A 5th Floor Walkup Is '4 Short Flights Up'???

do you often carry a piano around with you?

those of us who live in ny know that not all walk ups are created equally. communicating this feel is important for our clients (the owners). potential tenants or purchasers can judge for themselves. of course if you aren't healthy than perhaps an issue.

This unit seems to be priced according to the number of flights above the first floor. Bank appraisers deduct 5K in value for each flight above the first floor-- so at 459K sounds like a good price.

>do you often carry a piano around with you?

Agree.

hsg9000,
It's just like any other "advertising." Tiny 7x7 bedroom = "cozy." Old/neglected apartment = "original details." It's sales-speak.

To be honest, I hardly even read descriptions any more. Some are just so desperate it's embarrassing. I look at the numbers, the map, the floorplan. If all those pass, then the photos.

(and no, pianos aren't usually carried up stairs, but carrying 4 bags of groceries a few times a week DOES get to be a pain in the ass).

So let's see. "...Bank appraisers deduct 5K in value for each flight above the first floor..."

So that's four flights x $5,000 = $20,000 deduction.

Let's say you own the place seven years. That's (about) $2,857/year. That's about $7.80/day. Assuming you go in/out on average 2x/day, that's a little under $1.00 you save every time you walk up one single flight of stairs (or $4.00 you save every time you walk up to your unit).....

Sonya_D
about 1 hour ago
Posts: 41
Member since: Jan 2013
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hsg9000,
It's just like any other "advertising." Tiny 7x7 bedroom = "cozy." Old/neglected apartment = "original details." It's sales-speak.

To be honest, I hardly even read descriptions any more. Some are just so desperate it's embarrassing. I look at the numbers, the map, the floorplan. If all those pass, then the photos.

(and no, pianos aren't usually carried up stairs, but carrying 4 bags of groceries a few times a week DOES get to be a pain in the ass).

when i lived in a walk-up i had everything delivered. again, for someone who actually lives here, this is understood.

>(and no, pianos aren't usually carried up stairs, but carrying 4 bags of groceries a few times a week DOES get to be a pain in the ass).

Wow, only 12 bags of groceries a week for all of the people who live on your 550sf apartment. Are you sure everyone is fed sufficiently?

also, and of course most idiot apartment hunters don't know this but SOME buildings count the lobby level as the 1st floor, some don't. So not all fifth floor walk ups are actually fifth floor walk ups.

But sonya and OP would prefer to bitch about it regardless.

greensdale-
how did you get 12? I said "a few." Unless, of course, you're making assumptions...
And who says it needs to be a 550sqft apt? Surely, there are 4-flight walkups that are more than 550sqft. What do they have in common? They are all four flights of stairs.
Notice that my comment above did not reference the OP's listing in any way.

and wow, another gem from little jimmy boy. Re-read the title of this thread, genius. After that, let's hear your data on this: "most idiot apartment hunters don't know this but SOME buildings count the lobby level as the 1st floor, some don't." OK, come on. You need 51% or more of apartment hunters in order for your statement to BEGIN to be true.

(oh, and then there's this: "So not all fifth floor walk ups are actually fifth floor walk ups." Right. And if you read the OP, he's talking about 4 flights.) Hmmm, is this why people don't respond to your listings??

I'd characterize this as a euphemism rather than hype. It's a nice way of disclosing that the place is a fifth-floor walkup.

And, fairness, the entry of this apartment is right at ground level. A lot of Chelsea buildings have English basements, meaning that the fifth floor is actually five flights (one exterior and four interior) up.

Buildings renovated in the post-war era are even trickier. Most on my block are legally three stories, but between basements, cellars, mezzanines, and bulkheads, some have habitable space on seven stories.

And with a front stoop, it's five flights to the fifth floor. Been there, done it. Luckily I was in my early 20's and didn't plotz on my way up.

Brownstones, whether there is a stairway outside / front stoop, or not, the main entry floor is the first floor. So 5th floor will be 4 flights up, plus any stoop or not.
Interestingly "a few" * 4 = ~12.

A guy walks into a bar. The bartender asks what he wants to drink and he replies a beer. He hears something and turns around and sees a little 12 inch pianist.

The guy asked the bartender where he got the 12 inch pianist. The bartender replies "I got from my genie" and hands him his beer. The guy says can I borrow that genie and the bartender says sure.

So the guy goes into the bathroom and wishes for a million bucks. He comes out of the bathroom with ducks flying everywhere. The bartender asks what did you wish for.The guy replies "I wished for a million bucks but instead I got a million ducks." The bartender says,"Well do you think I wished for a 12 INCH PIANIST!!!

I've looked at plenty of Chelsea apartments where the main entrance is two steps below street level. That level is called "B" or "G," and the fifth floor is five flights up. I live in a building where you need to walk up a full exterior staircase (minus perhaps one step) to get to the "first" floor. Same thing applies.

I'm skeptical when I see a fourth-floor walkup in Chelsea because, in a lot of cases, apartment numbers that begin with "4" really mean four flights of stairs in some fashion.

In this building, it looks from the pictures that the first floor is at ground level. Given that fifth floor walk-ups are a very hard sell, I don't think it's crazy to clarify that this apartment is four flights up, v. four and a half or five, if that's what the listing agent is trying to do. A label of "5B" v. "4B" puts this at an apartment at a distinct disadvantage, but in reality, the walk-up may be the same number of steps.

lad,
I really don't care how it's called. Its a walkup, and it's a pain. There's a reason why such units take a price hit. (and I think the OP's issue was with the word "short" and it's presentation in general -- which makes it seem like, whether it's 4 or 5, is nothing at all).
@falcogold1: classic!
greensdale,
>>"Interestingly "a few" * 4 = ~12."
Prove it.

Just for the record, I wasn't kvetching about walking up multiple flights of stairs. I run marathons. Five floors are easy. When I worked on the 28th floor, I often walked up from the lobby. Same thing for when I lived on the tenth floor. I regularly walked up and down the steps from the entrance to my front door.

I was kvetching about "short flights." It's absurd. It's a fifth-floor walk-up. No amount of hype about "short flights" will disguise that fact.

If a real estate agent is trying to pull the wool over someone's eyes with "short flights" then one might wonder what else he or she was gilding.

And falcogold1, thanks for your story. It was great. Sonya, I think if you had an upright or a baby grand, it would have to be carried up the steps in that building. Removing a window to hoist it up outside would be impractical.

:)
hgs, yep, I think we're on the same page.