Sale at 49 East 21st Street #5C

Hmmm. Some of the new luxury conversions in that area (Union Sq./PAS) have done reasonably well selling larger units after the crash, and my guess is that this unit, too, shouldn't be too hard to sell.

The pricing seems reasonable relative to 4D (smaller by 180 SF and a floor lower--offerd at the same price). But perhaps $1.995M might be slightly pushing it, though, given the lack of view/light and considering that it is a mid-block bldg. on a rather dingy street...and it isn't an amenity-rich bldg. One can do better at that price range, in my opinion.

While I personally don't love the area, many, especially foreign and out-of-town buyers, seem to find it appealing. So, again, it shouldn't be too hard to sell, in my opinion.

I pretty much agree with your thoughts spot on. For my $, this would be a $1.6MM place in a competitive market given all you pointed out above. If this were 2009/early 2010, I'd put it sub $1.5mm. At this $/Sq.Ft., and monthlies, I'd expect some amenities, or at least a view of some sort...

Sadly, this will probably sell just around ask...

NYC10007-
"shortly before the peak of the market in Manhattan"

When specifically are you talking about? And what do you attribute this to?

Daniel178 asked NYC10007
>When specifically are you talking about? And what do you attribute this to?

The last transaction on this unit took place in 2006--which was shortly before the 2007 peak. While I am not sure what "this" refers to in your second question, if you are asking about the unit having not been on the market for 6 to 7 years, well, I guess the current owner was not a flipper! There have been multiple sales in the bldg., so there's nothing wrong w/ the bldg.

NYC10007, I, too, would find $1.6M to be a comfortable lower range for this unit. $1.5M would perhaps be a bargain, in my opinion, given the comps in the area, and I won't be surprised if somebody bought it for $1.8M or even $1.9M... I think this unit is in a peculiar market segment, so it's a bit hard to predict.

It's a nice unit in a nice bldg., in an area many w/ money would find sufficiently attractive. I hope the seller will find the right buyer!

nyc212,
I was actually referring to the market peak in Manhattan that is supposed to be upcoming. My question, essentially was, when was this going to start and why?

Oh... I hardly think we will be peaking out soon, at all! Although doomsayers STILL deny it by citing some isolated "price chopper" cases in Sutton Place or some land-lease bldg., I just know that the prices in the newer construction/conversion 1BR/2BR market segment have consistently been creeping up for the last couple of years in the desirable areas in Manhattan...

Just to clarify, I think NYC10007 was referring to 2007 in his/her original post when s/he alluded to the last sale shortly before the peak.

Ah! Well, thank you for the clarification then :-)

Daniel178, I was referring to the 2007 peak, certainly not predicting anything going forward. 2006 purchase by the current owner was just before the market peaked...hence why I think the timing of this sale will be very telling about where this segment of the market stands. There is a lot of demand for luxury condos in this $2 million range, but at that dollar amount, buyers are obviously very discriminating. At the end of the day, it comes down to supply and demand, and I'm curious to see how the limited high-quality supply will affect the curve on units like this.

FWIW, I think this is really good timing for the owner to put their unit on the market...

thanks for elaborating, NYC10007 :)

I went to an open house here a couple years ago when it was priced below $1.8mm. I actually really liked the unit, layout, room sizes, just the lack of view/light was a huge turn-off. I have seen a street-facing unit (D, I think) and it is literally night and day. For the same money, I would rather take the D (even with 200 less sf), but at $1.995 ml, I would be surprised if either got close to asking for the aforementioned reasons.

I stand corrected. 5C sold for $2.16 million, all cash, after multiple above-ask offers.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/02/realestate/new-york-city-is-a-sellers-market-so-every-minute-counts.html?from=homepage