building at 118 East 60th Street

It shouldn't be. One of the main issues is two brokers that seem to be "go - to" in the building who consistently underlist and undermarket. On the high floors there are really great open city views.

The maintenance is also a little bit - though not terribly - high, but a higher % is TD. Building is run very well - new board president this year, too.

I agree with Star76. Sellers would be better served to find different brokers and forget past history of sales in the building. Would be best served to hire an appraiser to do real neighborhood comparables.

Is't this building on one of the busiest streets in Manhattan, because of Queensborough bridge? That alone (extra noise, extra polution) should merit a huge discount. The asking prices are higher than you can now get in Upper West Side coops, in quiet green areas of Lincoln Center area.

I'd pass.

The bridge traffic dissipates at 1st and 2nd, so not much left going westbound by the time you get to Lexington and Park. Not what you'd call a quiet street, but then anybody looking to live in that neighborhood wouldn't care. The people I know who live there spend a lot of time elsewhere, and so when in NY like being in the middle of town.

I agree with NWT. Traffic is no problem on 60th Street between Lexington & Park. The good news is that there always seem to be plenty of taxis.

Honestly, I think Star76 is right. A few brokers have created bad comparables and someone's going to bite the bullet and put his/her apartment on the market for the "right price" after getting an appraisal of comparables in the neighborhood and breaking through the barrier of prior sales in this building. I sense that there's value here that needs to be unlocked.

Fact of the matter is that there are about 200 apartments in the building. Most are small. The ones on the lower floors facing south don't have much light and air but when you get up high, looking south and west (above the 30th floor) there is plenty of light and air to the east (H line) not (G line). I really don't know the story on the apartments that face north. I would presume that they have great views from the upper floors including Central Park and the George Washington Bridge.

But to answer your question, the apartments in this building seem to be undervalued and, as of this writing, I haven't found a good reason for this. That said, we only closed a few weeks ago and have been working with our designer/architect to do a little work. Staff seems helpful and rather nice.

DCA: The apartments on the north side of the building, though smaller (2 one-bedroom lines, a junior-4 and a studio) have very nice, open, and unobstructed views that are far better than the south side less high up. There is nothing mid block except for Hunter all the way up. Above the 20th floor or so, you can see the GWB and the Dakota. Above the 25th or so you can see a lot of park.

The traffic really isn't an issue, and to your point - there is *never* a problem getting cabs.

If you met the two brokers that are usually involved, you'd understand. They have no idea what they are doing, and everyone seems to be afraid to step out.

Now that we have done a little construction and moved furniture in, I can say that building super is a very good guy. Knowledgable and helpful. Back of the house staff too. Same with doormen and hall men.

dca1125: since you brought and did the work to update your unit, would you recommend your contractor to your friends? And what tips do you have for others who are thinking of under taking a project like this?

Yes, I would recommend the contractor who did this work for us. You can reach me by e-mail at doug@d2anderson.com.

Ok.......so it's a year later and I have this to report.

First..........what we saw was what we got. Read earlier comments on the building and the street.

As for the apartments, you have to evaluate them one by one. In other words, the apartments on the North Side of the building have nothing to do with the apartments on the South Side. As Star76 points out, those on the North Side have wonderful views once you get over the 10th or so floor.....but they are smaller.....and I notice that someone has acquired 2 and is gutting them. I wouldn't be surprised if this becomes a trend as they are undervalued.

There are 2 lines of 1,500ish sq. ft. apartments on the South Side. Our apartment, 31h, has fabulous cityscape views to the West from the bedrooms and kitchen. To the South, we have a fabulous cityscape views that includes a peak at the Chrysler Building.......really quite terrific. This is not the case on lower floors. Indeed, those of us who live from 30 up have apartments that are completely out of context with what has happened.

The problem with the "g line" which is the flip of ours and a click smaller, is that an office building was built right up against it and there are no views at all to the East. The only view is to the South from the Living Room and Dining Room and that view is limited on the lower floors.

The point is that there is value here in specific apartments............especially as the brokers who have dominated this building don't seem to get it.

There is no flip tax, the hallways could use freshening up but staff is rather nice and the building is well run. And, a year later, the building super is a very good guy.

dca: Why keep posting, it sounds like you're having post-purchase dissonance.

If you're happy with your purchase enjoy it, no one on this forum is going to tell you your purchase was a great decision and investment, only you can do that.

The dissonance is between what dca1125 writes and RealEstateNY's reaction.

Four posts in 14 months, all useful and informative, with no fishing for reassurance and no axe-grinding, makes dca1125 an ideal poster. We could use more like him.

The building is undervalued , and in spite of heavy traffic on East 60 Street , is priced including that negative .
The staff is helpful and hard-working and it is a good building to live in

RealEstateNY must have his/her own agenda. Here's mine. I'm the kind of guy who posts in Zagat Online after eating out. I send occasional e-mail to a large group of friends after seeing a movie that's either terrific or foul..........same with Broadway & Off-Broadway Theater. And so, it's perfectly in keeping with my own gestalt to keep posting.

When we were seeking to buy an apartment in NY. We had lived in a large apartment at 1125 Park Avenue for 30+ years which we sold because we didn't use it much and the market was frothy. We had lived in a 2 bedroom apartment at the Helmseley Carlton House Hotel for 5 summers and my wife was "ready".

When she found this building, I had my doubts. We were used to living in a different kind of building. Frankly, the entire cost scale seemed low and that concerned me...........was there something going on here that I was missing. I looked at these message boards and looked for help. I have a feeling that one of the posters who was helping me was the woman who was selling us her apartment. Funny.

And then we lucked into a terrific contractor for a small job. He happened to be the guy who did the original job. We thought he was great and I wanted to help him.

Indeed, he used us as a reference and he got a job. Recently, someone who saw my post on this blog wrote to me to get a reference.

So, I think it's actually a good idea to keep posting. In the world of Twitter......which I think is nuts.........my posts are infrequent and I'm glad NWT thinks they are both useful and informative. And I agree, it would be terrific if more who are in residence wrote occasionally.

the apartments are not less expensive than others in the neighborhood. They are priced at the market so they sell. Others that are priced higher in the neighborhood sit there for months only to drop to market price when and if they the owner finally wants to sell

Dcall25, Are you comfortable recommending your contractor, I am looking for a contractor familiar with the building.

If anyone else has a recommendation (someone they actually used), I'd appreciate it.

Thank you for your help.

I would be glad to discuss with you.
His name is Pano Seretti and he's terrific.

doug@d2anderson.com

Gerardo Farjardo,

gfarjardo@optonline.net

Has done great work in the building

HI, I see that there are two apartments for rent. Does anyone knows what are the subletting rules?
Thank you

thank you dcall25 and star76

@ecre: 2 years with 1 year extension

@eri - gerardo changed his email address. Gerardo Fajardo

Gerardo Fajardo

gconstruction2@ymail.com

@dca1125 Thank you, your posts have been very helpful, I viewed an apartment in here recently on a higher floor, south facing, and was impressed with the potential and the price. Your comments allayed some of my concerns as to why it is such a good price, so thank you.

Any info on the pet policy?

All of this back and forth about the street being busy, etc. And in the meantime the available units are almost all sold. There are only 3 on the market now! Clearly the location is more of a benefit than a negative. The building has well laid out apartments with very useable space and modern reliable heating/cooling, plumbing, etc. The lobby is beautiful with a volume that is hard to find in buildings in this area.
I have owned a unit here for about five years (yes that makes me biased) and I am very impressed with the building management and the board. BTW, I did a complete renovation which took a long time but was never delayed by the board in any way (most of the delays were due to my own learning curve regarding apartment construction). My approvals or denials (my contractor installed a food disposal in the kitchen sink -not allowed) were all very timely and consistent. The only problems I had were very minimal and always fair.
The building staff is so nice to my children that I'm actually getting worried that they may come to expect that treatment everywhere (could that possibly be a negative?).
Anyone considering this building should stop some people walking in and out and ask them about it. I think people are, for the most part, happy with the building, its location and their neighbors. Once common theme you will hear is that the location is ridiculously convenient to the park, 5th ave, Midtown Madison, etc..
As for the pet policy (no pets), I would love to see it change, but I don't see that ever happening and it's a much quieter, cleaner place as a result.

nycatty35: it's a "no pets buildings", per the house rules, despite the fact that some brokers say 'No dogs', implying that cats are permitted.

If you have a cat, or are thinking of adopting one, do not purchase in an "implied" cats allowed or "don't ask don't tell" building. There are plenty of cat friendly options in New York and you will never have to face a heartbreaking situation.

Finally, we are 100 yards from the best subway station in New York City. We go to the theater at night and find that it takes 15 minutes from the front door of the building to pretty much any broadway theater and the trains are generally empty.

I see that the

G line is 1200sf
H line is 1300sf
EF line is 1500sf
BC line is 1800sf

some apartment sellers are fudging their layouts !?!?!?!

Those are the apartments to buy , their views and SF and very reasonable for this neighborhood

.

Regarding our building contractor..........it's been a few years since we used him and have recommended him to 3 or 4 people who have used him. I have never heard a bad word from anyone. Indeed, I bump into his people on occasion and everyone seems happy. So if you need a recommendation, send me an e-mail doug@d2anderson.com. Doug Anderson. Apt 31h

Another reason for low pricing - The board is incredibly strict and the rejection rate is similar to that of an ivy league university. Take a look at most of the units for sale today such as 16E. This one has entered into contract 4 times in the past year, and it never sold due to four rejections. Good luck if you ever want to sell

Buyers Beware. I was recently rejected by this board. I am an ALL-CASH buyer, with sterling credit, abundant liquidity (cash and marketable securities sufficient to pay for more than a quarter century’s worth of maintenance (!), and no, I am not talking about my 401(k) investments; this is unrestricted, cold, hard cash), a net worth many times the value of the apartment, unblemished employment record (gainfully employed and well-known and respected in the same industry for over two decades, working for a major US company), and excellent references. Oh, and in case you are wondering, I am white. Go figure. No idea what these people are looking for. I really liked the apartment and I would have been a nice, quiet neighbor but in hindsight it’s probably better that I didn’t get in because selling in this building is obviously a nightmare. My attorney had warned me about the many rejections he noticed in the minutes of the board meetings but given my circumstances/credentials, he didn’t think I would have any problems. He would be wrong. Palace coup, anyone?

Kind of surprised by the rejections. The building is nothing special from the outside, 50 years old and looks dated to me. The particular block is congested with traffic from the bridge and Bloomingdales, not very residential and surrounded by commercial buildings, many of which block views. The apartment layouts are nice buy nothing you can't find on the UES or even Midtown closer to Sutton Place on much less congested blocks. Go know.

AMA1,

I hear they do not accept anyone with Debt or school loans. Do you have any debt at all. There is a broker who gets many listings in the building who I hear is not good at all.

8 years ago I posted the following and it's true to this day. One more time, we have been asked by several people if we liked the building contractor we used and our answer has been yes. We have been happy to introduce folks with work to do to him and the outcome has always been positive.........not always the case with such "fix ups". Therefore, several years later, we are happy to make the introduction if you would like. These people have done a lot of work in the building over many years and, therefore, know what can be done and what cannot....in all senses of that thought.

The owners of the firm have broken up their partnership but Edi Plaka, he who has always been there for us and comes immediately when we have something to fix, started his own firm some months ago, is just great. His e-address is htechny@aol.com. His cell phone number is 646-348-0237.

Here's what I don't understand. There are 20 apartments for sale in the building (10%) and 10 are "in contract". WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE BOARD

I'm sure the Coop attorney is telling them that they can do WTF they want to.

Buyer
Buyer's broker
Seller
Seller's broker
Managing Agent
Board

Who's at fault on a rejection ?

One poster asserts , alleges, it's the Board

Is it ?

or is it a terrible application ?

.