Guess how much this sold for?

Okay, so the dining area/3rd br layout was strange, and the maintenance is reflecting the terrace, so it's above $2/ft. - at what price would YOU (if it hadn't been too small) have been tempted to buy?

Sorry, you already answered my question - it's late and I'm tired. Will be interesting to see the clsoing price

One of my all time favorite saves! Viewed personally and, could easily have made it my home if it were not for the lofty common charges and out of range asks. I'm going out on a limb here by stating that I'm begining to consider myself an aficionado of this exact class of apartments. So now with my neck extended as far as possible, a drum roll please.....

$1,365,000

And to the buyer...enjoy this cool place no matter what you paid!

I'll say 1.35.

We are playing 'Price is Right' rules correct?

i remember you posting this falco. I will guess $1.2 million

1.425 mil

2nd choice (30 days from now) relisted

3rd choice (60 days from now) delisted or no longer available

:)

$1

I'd say $1,445,000 to 1,465,000; the terrace is just great.

I go along with maly - people will go for the terraces (though not much usuable space there) and overlook the small bedrooms.

Tomatoes grow better on south-facing terraces. Take off at least a few hundred thousand for that deficiency.

You'd put the tomatoes against the terrace wall on the nortwest corner, for the protected southeast sun. There is a little bit of work, but this could be a glorious apartment.

Plenty of usable space on the terrace, I can vouch for that.

With a smaller (existing and potentially prospective) family, I'd be tempted at $1.2MM. We'd be perfectly happy with this as a 3-bedroom with a very large living/dining room, a great terrace and a great location. The only big negative is the small windowless kitchen.

I think it sold higher, though, simply because $1.2MM would imply a successful lowball of over 25%, and those are very, very rare.

1400sqf and CC+tax is $3500/month

I would not have paid more than $1mil for this apt.

Maint. is really high. Yes Alan - need that southern terrace or it's useless. obtw - we are harvesting! Maybe I'll invite some SE's over for a harvest party. I would love that outdoor space. So big. I say 1.25 mil

Somewhat surprisingly, we were all too low. Closed at $1.55MM. As I said above, I really like this apartment, but at over $1000 per (real) square foot with maintenance of over $2psf, I think the buyer here overpaid.

NEWBUYER,
We are reading this and we are amazed! We loved the place but, the maintence plus the $$$. It also need work to really live right in. Well, I completly missed the mark.

The reason it sold for far more than any of us individuals would pay is because it is a condo and thus was able to be (and was) purchased by a company - "Pascal, USA, INC." Interestingly, this firm only filed their corporation docs with NY on August 7, 2009. And the address listed on the filing and in ACRIS, Pascal Usa, Inc.
10 Miller Place, Suite 103
White Plains NY 10601

is strange... I don't know White Plains at all, but this address doesn't come up on google maps - it sends you to "miller terrace" which is a residential neighborhood, to judge by the google "street level" photos....

Something kinda smells fishy to me!

Clearly the buyer overpaid. The charges are $3200. Lovely purchase at a 2% cap rate. Have fun with that.

Rhino, it's a pretty narrow point of view. Not every apartment is an investment, and this was clearly such a special place with a huge terrace. Not every listing will go down to investor-grade clearing price. The dregs will, no doubt about that, but to insist on cap rate as the absolute measure of value is the other delusion, the #1 delusion being that real estate prices never go down.
I'm not sure what your passion is, food, clothes, handmade shoes or silk ties? Anyway, let's say it's cooking. Would you buy only institutional grade ground chuck, because it's 99 cents a pound and nutritionally adequate, and insist that people who get ground steak at 8 times the price must be stupid? Hmm, maybe you would, if your passion is money, but to some money is not the goal but means to an end.
You're going to blow up if you think everyone must share your values or they are stupid.
I wish the new owner of this pretty place lots of happiness and home-grown tomatoes.

To each their own. They paid a lot. You can rent unique apartments too. And that building is gross; I walk by it often.

How did this become about my values and their values drama queen? I said I think they paid a lot. I said I don't think it's going to work out as an investment. If they don't consider it such then I guess my conclusion is moot to them.

Well this thread is discouraging. I would like to buy but I am concerned about overpaying. I would accept real fair market value on the day I buy understanding that I might be at risk for the further (hopefully limited) market downside. And I am hoping to get something with an edge in a difficult market that won't re- sale strictly on price point -- say a river view or large terrace, location, etc. But here, where I consider the bloggers to be highly informed -- this apt went for more than 10% than anyone expected including those that considered someone might overpay. That means to me that on this apt, you are taking 10 -12% absolute risk plus transaction costs plus risk of market going down further.

It is another indication that this market still has plenty of air in it. I am getting closer to renting by the day. If anyone in the next couple of months finds an apt that will appear on the price choppers thread someday, please let me know. I keep running into 2007 prices.

apt23, you need someone who needs a quick sale without a lot of leverage. there can be signs of that that are apparent. but many times its just luck and perserverance. are you an insider? because looking at recorded sales, while it won't lead you to your dream apartment, paints a more nuanced picture.

properties sell for all sorts of reasons, at all sorts of price levels. but, as you might have guessed, i'm all for renting in today's market.

Apt23: can't generalize, but keep a look out for estate sales.

It's interesting about human psychology. People would rather get a deal in an overpriced market than overpay in a cheap market. Who cares.

rhino, quit trying to impose your current situation on others. apt23 wants a home and is willing, as she indicates, to take some risk. she's making an informed decision, at least as informed as possible. at some point, if people can afford it, many will choose to buy. it is partly an emotional decision, and the value added to people who care about such things is real, if not shared by all. not all people view it as an investment. not all people are as lazy and cheap as i am.

I simply do not see how this was particularly over priced compared to anything else. Are you looking at monthly nut vs rent? I understand the special place maintenance has compared to mortgage, but I'm not sure most people make the distinction.

Geez, you're right Rhino, that building IS fugly. Wouldn't matter to me if I lived in it, but wouldn't want to live across it.

Rhino: I am willing to take a very limited risk in this slightly down market. I am not willing to buy into someone else' dumb ass mistake of buying 2006 -2008. I will not pay those prices no matter how much I would just like to nest in a full time home. Will I pay 2004 prices, knowing it might go down to 2002 prices? Maybe. That risk vs. lifestyle choice might be alright for me. But I am finding recalcitrant sellers -- or maybe it is their brokers-- who are asking 2007 prices. And, I am not looking in the hot neighborhoods. So, I will rent for a year to watch the market go down which I am sure it will. As I have said in other threads, Extell will be a real tell for me. If Rushmore prices tank, I believe it will affect the entire market.

I don't know why anyone would buy with 30 percent downside or more when there is so little scope for prices to rise.

rhino, to clarify, i agree that this was not a wise purchase. it is an ugly building. terrace lovers do seem to be willing to overspend more than some.

some estate sales are now trading at a fair amount below current levels. if you can find a deal that has some of the downside baked in, it might seem plausible. different people put a different value on owning.

Everyone wants to say they found a deal. They'll be deals in a lower overall market in a year as well.

For someone whose time horizon is 10 years or more, it can make sense to buy even at this price. Right now, you can get great deals on rentals, but rents especially at that level are very responsive to market pressures. Over the long term, you just know there will be some crazy swings. I don't think the sales market has bottomed, but it is possible the rental market will by January. I love terraces, so I completely understand why someone would trade a bit of down risk to get their dream place. At least they didn't buy it for $2M!

The one thing that a lot of us forget is that certain properties are simply more desirerable than others. I often refer to them as 'the pick of the litter'. When you're searching for a primary or secondary residence this is a more tangible reality because it's your ass that will be planted in that living room. This can cause a tiny pop in price because if you can see it, other buyeres can see it and the seller once saw it. This is one of those places. Different in a good way.

falco - I sort of agree, but that "different in a good way" ought to have a limit, and this one, to me, sold for well more than that limit.

The uniqueness of this place makes it tough to comp. But take away the terrace, and I think there are tons of places around $1-1.2MM with maintenance/taxes of $2000 or less. Would you pay a little extra for the terrace? Absolutely. Would you pay an extra $400-500K plus an extra $1400/month in maintenance/taxes? Only if you're crazy, or so rich you don't care. That's my two cents.

So nb99, this place is 40% more than a non-terraced version of the same. How much extra do you pay for the rental version of the same?

Overpaying is overpaying...the right price incorporates the unique attributes of the place. If you are so rich you dont care, you dont buy 1980s-vintage condos on Lex. There are 3 new developments in spitty distance of this.

good investment in RE is about when one buys and about buying "right" when buying

Some are indifferent to what they are doing investment-wise when they buy RE. I like to sell to those people.

I think most of them are. I just hope there arent enough of them with dough to hold the market here. If there are, I may be a Steve style forever renter. I can definitely outdoe this cap rate taking less risk...yes even tax adjusted.

inonada - good question, and one I have been pondering since my rental has a terrace of a similar size to the one in this unit.

Based on my pretty anecdotal research, the premium for the terrace is between 10 and 20%. The terrace is great, but you pay the premium 12 months of the year, and you use it maybe 4-5 months. And only on nice days.

Whether a rental or buying, I'd never pay a 40% premium or close for a terrace. Unless I was too rich to care, of course...