Brooklyn · town home

Home inspector in Broadway Triangle, NY

In 2020, Lou Rubino inspected one home in Broadway Triangle — one job, one written report, and the photographs below come from it. The report describes a town home, about 121 years old.

Rated 4.9 on Google as of November 2026 · U.S. Army veteran owned · NY licence #16000039568 · 516-330-3870

What the Broadway Triangle report found

The report, as Lou wrote it up.

2020, a town home, about 121 years old: 9 items flagged: 4 roof, chimney and attic; 2 exterior; 2 heating and cooling. As recorded: flat roof, asphalt/fiberglass, seen from: walked, framed with 3'x7" x 30" o/c rafters; attic: no storage, skylight vents ventilation; brick, cement stucco and limestone full brick, stucco and limestone siding, chimney: brick; rock foundation, 3 x 10, 6" x 8" wood main beam and 6"x 6" steel i beams floor framing, steel lally columns; steam boiler heat on natural gas, 50 gallon (2-3 people) gas (quick recovery) water heater (basement and utility room); 100-amp x 2 ea circuit breakers (Murray), BX wiring, public water, window AC; double-hung and thermal/insulated windows, hardwood t&g floors, wood cabinets, granite counters. Flagged, in Lou’s words: “Flat roof is about 10 years old”; “Rear section, repair needs to be painted silver”; “Left front chimney, brick are loose and rain perpetrating brickwork into structure”; “Right rear chimney flashing is cracked front and rear”; “Metal roof ladder is not secured at top”; “Debris left on roof from left rear chimney dismantle”; “Support steel under rear elevated deck is rusted”; “Wood deck needs to be painted or water proofed”; “Water is penetrating front steps”; “Rear airway cover should be protected from foot damage”; “Front upper wood eve facade needs to be painted”; “Ceramic tile cracked in front of sink cabinet and chipped in front of refrigerator”; “Safety item: Island is not bolted to floor”; “Water dispenser filter clogged”; “Left front window screen is ripped and won't go down”; “Wood 4x4 column right front is loose hanging from nails”; “Fireplace chimney appears to be obstructed”; “No damper control for fireplace”; “Fireplace does not have smoke shelf to prevent down-drafts”; “This fireplace is an old gas burning”. Also noted: “Stove hits gas pipe and electrical outlet”; “Diverter valve leaks and tub faucet is loose”; “Safety Item: GFCI outlet won't trip and blocked by cabinet”; “Pipe looks good to about 8' from inside wall”; “Nylon bushing on offset nipple from 2nd floor meter pan is loose”; “No wire bushings in BX cable in 2nd floor panel”; “Whole house ground cable not connected to water main”; “See steam balancing chart”. On the day: 64°F, clear, damp ground, rain in the three days before; the house faces south. Not inspected that day: cooling and air handler equipment; visible electric wiring in attic. Not present in this house: basement windows; gas/lp firelogs and fireplaces; normal operating controls; outlets & fixtures; presence of installed cooling source in each room; sump pump; ventilation fans and thermostatic controls; windows.

“Flagged” is HomeGauge’s Repair or Replace mark, not a verdict on the house. See a complete report.

What the inspection can examine here

The roof, chimney and attic — how the roof was observed is stated in the report, as New York requires, and the attic is entered wherever a hatch allows.
Foundation walls, columns, beams and floor framing where visible — and what could not be reached goes in the report too.
The heating plant and any central air — operated in normal mode, dated from the data plate, with the flue and clearances looked at where accessible.
Radon — a separate, optional test arranged alongside the inspection.

Photographs from Broadway Triangle reports

Ends of floor joists above a whitewashed foundation wall with a gap beneath them, marked with three red arrows. — The last three floor joists at the right rear corner are not bearing weight on the foundation. The report's next picture records termite damage to the rear sub-flooring in the same bays.

Camera view down the inside of a rusty pipe, with a red circle and arrow marking the clear bore. — Pipe looks good to about 8 feet from the inside wall, seen with the camera. Separately, the copper water pipe is corroded on the main beam and not supported properly; Lou recommended repair by a licensed plumbing contractor.

Both photographs are from Lou's own Broadway Triangle inspection reports, chosen because they show a building component and nothing that identifies a property or an owner.

Buying in Broadway Triangle: the questions with sourced answers

Each answer is built from Broadway Triangle’s own rows in public data — the Census, NYSDOH, NYSDEC, FEMA, the office that holds the permits — or from Lou’s reports, and cites its source. Data retrieved 1 November 2026.

How old are the houses in Broadway Triangle?

Median year built in zip 11206: 1965 (Brooklyn: 1943). Of 34,838 units, 25% predates 1940; 28% is from 2000 on. Next come the 2000s at 14% and the 1960s at 13%. An older house is not a worse house, but its wiring, plumbing and roof were installed under different rules and replaced piecemeal, which is what the inspection looks for. Lou’s reports here: 121 years old. (ACS)

How are homes in Broadway Triangle heated? Is an oil tank likely?

59% utility gas, 25% electricity; fuel oil 6% against 7% county-wide. NYSDEC logs Brooklyn home oil spills under the borough, not Broadway Triangle. A gas conversion can leave a tank behind. An abandoned tank is most likely in a house that was converted from oil. Buried tanks are outside the standards New York sets for a home inspection, so the seller’s answer matters. (ACS, NYSDEC)

Is Broadway Triangle mostly houses or apartments, owned or rented?

29% buildings of 50 or more units, 20% buildings of 20 to 49 units, 19% buildings of 5 to 9 units; 11% owner-occupied (Brooklyn: 30%). With 49% of units in buildings of 20 or more, many purchases here are apartments: the inspection covers the unit, and the roof, plant and risers belong to the board. Lou’s jobs here included a townhouse. (ACS)

Is radon a concern in Broadway Triangle?

Brooklyn (reported by borough): 528 basement tests, average 2.07 pCi/L, 54 at 4 or above (10%). First-floor tests there: 116, average 0.88. The highest basement reading was 41.2 pCi/L. EPA’s action level is 4 pCi/L, and it advises testing every home whatever the area’s results. Radon testing is optional. (NYSDOH)

Has Broadway Triangle flooded? Is the house in a flood zone?

13 flood-insurance claims from zip 11206 since 1979, most in 1980 (5): 165th of the 189 zips on these pages. A claim count describes the zip, not the house. Flood zones follow the address. Check the address on FEMA’s map. (OpenFEMA)

Who holds the permits and certificate of occupancy in Broadway Triangle?

The NYC Department of Buildings. Look the address up on BIS or DOB NOW. Your attorney usually runs the search. The inspection reports the condition of what is there and flags work that typically needs a permit, such as a finished basement, a dormer or a moved panel, so you know what to ask about.

How does Broadway Triangle compare with the towns around it?

By median year built, fuel-oil share and owner-occupancy: Broadway Triangle (zip 11206) 1965, 6%, 11%; Maspeth (zip 11378): built 1943, oil 8%, 54% owner-occupied; Fort Greene (zip 11217): built 1938, oil 8%, 29% owner-occupied; Brooklyn Heights (zip 11201): built 1955, oil 8%, 36% owner-occupied. (ACS)

Which code, water and sewer rules apply in Broadway Triangle?

The New York City Construction Codes, the NYC Department of Buildings records and NYC water and sewer: county-wide, written once. They are the same for every town in Brooklyn, so they are set out there with their sources instead of on each page.

How much does a home inspection in Broadway Triangle cost, and how fast is the report?

Lou quotes the actual property, not a flat rate — what drives the price is size, age and what is included. The written report arrives the same day as a rule; a large or complex house can run to the next morning. Call or text 516-330-3870.

Brooklyn, town by town

Every Brooklyn place with a page here, each with the real count from Lou's records. The Brooklyn page covers the county as a whole.

Where this sits in Lou's territory

Lou covers Long Island, the five boroughs and Westchester from his base in Wantagh, and the archive behind these pages shows where that work has actually concentrated.

Nearby towns Lou has inspected: Williamsburg · Bedford-Stuyvesant · Bushwick · Clinton Hill · Greenpoint · Prospect Heights · all 250 towns.

Buying in Broadway Triangle?

His Broadway Triangle file goes back to 2020. Yours would not be the first.

Schedule an inspection Call 516-330-3870

Not sure yet? Read what New York requires of your inspector or see a real report.