Open House Reports 8/4/08

Visited two showings this evening. All quiet on the (Upper) Western front. 65 Central Par West #3D $2,585,000 + 2% flip by buyer; mt. $2728 Coop, 2 beds 2 baths; No sq.ft. stated Traffic: I was the fourth visitor, near the end of the open house. On paper, the attraction of this listing is direct park views from the living room and bedrooms, In person, the views are a bit of a letdown: mostly,... [more]

Visited two showings this evening. All quiet on the (Upper) Western front. 65 Central Par West #3D ↓ $2,585,000 + 2% flip by buyer; mt. $2728 Coop, 2 beds 2 baths; No sq.ft. stated Traffic: I was the fourth visitor, near the end of the open house. On paper, the attraction of this listing is direct park views from the living room and bedrooms, In person, the views are a bit of a letdown: mostly, traffic on CPW and the 66th Street transverse and a peek into the parking lot of Tavern on the Green. Still, as parking lots go, it's a nice one The lights must be pretty at night. The decor and fixtures are Vegas French Provincial from the early 70s. That's easy to fix. While you're ripping out the mirrors and carpeting, you may want to reconfigure some walls too: the floorplan converts nicely to 3BR if you're willing to sacrifice the formal dining room. I think the entertaining space would still be quite ample. A closet or two might have to go in order to open the place up properly, along with some built-ins. Oddly, the second bathroom has no toilet. The waste line is accessible, so that's an easy problem to solve. In short, bring your imagination and your architect. But don't let your imagination get the better of you. The building is nothing special, and the third floor is the third floor. In the end, your $3MM+ total investment may leave you wondering why you paid up for a view that is Central Park in name only. The big combination unit next door was on the market for over a year. It finally sold for 25% below the original ask - and that was at the top of the market. For the right price, #3D would be interesting. I just don't think that price is $2.6MM. Maybe six months ago - in fact, one deal on this apartment has fallen through - but not now. ************ 302 West 86th Street #11A ↓ $1,650,000; mt. $2098 Coop, 2 beds 2 baths + maids; No sq.ft. stated Traffic: I was the third visitor, at the end of the open house. Lippman and Moore clearly didn't expect many customers; they let a junior associate cover this one. This is a pretty Edwardian 5 in estate condition with high ceilings and large rooms. The living room and master BR (formerly the DR) face 86th Street. Although it's a northern exposure, the light seems pretty good. The secondary rooms will soon be engulfed by the shadow of 535 WEA. I guess if you're going to look at a wall, it might well be a $20MM wall. There's a lot of nice detail here, including a gas fireplace with a handsome mantle which is the first thing visitorss will see as they enter. Impressive. The kitchen is mostly a wreck. It does some nice old oak cabinets; unfortunately, they hang from a wall that should probably be taken down to open the kitchen to the cramped dining area, but it would probably be feasible to move the oak cabinets and discard the peeling 1970s formica stuff on the opposite wall. In lieu of closets, each bedroom has a wall of floor-to ceiling built-ins that look too shallow for a suit or dress. I'm not sure what the best solution there would be. Once the work is done, the buyers will have a $2MM home next to a construction site. Ultimately, a location next door to the priciest building above West 79th will be a great thing (aside from the loss of light at the rear of the apartment). For the next two years or so, it will be a nightmare. [less]