Tag Archives: townhouses

Harlem, Listings, Marketreports, multifamily, Townhouse

Harlem townhouse updated market report

According to analysis done today, there are 78 townhouses for sale in Central Harlem and Hamilton Heights ranging from $1.7 million to $5.7 million. There are 20 buildings in this area in contract bringing the total number of active plus contract to 98.

Most but not all of these 20 contracts were signed within the first four months of the year. 34 listings closed since the beginning of the year. That means there is approximately 10 months of existing supply in the market at this time.

Active listings Contracts Sold
78 20 34

For that reason, even listings in Central Harlem and Hamilton Heights that look to be very attractively priced are languishing on the market and price reductions are pretty steep these days.

April new listing data

The Author-  Brian Silvestry , a licensed real estate broker, has been selling residential and commercial real estate since 1999. He has sold in every neighborhood from Battery Park City to Washington Heights.

BuyingtipsforManhattanproperty, Harlem, Investment, Townhouse, Upperwestside

Why are the taxes so high in some Manhattan buildings but not so in others?

Understanding NYC’s archaic and often inequitable system of real estate taxes might be a life long pursuit but for the purposes of this blog, let’s take a look at a couple of the items that influence your real estate taxes of a Manhattan townhouse.

One of the influencing factors is how recently the property transferred. You have some long time owners in Manhattan whose properties are now worth several million dollars yet their assessed values are artificially low due to the lack of a recent sale. However, once the property changes hands, the Department of Finance might be right there adjusting the value and raising your taxes.

Continue reading Why are the taxes so high in some Manhattan buildings but not so in others? →

BuyingtipsforManhattanproperty, HamiltonHeights, Harlem, Marketreports, Townhouse

Harlem Townhouse market update

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Since April 1st, 22 townhouses have been in the market. The lowest price offering was for an SRO priced at just under $2 million to a historic home asking $5.25 million on Lenox avenue. This is a pretty significant amount of townhouses put in the market. Streeteasy is currently showing 19 townhouses in contract. Most of the townhouses have gone into contract in the first 4 months of the year.  4 contracts for Harlem townhouses were signed since April 1st. At that pace it would take about 6 months to sell off just the supply of houses that came on the market in April.

The Author-  Brian Silvestry , a licensed real estate broker, has been selling residential and commercial real estate since 1999. He has sold in every neighborhood from Battery Park City to Washington Heights.

Buying tips for your NYC apartment, Marketreports, Real estate

Current Manhattan residential market conditions

As days on the market increases for most residential real estate, the consensus is that the Manhattan residential market is in buyer’s market. New realities are setting in for sellers and not just in the luxury market but in all price ranges including starter homes. In 19 years of selling residential real estate, I have seen this cycle a few times already. The last time through, the market forces were accelerated by the financial crisis. This time around perhaps the winds behind the sails may be the tech bubble as well as the Tax Reforms and Jobs Act and rising interest rates.

But in any case, a buyer’s market tends to not last too long so while some buyers are waiting it out and deciding to rent instead, now maybe the time to make that purchase, knowing that finding the absolute perfect time to buy may be like trying to catch the bottom of the stock market. One thing is for sure is that with a little patience and good negotiation, a purchase now can lead to serious appreciation once the buyer’s market turns again into a seller’s market.

Also I think understanding that the Manhattan property values are not decreasing across all asset classes. Townhouses in Harlem continue to see steady sales and modest appreciation. Also, try finding a 6-12 family property for sale uptown with upside potential. There is very little for sale. In these markets both investors and end users are pouring in and there is a lack of inventory. Recently, I had a 8 family for sale at 313 W 138th street and there was a high level of interest and the property went to contract at over asking price within 1 month of listing.

The Author-  Brian Silvestry , a licensed real estate broker, has been selling residential and commercial real estate since 1999. He has sold in every neighborhood from Battery Park City to Washington Heights.

Investment, Upperwestside

How does a rent stabilized tenant affect a Manhattan townhouse’s value?

In an ideal setting,  a Manhattan townhouse will be delivered vacant and sold to a buyer who can convert it to a single family mansion, condos or a rental building. However, when a Manhattan building is conveyed with a rent stabilized tenant or a few rent stabilized tenants, then the buyer pool will narrow but it still has tremendous value. The factors that impact the value will be size of the apartment, likelihood of accepting a buyout, and what percentage of square footage, the RS tenants occupy within the building. The calculation of value is going to be based on the net operating income.(NOI). The NOI and cap rate will dictate the value, but the upside which the buyer/investor will evaluate will have to do the likelihood that the tenant might be bought out now or in the near future, the age of the tenant, and how likely they might have immediate family who will succeed them within the apartment.

For example, on a recent tour of Upper west side townhouses with an investor we looked a one building that was asking $5.4 million with 6 units 2 of which were rent stabilized. Within the same neighborhood, a 7 unit building was asking nearly $1 million more with all free market tenants. Both were both offered at an approximate 3% cap rate.

Now what happens when the majority or all of the building is occupied by rent stabilized tenants and the cap rate is extremely low or the income is not even covering the expenses, now you will see an even more narrow pool of buyers whose expectations for a discount go up as the rents paid by the tenants goes down as does the likelihood of a buyout. In this situation, a more thorough analysis based on current market conditions will need to be done by a Manhattan real estate broker experienced in the transfer of townhouses and multifamily properties.

The Author-  Brian Silvestry , a licensed real estate broker, has been selling residential and commercial real estate since 1999. He has sold in every neighborhood from Battery Park City to Washington Heights.