Monthly Archives: August 2018

Building profile, CentralParkWest, Upperwestside

467 Central Park West building profile

467 Central Park west aka The Warner, is a prewar condo which makes it a rarity but even more rare in that it is on Central Park west. The 99 unit pet friendly building at the corner of West 107th street and CPW, has a live-in-super, a bike room, laundry room and storage room.  Availability is the problem. Currently, there are only 2 apartments for sale! There is a 1 bedroom asking $700,000 and a studio asking $595,000. 

467 Central Park west is a 17 story condo with 99 units and low monthly charges. Unfortunately, there are only 2 units for sale and 1 sold in the last year.

Many of the apartments in the building have Central Park views. The most recent sale was apartment 12D, a 736 sqft 1 bedroom that sold for $930,000 in October of last year. So if you are thinking of buying in 467 Central Park west, patience will be key.

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.

Real estate

What type of Manhattan apartment is the best investment in the current market?

This is the 2nd in a series of articles for buyers who are considering buying a Manhattan apartment as an investment. 

According to the latest data, Manhattan apartments with the least price vulnerability continue to be affordable luxury. Depending on what market segment and neighborhood you look in, the price range is different. On the Upper west side, where I live, that would amount to $3 million and below. In the townhouse market on the Upper West side, it’s roughly $6 million and below where sales still occur. Above $10 million is a different story. In Harlem, affordable luxury is probably closer to $1.5 million and down for apartments and about $2.3 million and below for townhouses.

Mansion Global takes a look at the Manhattan market as a whole and asserts that the affordable luxury market makes up a large portion of Manhattan apartments. Year by year, property at $5mm and below accounts for more than 90% of the sales. The eight figure deals are the outliers but tend to get the headlines. One interesting point that they bring up is that larger apartments change hands less frequently so are more difficult to price, remain on the market longer, and eventually discount their prices more.

More from Mansion Global

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.

 

Harlem, Investment, Listings, multifamily

49 East 129th street Coming soon to the market

A 9000 sqft 12 family will be coming soon to the market. The property was built in 2007 and has a 25 year tax abatement. There are 11- 1 bedroom apartments and 1 studio. All apartments are in very good condition and the building is fully rented. Rents range from about $1500 to $1900. Nearly all tenants are being charged a preferential rent.

The asking price will be $6 million.

The building has huge upside potential as a potential condo conversion or a turnkey investment in the East Harlem area.

More details coming soon.

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.

Harlem, New Developments

Two new high-rises on West 124th street

According to Patch.com plans have been filed for 2 new building to rise on West 124th street between 7th and 8th avenue.  Each will be 12 stories tall. The existing buildings will be demolished but no plans have been filed as of yet. The average size unit will be just over 1000 sqft and the total square footage for both buildings will be 226,704.

Patch.com coverage

Buying tips for your NYC apartment, BuyingtipsforManhattanproperty, Investment

Thinking of buying a Manhattan apartment for investment?

1 Comment

This is the 1st in a series of articles for buyers who are considering buying a Manhattan apartment as an investment. 

I  once read an article where someone commented that NYC property is like a Swiss bank account for investors because it’s considered so low risk and certainly will go up in the future. But where do you buy and for how much? Should you get a loan or pay CASH? Here’s some advice that may help you to decide.

So let’s say you have $1 million just as an example and you want to invest. What are your options assuming you will not live there? Click through for guidelines.

Continue reading Thinking of buying a Manhattan apartment for investment? →

Harlem, Listings, Townhouse

361 West 116 street in contract

361 West 116th, an SRO building sold occupied without the certificate of no harassment has entered contract. The last asking price was $1,699,000 for this South Harlem townhouse. It had a renovated ground and 1st floor and 4 total bathrooms.

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.

HamiltonHeights, Harlem, Listings, Luxury, Marketreports

Only 4 Harlem townhouses sold this year for $4 million or more

So far this year, only 4 Harlem townhouses have sold for $4 million or more. One of the four townhouses broke a record in when it sold in February of this year for $5.1 million. That was a renovated home at 72 Hamilton terrace. 

72 Hamilton terrace sold for a record breaking $5.1 million in early 2018.

Beyond that, there have been 3 other townhouses that sold for $4 million and up. 251 West 138th street, a 20 foot wide townhouse on Striver’s Row sold also sold in February for $4 million. In April and May, the other two townhouses- 139 W 120th street and 455 Lenox ave, sold.

However, according to the July Harlem townhouse report, there are 17 buildings listed at $4 million and up. With the average per month sale rate for this price point being less than 1 per month, the number of months it will take to sell the existing inventory is 30 months which means that the $4 million and up price range in Harlem is oversupplied and in a buyer’s market.

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.

 

 

CentralParkWest, Listings, Upperwestside

382 Central Park west apt 4Y Just listed

A 648 sqft apartment with northern views has come on the market in the Olmstead condominium. The full service postwar building features a renovated lobby features, gym, and exercise studio where various classes are taught. Take a look at the video to get a sneak peak.

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

BuyingtipsforManhattanproperty, Selling tips

How to pick a real estate attorney

Let’s assume you are doing a residential purchase or sale and need a Manhattan real estate attorney to represent you. How do you find one and what should your criteria be? Let’s take a simplified look at what they do first to assist the process.

On a purchase, your attorney will review the proposed contract and examine the financial information of the co-op or condo building which might entail going to the building to read the minutes of the Board meetings. If there is some project coming up or a noisy neighbor that is wrecking havoc,  it might show up in these minutes.  Your attorney will meet you to sign the contract and fedex/messenger the contract and deposit check to the seller side. After that, assuming it’s not a complicated transaction that will be about it until you go to closing and then he will reconcile the numbers at the closing table and provide you with a closing statement.

On a sale of a Manhattan co-op/condo, the attorney or assistant will prepare the NYS contracts, then will negotiate any changes proposed by the buyer side. You will meet your attorney once the buyer signs and counter sign the contract. If there are issues with the mortgage or closing, the attorney will intercede and if not your attorney will attend the closing and reconcile the numbers with the other side.

Attorneys charge generally as low as $2000 for this transaction and generally an average fee is closer to $3000 or more.

The easiest way to find a good real estate attorney is to ask a friend, family member or your real estate broker for the name of someone that they have used and had a good experience.

You want to make sure that any attorney you use specializes in real estate so that you have a true expert on your side. Sometimes your family attorney also “does” real estate transactions but if there is an issue along the way, experience in doing many transactions may be an asset that you are happy that they have or may hurt you if they do not. So choose someone with experience.

Find out if there is an assistant or someone that you can speak to in case you need a quick question answered. If your attorney spends all day in court and is unreachable by phone/email, it may add stress unnecessarily to the process. Most attorneys will have staff and in some cases they will be able to answer your questions.

Lastly, while you might be recommended to a big name law firm, ask who will be the one handling your transaction. A big name firm that delegates you to a junior attorney or paralegal may not be the wisest choice. Much in the same way, a big name real estate brokerage that passes you off to the 3rd assistant may also leave you feeling that you are not receiving the service you expect.

So while the description I have given of what an attorney is very simple, it is not easy and you never what bumps you will hit on the way so it’s always best to have an expert on your side. To find the right person may take a little bit of research.

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

Buying tips for your NYC apartment, Listings, Upperwestside

Upper west side 2bd/2ba condos under $2 million

According to a search on listings website Streeteasy.com, there are 42 condo listings on Manhattan’s upper west side with at least 2 bedrooms/2 bathrooms under $2 million. The largest apartment for sale in this price range is a 1400 sqft duplex and the listings include 16 listings for $1.7 million and under.

The listings include two listings in the newly converted 350 W 71st street and overall 23 of the 42 listings are in Lincoln Square with many in the amenity rich Riverside Boulevard buildings as sellers attempt to move on from buildings with a tax abatement either recently expired or expiring soon. 7 of the 42 listings are in the Avery, at 100 Riverside boulevard which has a tax abatement expiring in 2 years. Overall, the Avery has 20 listings for sale of the 266 units.

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.