Riverwalk Court. I love it.

ok kharby what agenda do I have by speaking my mind and opinion of what I have seen. Comments like yours is what give good brokers a bad name. My unreliable comment is based on what residents that live on RI have told me which I would belive any day over you. You are selling an apartment where the owner is trying to make a profit and sell it for more then he bought it for a month ago and I think that is a crazy price in this market so what is my agenda? When you actually start listening to potential buyers and stop with all that briker spin is when you will actually move this property. I only speak my opinion I actually said I think the quality is good dont know anything about china issues but I also know that there is a lot of low income housing on RI the public schools are bad transportation is a pain and prices are still too high and Im free to speak my mind now sell that at your next open house and leave people alone to comment

I went to an open house a few weeks ago I would walk not run from there Nina. You might as well be on Rikers Island for that price you can buy in Manhattan walk around at night and see.

CST13 thanks for your comments. Riverwalk Place and Riverwalk Court are both nice buildings. The China reference was not a "slur", but buyers in other Realted buildings have been upset about the quality of what they purchased. Overall, buyers here get a lot for their money. You will pay 2-3 times more for new construction in Manhattan. For about the same price, you can buy some old broken down junk in Manhattan with high maintenance and taxes. Before I moved here I did a lot of research and came here often. This is a great value. And regarding safety, statistically Roosevelt Island is the safest place in Manhattan. Also many new projects in the works on the island. A beautiful new park is being built on the south tip called Southpoint Park. There is also a planned renovation for Blackwell House Park. RIOC, the governing body, is also trying to secure a master lease holder for the retail space in town which in theory will re-establish a retail base in the community. More information is available on RIOC's website. Transportation is really not an issue if you avoid the morning rush. The red bus is very reliable and they are going to add monitors at the stations so riders can view the location of the bus en route. Many other things going on-all in all everything moving in a positive direction.

Nina15, enough already. What's with all your comments? I hear the bus sucks. I hear the F sucks. I think the prices are too high. Methinks the madam doth protest too much. We get it, you don't like our island, I'm curious why you're motivated to write post after post dissing RI. I live in Rivercross, love the community, send my kids to 217, and wish I could afford ANY of the Riverwalk buildings.

Yeah Nina what's up with that? No place is perfect, all have their pros and cons. Where people choose to live is THEIR choice. But you seem to go out of your way to be negative. I don't think you've spoken to anyone here. If you had, you'd be repeating all the positive things people say about RI. In fact, if I had to guess I would say you are a broker, and Roosevelt Island is competition for whatever property you are trying to sell. Probably LI City or Brooklyn.

actually no i think ri is better then lic
Tami thats my point u live in rivercross n send ur kids to the crappy school u should be able to afford one of those condos that is my point someone whose looking in manhattan is never gonna buy in ri but people that live in the community should b able to afford them

I thought will never post again. But I too, will live on RI and hope that people such as Nina15 would leave us alone. By the way, she has displayed similar behaviour under other discussion groups on StreetEasy, such as under the 455 Main St, RI discussions and her motives have been questioned by others before: “Why keep coming here, to hammer areas and buildings?” (the Powerhouse, LIC discussions).

It’s OK to wait for drops in prices. But Nina15's motives are unethical. I believe she is badmouthing individuals, groups of people, buildings, locations and services, to demoralize brokers, vendors, occupants and potential buyers, hoping to get the desired price decrease by her.

I am almost positive that Nina15 and User11 are the very same person, based on some linguistic forensics on the postings under 455 Main St. in RI discussions. I find it very unethical to use different names without disclosing the motive behind name changes or use of multiple names.

I will place the same comments under the 455 Main St. discussions.

At my open house yesterday, four serious buyers/buyer family units came to visit in 1.5 hours.

One of them blogs about Roosevelt Island, and you might want to direct your questions to him. He accepts advertising from the developer of Riverwalk:

http://rooseveltislander.blogspot.com/

On Wednesday evening in the roof community room of 415 Main Street, officials from the schools are holding a pow wow to talk about R.I. schools.

First, I live on RI and I enjoy living on RI, but I don't believe that nina15 has said anything that is out of line. Her comments are similar to those of a genuinely interested but genuinely hesitant buyer. The only thing weird about nina15 is that she seems to have already written off RI and LIC but continues to post anyway.

On the other hand, Michael77's comments seem a bit fishy. The remark about common charges is salient, but he doesn't explain why there is a difference in common charges. The vague comment about "Chinese materials" is meaningless on its own. Please give us a link to this "bad press." We would all appreciate it. Besides these two things, there's nothing that makes Riverwalk Place a superior building to Riverwalk Court. Although I'm skeptical, I concede that Riverwalk Place could be a "better building" than Riverwalk Court, but the list prices I've seen are a joke. Many individual sellers (in both buildings, actually) seem to be living in a fantasyland, considering that Related is establishing a fairly clear estimate of the market price. Give me a serious price, and I'll be happy to live at 455 Main St.

Regarding the Red Bus: If you live in one the Related buildings, you will very very rarely need to ride the red bus, so the reliability of the red bus is a non-issue in this discussion.

Tram modernization: Could affect sales a tiny bit in the very near future, but clearly has zero effect on long-term prices.

F train: This is a big issue on RI, but I find it overblown. I have no serious complaints about the morning commute on the F train, but I usually ride between 9:00 and 9:30. From what I know about earlier times, people do sometimes have to let a train go by because the car is too full, but I do not believe this is an everyday occurrence. (Someone can correct me if I an wrong.) I can't imagine that the F is any more unpleasant than the 6.

Retail: If this are important to you, do not buy in RI. Despite what Michael77 says, this will not improve much. It has improved in the past, and it will probably improve in the (far) future, but the retail will always be limited by the fact the RI is an isolated island, and therefore the customer-base is limited. On the other hand, the relative isolation of RI is one of its biggest assets; you can't have everything.

MLY - I didn't realize it was my obligation to explain fact but here goes. Regarding common charges, there are many factors. But the bottom line seems to be the number of apts in each building. Riverwalk Place has 240 and Riverwalk Court has just over 100. RP cc's are spread out over more units and thus less.

Retail: You may be right, it may not improve much but not for the reasons you state. Because of the way Roosevelt Island is structured, all retail awards are subject to the Public Accountabilities Act, established to prevent officials like former governor Pataki from giving away "friendly" leases in the name of good government. However, the process is tedious and tenuously connected to each building owner's management of the space. Most interested retailers walk away frustrated with the process. This has been going on for some time but RIOC president Steve Shane has been trying to overcome this.

The negative press Related received for the poor quality of their product was documented in the press. Links I can not provide- see Google. But when Riverwalk Court was being built I used to talk to the construction crew. And according to them. many containers of materials were sent back to China because of poor quality control. They used to laugh about it. In the end, it seems to be a very nicely constructed building, only time will tell.

This article could be helpful for would be buyers at Riverwalk.
http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20100325/REAL_ESTATE/100329885

So the same issue could happen in Riverwalk and all RI condos

BTW, the Karaoke night at Riverwalk Bar & Grill is very fun. Wednesday nights. Worth getting a sitter.

nina15 - the answer is no. Both are land leases but different set of players, terms, and intent. BPC was established for the rich, RI for the less fortunate. As long as affordable housing is preserved on RI, what is happening in BPC will not happen here.

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Why are the larger units taken off the market they are not listed does anyone know what is going on with the remaining units?

I moved into Riverwalk in the spring from Related rental. The landlease is not an issue at all with the banks. The views are great, amenities in the building are very convenient, staff is superior just as it was at my rental and my family spends a lot of time in the parks. Overall very happy and think I got a great deal.

I have friends that live in Riverwalk Court and have attended events in their party room. Beautiful spacious apartments, great party room and roof deck and most importantly quiet. Views of NYC and water are very calming and minutes from midtown. Its not for everyone, but worth a look.

Any body know why the Related stomped sales there?

Please stop advertising the building! You've made your point already... I was following what is going on and this is bizarre: first the prices shot up and then most apartments were taken off the market. Does anybody have any idea why? Do they really believe that in a few months new people will come back and buy at their new (ridiculously high) prices? The whole story is so strange. I would buy there in a second for 650/SF but not for 800 or 900/SF.

most units closed in the 600 sf range I think they 800 or 900 price is crZy and they are hoping to get that for the larger units w a manhattan view that is my guess

I moved into Riverwalk Place (#455) over 3 years ago. My parents have lived on the island for over 30 years (first we lived in 580, then we moved to 531). I am well-aware of the pluses/minuses of the island. Negatives: transportation problems (but not as bad as when I had to take the 4,5, or 6 from 86th to Bowling Green twice a day), lack of restaurants/decent food. Fresh Direct is great, and prices are good. Positives: QUIET, 30% cheaper than buying in Manhattan, and I have a great view of the skyline. I DO think that for what I paid in 3/07, the finishes in my apartment (2 bed/2 bath) could have been better. The kitchen cabinets are laminate and some of the doors are installed badly (gaps between them). Also, on the two drawers that are next to the stove, the laminate is peeling away. The granite in the kitchen should have been a slab, instead of 2 pieces glued together, and the kitchen sink should have been installed under-mount. The appliances are good, but could probably have been nicer. The closet doors are cheap and noisy. These might not be big issues for other people. The people in the building are friendly, the staff are great, and as I mentioned before, it's much cheaper than living in Manhattan.

The New York Times Real Estate Sunday Habitats Column featured yesterday (Aug. 29) the story of a Roosevelt Island (RI) family who moved to Riverwalk Court and likes the building, its location and that “people say Hi here”. A picture of Riverwalk Court is published as with a “postcard view” of the East river, the 59th St. Bridge and the Manhattan skyline.
I also moved to RI a few months ago, actually to Riverwalk Place at 455 Main St. I own a condo unit in the same building as RLQ. I agree with him/her that it’s cheaper to live on RI in a Riverwalk building than in other parts of Manhattan in a similar type of building. It’s close to the rest of Manhattan (and to Queens) and Riverwalk is only steps away from the subway. I don't take it during rush hours in the direction of the traffic, thus I don't have real problems with it.
I like the building facilities and use a lot the exercise room and sometimes the rooftop terrace. The apartment has fantastic views of Manhattan and Queens at the same time, both by day and by night. I feel very spoiled using a washer and dryer in the apartment, not in the basement or on the same floor. Like tommcguire, I find The Related Companies service superior, their staff competent, service oriented and and friendly. I know many neighbors on my floor.
I like the sports facilities, the green space and quietness on RI. And yes, people say hi here.
I hope to have one day better shopping and entertainment options on the island. For now, I continue to go to the restaurants I know in in Manhattan and Queens, and to shop for groceries and fresh produce mostly at Costco (on Vernon Blvd.) and sometimes at Gristeedes on RI. I have not used yet FreshDirect, but I'll give them a try.
In the apartment I did not find problems with the granite slab in the kitchen, possibly because there are two parallel slabs face to face rather than one joint. Like RLQ, I have a problem with a kitchen drawer. In my case, the stove is positioned against a wall and one cabinet drawer is positioned too close to the stove, getting too much high heat from it... I plan to correct this problem sometime.
Finally, I don’t understand motivations of some people who just criticize. I wrote about this in the past. More recently a contributor has stated on this discussion thread that he/she would buy “in a second” in Riverwalk Court for 650 / SF. Why post here and not approach Related with an offer of 650 / SF? According to Streeteasy, there have been 89 recorded sales in Riverwalk Court for an average of 631 /SF. Another contributor has speculated without real facts about the motivation of Related in selling or not selling properties. Why not ask them? Etc., etc.
Enjoy the New York Times article with its Riverwalk "postcard" view!

CST13, I asked them why they stoped selling. They do not answer. They say they will not re-list it in the near future. I think they want to rent them and then wait for the prices to go up...

Wow! Mayunog, I don't have any facts and I don't know their intentions. I alsodon't know people who might know. may be right, but Related has other options,also, such as: sell the apartments one by one; sell part or all the (remaining) apartments to an investor interested in a block of apartments; keep the apartments entirely unoccupied, etc. There are several blogs about life on RI, open to anyone for viewing. Related and residents have provided information from these blogs, but did not see new information in the past month. You may find RI blogs by doing a Google search, under "rooseveltisland blogspot", or under "rooseveltislander blogspot".

What happened here why has Related stopped selling the remaining units? Also there have been no resales the one that does exist is 77 days on the market. Does anyine have any info?

I hear from an owner that the unsold unit in RC are being sold to an investor who will then rent them out. The owners obviously are not happy about this

Rob do you know what percentage is sold? I thought that they were 80% sold but that could be wrong. The resales seem to be doing ok here I am only going by 2 units though. If they are being sold to investors this is not a good thing for the owners

Well OK this is all hearsay but it does come from a couple of owners ... first off in 2008 they discounted quite heavily off the list price and sold about 40% of the units but not the most expensive (ie 3 beds, views to the west, higher floors). Then they stopped the bigger discounts and nothing sold. End of 2009 they took everything off the market. About Q4 2010 they tell the residents that all remaining units are being sold to a single investor (at what price I have no idea). The proposed rentals are quite high, I gather. Like 5K for 2 bed. That's that. RI is a strange demographic mix on the whole but the condos near the subway are mostly professionals and UN staff.

Thanks Bob for your input I would be curios to find out about quality of construction or any other issues from residents that live here. How would you compare these condos with lets say Lic which seems to be cheaper both marginal areas

I see recently the sponsor put back 6G and 14G, any comments on this development?