The Vermeet at 77 seventh avenue

http://www.nytimes.com/1992/03/08/realestate/streetscapes-the-vermeer-trouble-behind-the-elegant-facade.html

Also see the January and December 2009 newsletters at http://www.thevermeer.com for maintenance info. They're planning to pay down some of their $14M mortgage when it comes due in 2014.

Historically tough board. Make sure your agent has your package in tip-top shape.

ali r.
DG Neary Realty

I have a couple of friends there and think it's a pretty nice building. I had dinner there last night. I learned that the maintenance - which seems pretty reasonable - includes electricity. Pretty nice when you consider the cost of air conditioning in the summer. The building also has a gourmet grocery store on ground level which is a great convenience. Also nice roof deck.

Prices - like most of Manhattan - look like they are down about 25% from peak levels.

so it sounds like a desirable building to live in? the maintenance seems LOW.....is there some looming trouble ahead perhaps that will increase it? im assuming if they can pay down some of their mortgage...thats a good thing?

NWT - you could take that article, change the byline to 3/8/2022, substitute 'all glass facade' for 'white brick facade', and reprint it.

They redid the white brick and it is now grey. I think it looks good - and a lot more practical.

14th Street is not my favorite street. But 7th Avenue is OK. And you have easy access to both Chelsea and The Village. The 1, 2, and 3 trains are right on the corner.

I think it's pretty desirable.

I think you'll see a wide variety of price per square foot in the building depending upon renovations and how high up. Some apartments are "original issue" and in need of renovation. Others have been nicely updated.

I'm a bear on Manhattan real estate in general. That said, I think you get pretty good value in this building.

We just closed on a one bedroom in this building at the end of December and it was probably one of the toughest board packages that we have done in quite awhile. From contract signed to closing was 6 months. Very frustrating. But our buyer was ultimately approved, but we revised the board package 3 times before submitting to managing agent then to the board. Wild ride, but our buyer is pumped with his new pad. We just took him out to dinner for steak and drinks (a lot of drinks) ;)

Why is the board so tough? Its not like this is park avenue...its 14th street and 7th avenue! Also, from a sellers perspective...having a tough board is not very attractive....ie who wants to wait 6 months to sell an apt!

In a vacuum it is very hard to categorize a board as "tough" or "easy." Take, for example a hypothetical board that rejects a candidate within a week of receiving a package because it finds the candidate falls just below the board's requirements in terms of financial reserves. Then consider another board that has the same standards but instead of rejecting the candidate communicates its concerns to the applicant; this second board then engages in a back and forth with the candidate about what the candidate could do to tip the scales in his favor and eventually the candidate is able to move things around a bit, borrow a little from mom and dad, get a co-signer, etc., and the board approves him; and let's say this process took some months to complete. Which board is "tough" here? Simply taking a long time is not a factor that can be considered in isolation. By itself it means nothing.

I thought the board was fairly transparent about their financial requirements so i don't really understand, with the exception of handing in an incomplete package, how they can be "tougher" than any other board. Why did the board pkg have to be revised so many times?

villager: some boards are indeed "tougher" than others. Let's set aside objective requirements of the building for a moment (e.g., 40% down), which is just what any buyer has to meet--such requirements don't make for a tough board, but rather make it a building with added barriers to entry. A tough board, though, is often a board that digs deeper into an applicant's package than others might. If 3 bank statements show a balance that varies by more than x% between months, a tough board may ask for additional statements going back 6-12 months and an explanation of the variations. If a candidates financials indicate some large deposits, notwithstanding the candidate's explanations the board may ask for proof of the source of those funds to remove any doubt they were fraudulent transfers made in attempt to make the candidate look more solvent than he really is. If any court actions are mentioned that once named the candidate, a tough board may ask for certificates of disposition. They may request additional information about employment, more references, permission to run criminal background checks...anything. Some boards are more inquisitive than others and these are "tough" boards.

Thanks for the clarification, Kyle. I guess I never considered how fortunate i have been to have purchased in coops with "not so tough" boards!