I have been in the real estate industry first as a licensed agent and as a broker since 1999. I have sold in every Manhattan neighborhood though do work a lot on the Upper west side where I live and upper Manhattan. I speak French,Portuguese, and Spanish.
Originally, as part of the development in Riverside South, The Collegiate School was supposed to build 55 units of affordable housing on site. Earlier this year, their proposal to contribute $50mm instead of building out the apartments was accepted by the City of New York. Next month, at a Community Board 7 meeting, residents will have a chance to weigh on possible locations. The Collegiate School will be located at 61st and Freedom Place and locals are hoping the affordable housing will be as close to the Riverside South development as possible.
This 19 story Upper west side condo sits at the corner of 97 street and Central Park west and originally featured studios to 2 bedroom apartments. Some combination apartments are even larger. One of the main reasons that buyers choose the Vaux condo is because of the low monthly charges which are approximately $1 per square foot. Additionally, the building features a concierge, live-in-super, on site management, gym, childrens’ playroom, plenty of outdoor seating areas and parking! Parking is on waitlist which is currently about 3 years.
The Vaux condo as seen from Central Park west. Corner apartments are 2bd/2ba with terraceCurrently there is one studio for sale in the 400 plus unit building for sale at just under $700k. A combination unit needing work (11XY) which was asking $2.195mm is in contract. It is a combination of a large 1 bedroom and a large studio apt.
St. Patrick’s Cathedral as of right, can transfer their air rights to buildings on or across the street. But with possible few takers, they would like to be able to sell them to developers in other locations in Manhattan. They have over 1 million square feet of air rights available and with air rights transferring for around $250 per square feet, the archdiocese has hundreds of millions of dollars that it would like to access.
Allowing the archdiocese to access these funds will help them to maintain their building. Currently, the building is undergoing a $170mm restoration.
Many people are concerned that Manhattan already has too many supertall buildings especially in Midtown and we need to reign in development of these type of buildings which cast shadows on Central Park.
According to the NYT Ask Real estate column, the answer is maybe. You need to have a legitimate claim to the apartment. The advice is that if you have lived in the apartment for 2 years at the time that your relative leaves the apartment you will have a strong claim. If the person is elderly or disabled, you need to live there for one year.
From an investor or landlord perspective, I often get questions on apartments that seem to have a price of 1/2 or 1/3 of the market value and buyers inquire why. In my experience, this have been apartments sold with a rent stabilized tenant in place. If it’s a large enough apartment, it’s probably more feasible to see a relative moving in and sharing the space with the leasee for a period of time and then gaining succession rights keeping out of the owner’s hands for many years. However, if it’s a studio, it might not be worth the trouble for a relative to gain succession rights. These type of investments are risky and should only pursued if you can support them as typically the rent does not even cover the monthly charges.
The Chatsworth, a Beaux-Arts Restoration project of HFZ Capital will have 136 units ranging from 2-5 bedrooms. It is located at Riverside Drive and 72 street and prices range from $2.875 to over $10mm.
The redesigned Coop has 10 units in the market with 1 in contract. Sales started in February. The building features a resident lounge with a catering kitchen, activity room, bike and additional storage.
A panel made up of real estate brokers, architects and developers got together and discussed which features add value and what direction the various parts of the market are heading.
Several reports are out that are pointing to the stabilization of the real estate market and increasing inventory. In the reports, larger coops on the Upper East side are staying longer on the market- sometimes 6,9 months or one year. At the entry levels, generally consider below $2 mm, inventory still remains tight and brokers are saying that there is still pent up demand.
Naftali Group’s UWS condo which launched last year with prices starting at $4.9mm and didn’t sell any units so pulled them off the market.
With over 6000 units in the development pipeline or new to the market in 2015, it seems that all segments of the market will see some relief.
400 CPW apt 10C is now almost in contract. The buyer has signed the contract for this 2 bedroom/2bath 1140 sqft condo on CPW in the postwar CPW Towers. This condo was on the market slightly longer than 1 month when the offer was accepted. Continue reading 400 CPW apt 10C NY,NY 10025 in contract→
Passive homes are starting to gain traction in the NYC real estate market with a few projects done and more on the way according to the NYT Sunday real estate section. These homes reduce the loss of energy tremendously by more efficient construction materials including thick insulated walls and double pane windows. They do not have traditional heating and cooling systems but rather use a system that exchanges interior and exterior air.
Rental project at 542 W 153 street called Perch Harlem to be built to Passive House standards.
News about the NYC real estate residential and commercial markets provided and interpreted by an industry veteran licensed since 1999. Brian Silvestry of BSRG Inc. Licensed real estate broker
