All posts by Brian Silvestry

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.
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.

 

 

 

BuyingtipsforManhattanproperty, Selling tips

How long does it take to go from contract to closing for a Manhattan property

Once you have an accepted offer, the contract review process begins. In an ideal world, this will take about a week but can often take longer, as the lawyers haggle over details of the contract like as is versus working condition or closing dates or what happens if there is a title issue…Once the contract is signed by the buyer and the deposit (normally 10% of the purchase price) is sent to the seller’s attorney, the seller can sign the contract.

At that point, the buyer will give their documents to their lender for their loan application. Within about a month, the buyer will have a loan commitment and from there the bank can be ready in about another month or so to close the transaction.

If this is a condo or co-op in Manhattan, there will be Board application to be submitted and reviewed first by management and then the Board. In the case of a condo, they grant a waiver of the right of first refusal which is the Building’s right to buy an apartment if they so choose. If it’s a co-op then they will review the application and first decide to interview or not, then interview and give an approval or rejection. This can add another 1-2 months total to the process.

Lastly, the lawyers will set the scheduled date for closing when all parties are available. From contract to closing, can average about 3 months, less if a cash transaction and more in the case of co-op.

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

Upper West Side townhouse report

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The Upper West side townhouse market has seen increasing inventory over the last several months and fewer and fewer sales. In the last 3 months, 22 new listings have come on the market.

Last 3 months
# Sales Average/month Low price High price Inventory
8 2.7 3.9 million 9.25 million 24 months

The next table shows all 8 sales in the last 3 months, with sale price and price per square foot.

Address Sale Price PPSFT
308 W 90 ST $3,900,000 $955
112 W 75 ST $4,500,000 $649
113 W 75 ST $5,000,000 $789
47 W 95 ST $5,399,157 $1,342
16 W 88 ST $8,000,000 $1,399
161 W 91 ST $8,072,000 $2,026
316 W 88 ST $8,375,000 $1,560
43 W 76 ST $9,250,000 $1,357

Interestingly enough half of the sale recorded in the last 3 months for Upper West side townhouses were for <$5.5 million and the other half roughly between $8 million to $9.3 million. No sales were recorded above $10 million in the last 3 months and only 2 this year.

Currently at $10 million and up, there are 25 listings available which confirms that this segment of the market is deeply in a buyers market.

Below $10 million, there are 40 listings available on Manhattan’s upper west side. So if you segment the market to below $10 mm then the inventory level looks more like it will last about 15 months which is still a buyer’s market.

Spring 2018 Upper west side townhouse report

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

Park West Village July market report

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Park West Village is a 4 unit condo complex on Central Park West on Manhattan’s Upper west side. 372,382,392 and 400 CPW are all 19 story buildings with approximately 414 +/- units and share similar amenities and low monthly charges.

There were two sales in the 4 building complex in the month of July and both were in 382 Central Park west aka the Olmstead. Apt 3A, a renovated 845 sqft, north facing apartment with a balcony fetched $1,076,500 and took 3 months to go to contract in May before closing in July. While apartment 16G, a south facing, 545 sqft studio was listed back in November of last year, also took 3 months to go to contract and then 4.5 months from contract to closing and closed for $765,000.

Below is the current inventory by building and the availability by unit size.

Current active inventory
372 2
382 4
392 4
400 2
Inventory by apt size
Studio 3
Big studio 3
1 bd w terrace 5
2bd/2ba 1

 

The below tables show currently signed contracts by building and by unit size.

Contracts by building
372 4
382 2
392 2
400 4
Contracts by unit size
Studio 4
Big Studio 1
1 bed without terrace 1
1 bed w terrace 4
2bd/2ba 2

There are 12 total listings for sale and the amount of time it would take to sell all 12 listings is projected as 6 months. However, with 12 properties in contract that will likely close in the next 3 months, the sales per month for the next 3 months will likely be in the range of 4 per month which would suggest the current inventory might only last 3 months.

Park West Village market report 1st half 2018

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, Condos, Listings, Upperwestside

382 Central Park west 4Y Just listed

A convertible 1 bedroom has been listed in the Olmstead condominium at 382 Central Park west. The apartment is a north facing 648 sqft, with a renovated kitchen and bathroom. The monthly charges are very low at $910 for a full service building with a gym, parking(waitlist), and an exercise studio which features classes for residents. See VR Tour below.

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, HamiltonHeights, Harlem, multifamily, Townhouse

Harlem townhouse shortage below $2 millon

According to the July Harlem townhouse report, not one townhouse below $2 million was listed for sale. In July,  2 of the 4 sales recorded in the Central Harlem,Hamilton Heights townhouse market, were below $2 million. That brings the number of available properties below $2mm to only 6 out of over 80 listings. I am seeing a little bit of a tug of war as sellers priced at around $2.3-2.6 now begin to see the market may not sustain these prices for their Harlem properties  and probably not for 4 family homes above 125th street.

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, Marketreports, multifamily, Townhouse

July Harlem townhouse market report

3 Comments

The July market saw 13 new townhouse listings come on the market in the Central Harlem, Hamilton Heights area. The first table shows the number of new listings by price on the left side and the prices of the 4 sales on the right.

The 2nd  table shows the amount of active listings which has stayed steady the last several months and the amount of time it would take to sell the existing inventory.

The last table shows the current active listings by price range. 40% of the listings are in the $2-3 mm range and very few listings are less than $2 million.

average  $       3,225,000 4 sales
6 $2-3 mm 3,175,000
5 $3-4 mm 3,350,000
2 >$4mm 1,625,000
1,800,000
# active Inventory
82 21 months
Listings by price
<$2mm 6
$2mm-$2.99mm 33
$3mm-$3-99mm 26
$4mm + 17

June Harlem townhouse report

Harlem townhouse May report

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

Thinking of buying on the Upper West side near Riveside Park?

If you are living or thinking of living on Manhattan’s Upper West side,  and can find an apartment close to Riverside Park, you will always be able to do find something to do even if it’s just a stroll on a hot summer day.

There’s a Cherry Walk from 100th to 125th street on the water as well as the red clay tennis courts at West 96th street in case you want to channel the spirit of The French Open. There’s soccer fields, long winding paths, the Boat Basin Cafe and this just takes you into the West 70’s.  Here are some photos to get you motivated to take a walk on the Hudson River and maybe catch a sunset, take a free yoga class or watch an outdoor movie.  Click on the below for a list of events. Calendar of events in Riverside Park

 

One of the best places to live is in one of the many full service buildings on Riverside boulevard. There are a range of apartments from studios to family size apartments. Many of the buildings have roof decks, and swimming pools among the amenities. One of the best buildings is the newest addition- One Riverside Park where a 3 bed/3.5 of around 2000 sqft (185m2) can be had for under $4 million  or rented for under $10k per month.  Around the corner at 1 West end avenue, you can find interesting offerings at around $2000 per sqft and this building comes with a 20 year tax abatement.

Beyond the glitzy new condos in this section of Lincoln Square, you can find the more affordable Lincoln Towers, a postwar co-op on West end avenue. In Lincoln Towers, there is a 2 bedroom/2 bathroom apartment for sale under $1.5 million. This co-op has several buildings and while not as fancy as it’s neighbors to the west, it is more centrally located, a full two avenues closer to Broadway including Zabar’s and the express subway stop.

Riverside boulevard buildings
Riverside boulevard buildings

Whether you decide to purchase, rent near Riverside Park or just pass through, there’s always plenty to do…

 

Manhattan, multifamily, Propertytaxes

What’s the advantage of tax class 2A and 2B for Manhattan properties?

Some investors focus on larger apartment buildings for their acquisition and may miss out on smaller ones that make just as much or more sense. In a recent Commercial Observer, a commercial broker takes a look at the advantage of tax class 2A and 2B(4-10 units) and perhaps acquiring a few of those instead of large buildings that are just in tax Class 2(11+ units).

Full coverage from Commercial Observer

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.