Category Archives: Buying tips for your NYC apartment

Buying tips for your NYC apartment, BuyingtipsforManhattanproperty, Luxury, Marketreports

24 luxury contracts signed last week in Manhattan

24 luxury contracts were signed last week according to the Olshan Report. An 80th floor apartment in One57, Extell’s luxury tower on Billionaire’s Row went into contract after asking $19.9 million. A seller at 150 Charles managed a $4 million profit after buying his condo for just north of $12 million off floor plans back in 2012 as well.

TRD coverage

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, BuyingtipsforManhattanproperty, Real estate, Upperwestside

Why do some Manhattan buildings have so few units for sale?

I always find it interesting to see that in some Manhattan buildings that are very few apartments for sale. In 400 Central Park west, a 414 unit condominium there are 6 apartments for sale, and 2 of those are in contract. So out of 414 units, there are 4 units available for sale or less than 1% of the building.

Contrast that with 120 Riverside boulevard, which has 23 units for sale with only 2 of those in contract. The 14 year old building has 276 units and many amenities. But taxes for a 1292 sqft 2bd/2ba run around $21,000 per year. Perhaps, this is the clearest example of the effect of the Tax Reform? Either way, with nearly 8% of the building for sale, it might create a pause in a buyer looking to purchase.

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, Listings, Luxury, New Developments, Real estate

Waterline Square construction update

Waterline square the 3 building development on the West side from the exterior looks to be finished. The buildings are designed by the starchitects Rafael Vinoly, Kohn Pedersen Fox and Richard Meier.

Prices start at just over $1.8 million for 1 bedrooms with occupancy expected in Spring of 2019.

Previous coverage of Waterline Square

Available properties in Waterline Square

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, BuyingtipsforManhattanproperty, Selling tips

How CEMAs help Manhattan buyers and sellers save money

Please note always consult with an attorney on legal matters as this blog is not meant to be substituted for competent legal advice. 

CEMAs aka Consolidation extension modification agreement, allow buyers who are purchasing real property (not coops) in New York City save $ on their mortgage recording tax and help sellers to save on their NYS transfer tax. This can work if the below conditions are met and strangely is used only in about 1/4 transactions that are eligible.

1- Seller has a mortgage

2-Seller’s mortgage lender allows assignments of mortgages

3- Buyer is working with a lender that allows purchase CEMAs.

Example

Sale Price $3,000,000
Seller Mortgage balance $2,000,000
Buyer Mortgage amount $2,200,000
Mortgage tax 1.925%

Buyer will save approximately $39,500 in mortgage recording tax minus transaction costs and seller will only pay NYS transfer tax on not the total sale price of $3mm which would be $12,000 but rather on the difference of $3mm-$2mm which would be $1 million or $4,000.  Buyer and seller both win.

You will need to consult with an attorney that understands this process and also it’s an easier process with a lender that can also aid in the process as well.

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

How making a low offer can backfire on a Manhattan property

2 Comments

Not that long ago, I showed an apartment on the Upper West side and the asking price was $1,975,000. The buyer asked me after seeing it what I thought of the price. I thought the price was right at the market price. They were asking pretty much exactly what the price per square foot in the building was for similar apartments. She decided to make a low offer starting at $1,800,000. Surprisingly, after a bit of back and forth, the seller negotiated the price down to $1,890,000 and accepted her offer. At that point, my buyer was very excited. But then hours after accepting our offer, the seller’s agent called to tell us that there was a full price offer now and they would be moving on to the new buyer. At which point, my client who was purchasing cash also offered the asking price. But the other party went higher. So we went higher. Thankfully in the end my client did get the apartment but she had to pay over ask and considerably more than the originally, agreed upon offer.

I think the lesson here is that you have to really understand the value of the property that you are offering. Even though it’s a buyer’s market, certain segments are still in demand and sell quickly if priced right. Also, the deal is never done until the seller signs the contract. For many reasons, starting too low may leave the door open for another buyer.

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, Co-ops, Condos, Manhattan

How is a Manhattan co-op different from a condo part 3?

In this continuing series we will take a look at a couple more differences between co-ops and condos.

1- Co-ops tend to be located in prewar buildings while condos tend to be newer, shinier and more full of amenities. So if you love prewar lobbies, crown moldings and other details of prewar buildings, you probably will be looking at more co-ops. Almost all new offerings in the last 10 years plus are condos so condos tend to satisfy the wants of Manhattan buyers who are looking for newer buildings with amenities like swimming pools, roof decks, bowling or golf simulators. Some co-ops will have nice amenities as well but very few co-ops have been built in the last 20 years or so.

2- If you are a foreign national or US based investor, condos will most likely be your choice. Co-ops tend to examine a plethora of documents as previously mentioned including US credit. Since a co-op can turn down someone without providing a reason, if you are foreign national purchasing as a primary residence or a pied-a-terre, your safer bet will be a condo. Also, if you are purchasing for investment, almost all co-ops will require you live there first then there will be restrictions for how long you can rent.

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, Co-ops, Condos, Manhattan

Manhattan co-ops versus condos part 2

There are many differences between Manhattan co-ops and condos and in this series we take a look at a couple at a time.

1- Condos typically let you rent your apartment out without limit. So if you experience a job change and do not want to sell, you can rent out the apartment without an issue. In a co-op typically, you can rent out 2 of 5 years and then need to move back or sell.

2-Co-ops normally have higher monthly carrying charges than condos but lower prices. For example a 2bd/2ba co-op on the upper west side of about 1100 sqft might cost you  $1.5 million and have monthly charges of about $2900. A similar condo might run you $2.1 million but the monthly charges might only be $2000.

Price differences, and ability to rent out are just two differences of the many between co-ops and condos in Manhattan.

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, Investment, Luxury, New Developments, Real estate

Thinking of buying a Manhattan luxury property for investment?

This is 3rd part of the series focusing on the purchase of Manhattan properties for investment. In this part, we take a look at the luxury market and it’s opportunities.

According to the latest study from streeteasy.com 2018 is the year of the discount for luxury property, roughly defined as $4mm and up by the study. 59% of the properties that closed were discounted and median discount was $980,000. This is up from 36% of the properties in 2016 and also up from 2017’s number of 54%.

One way to take advantage of the Manhattan luxury market is to buy and hold the property. Right now, the luxury market is in the 3rd year of buyer’s market. Less product is coming on the market, and land sales have slowed. Once this inventory is absorbed, then we will again see a shortage of inventory in the luxury market and the prices will rise again.

Also, luxury rentals will be more and more in demand. Take for example 1 Hudson Yards. It is a building with luxury amenities, liklap pool, salt water pool for children, cold plunge pool plus a bowling alley and lounge with kitchen, penthouse party room, and tons of outdoor space. In addition, there is an gym similar to an Equinox, a basketball court, and plenty of outdoor grills for barbecuing. In a neighborhood that is developing with construction everywhere, take a guess how many rentals are available in this 178 unit building. Zero! All rented. 1 bedrooms were $4800, 2 bedrooms $9,000 + and 3 bedrooms $15k and up. The rental market also for the last 2 years, has been oversupplied and this will change in the next 1-2 years. In 20 years of real estate brokerage, I have seen several cycles.

Take an apartment in Waterline square as an example. A 3bd/3ba in 1 Waterline Square aka 10 Riverside boulevard is asking just over $5 million. Due to the tax abatement, the monthlies for this 1824 sqft (169.4m2) apartment is $3,642 including the taxes.  A 3 bedroom/3bath of about the same size rented for $14,000 in 50 Riverside boulevard back in June of this year. Let’s do the numbers on this purchase assuming an asking price purchase.

$5,000,000 purchase
$14,000 rent monthly
$3,642 monthly charges
$10,358 net or $124,296 annually
2.5% return 

The 2.5% return does not take into account the market price of this apartment in the future as well as tax benefits such as depreciation. Let’s say in 5 years, the apartment is worth $6 million. Your rate of return then would be 5.6%.

Additionally, the monthly net income could support approximately $2 million in mortgage which could lower your necessary cash outlay to $3 million from $5 million. This would raise your rate of return in 5 years to 15%!

The luxury market is full of these type of deals where you can take advantage of the slowdown in demand and get in on the market before the market turns up again. If you understand that the tech and finance sectors are not going anywhere and also understand that Millenials might find it harder to purchase and many may decide to rent luxury instead of buying then you can take advantage of the opportunity that not everyone sees.

 

Part 1 of the Manhattan investment buying series

Mansion Global coverage

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, 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? →

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.