Sale at 37 West 94th Street

Looks move in ready to me, can't imagine spending 7 million and having to do much work. Nice kitchen and baths, lots of restored original woodwork, comfortable backyard (don't know why you would need a roof deck).

As to the price, I'm sure you can find that out pretty quickly by doing a search of comparables.

RealEstateNY - interesting perspective. I guess we just look at things differently regarding the condition/work required.

I think that comparables are in the eye of the beholder.

I think you will find the problem is that once you think you will have to do major work it doesn't make much difference if the place is barely below what you would find acceptable or a wreck. Once you're talking about adding floors, redoing all the kitchens, baths, electrical, plumbing, etc. does it matter what condition all the stuff you are ripping out is? It's not clear the last time the plumbing and electrical were done, and in a 100+ year old house that can always be an issue. Also I don't know what the current reputation is but West 94th and 95th streets were long know as having a lot of SROs, crime, etc. which could affect value.

It's interesting that this house doesn't seem to have increased much in value from 2004 even though the market has gone up tremendously: you might want to try and figure out why that is.

Sq footage has certainly grown from 3700.

Good thoughts. I don't see myself buying this house (too much work required on the house (nice pictures but it looks like it needs a gut renovation to me), and while the block is close to the park, from google images it looks like a lot of the houses need a lot of work so I would think it will be a construction zone). Just interested in thoughts on the market because it helps me think through other properties to compare/contrast. This board always has an interesting perspective. It helps me test my view against the views of others.

TeamM, Are you estimating real sq footage ex basement as a starter?

300 - good question. I am looking at things a bit differently, which is to look at the actual usable square footage, which gives credit to portions of a basement, but excludes things like hallways and staircases. Things like backyards/terraces/roof decks are bonuses but tough to compare among properties (particularly when contrasting townhouses v. apartments with nice shared spaces). I subtract if there aren't sufficient closets/storage (or if they are not in good locations) because I figure that the square footage will change in a renovation or because you will need wardrobes.

30 - regarding the market movement since 2004, you raise an interesting point. I think that this particular house may have sold quite a bit above market in the past, and so many of the properties have been renovated while this one has not. It also looks like this block hasn't caught up generally in terms of folks updating properties. It may be because it doesn't have as many of the large townhouses in the 70s and 80s that can be converted into the 6500 sq foot singe family houses.

Regardless, I think it is interesting to get the board's view on these types of properties.

Re: Basement so much depends on if there is legal egress such as large window or door. Had niece/nephew who made a killing selling there condo in Park Slope. When they bought it they bought it at basement pricess (about 25 - 30% of their other floor. Because there was a full size door to the backyard they sold it like is was basically the same price/sf as the ground floor.