Buffalonians who were probably the same type of children who, when children, cried on Christmas morning. BUT WHERE ARE THE BIGGER PRESENTS. Sigh. Some people are never satisfied eh? Look, instead of complaining, why don't you invest yourself?
-John B
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crisa
Rebecca: I do know that. But Buffalo won't be "rising" until all of Buffalo including the suburbs rise too. In the meantime some of the finest houses ever built are left to rot or be demolished while everyone tries to herald in new ideas in just two tiny portions. It looks good now but it won't last if growth isn't city-wide.
Unless, of course, (and as many are wondering about,) forcing a vast area to become a prairie IS the main intention?!
Here's my thought on all of the demolitions of so very many sturdy structures within this City. It's about...
MOTHER NATURE vs FATHER TIME
(= MN and FT vs human nature)...
FATHER TIME is busiest here in the NE where human nature wins out over common sense,,,
MOTHER NATURE is busiest along all three coasts dealing with other humans' nature also lacking common sense.
All along the USA's coasts, E., W., and S., the ravages of MOTHER NATURE bring down under-built, over-valued houses long before they lose inflated value; long before they have a change to grow old!
The replacement of those storm-destroyed houses costs ALL OF US,,,
While here in WNY, (and of most conern to me, Buffalo, NY,) its FATHER TIME who is kept busy.
Here, FATHER TIME keeps better houses standing while human nature allows them to be demolished.
It all makes no sense whatsoever, but, that IS human nature!
(I AM aware that everything I submit here at BRO is so very "rough draft"!)
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Colin
We have half the population living in the same geographical footprint as 50 years ago. It makes sense that some areas of the city will be abandoned. And barring something truly dramatic, those areas are unlikely to ever be in demand again. It makes perfect strategic sense that reinvestment efforts are often confined to certain parts of the city.
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buffalo339
Cirsa, everytimeyou post, all I can think of is billy madison: at no point in your rambling incoherent response did you come close to anything that can be considered a rational thought....
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DevilEyes666
Read all about the Historic West Village on their website:
http://www.westvillage-buffalo.com/
Yes Thinker, it does exist and has for many, many , many years!
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crisa
(2) Before commenting here I had to google "billy madison."
Moving on...
Buffalo, as a city, was abandoned a long, long time ago.
As far as Buffalo as an area thought, its future includes the suburbs.
BRO is an ok spot on the Internet that refers to spacific areas while deferring the rest. That is ok. This is the big, wide, wonderful Internet.
In the meantime, I don't see any responses to me or anyone else from either of the two Resetarits or their business connections.
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WholeLottaJibbaJabbah
This actually bums me out. I am currently in the house hunt, and have been interested in several houses on that street. And for this bro & sis team to come in and snatch all of them up for $10,000 and flip them for $150,000 is just not right in my eyes. I've been living in the city for 4 years and want to invest in the city, but I cannot afford a $150,000 house. They are pushing young first time home buyers out of the city if you ask me.
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nb3004
@WholeLottaJibbaJabbah I'm sorry what is not right about what they are doing? They took a risk and renovated properties that many people would not want to touch. And now they are trying to do what they planned and sell the properties for what they feel they are worth. If no one buys them for that then the prices will come down. There are a lot of houses for sale in Buffalo you should look in some other neighborhoods.
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FEELFELT
I love on the corner of West Tupper & Virginia and I think THIS IS AWESOME!!
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FEELFELT
I love on the corner of West Tupper & Virginia and I think THIS IS AWESOME!!
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nb3004
@WholeLottaJibbaJabbah how does this house look. days park
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FEELFELT
This website sucks. It posted my previous post twice after loading the page for 20 minutes.
so yeah... this is awesome and we daydream about buying one of their new houses... maybe the new cottage. A new build with none of the problems an old house comes with... maintenance free living... in a quaint historical location.
I work downtown, so W. Tupper is a great location for us. I ride my bike to work in 5 minutes, or walk in 15. I'm home in my pajamas watching TV before most people are even out of their parking garages. No commuter stress or gas money. It's a great life and a great street and I can't believe we're so lucky that this lovely family has decided to do SO MUCH for our little street! What a blessing.
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