open houses jan 4, 2009

visited 2 205 West end 17LW: Lincoln Towers, 3br/2ba $1.45 million First visit to this building. Exterior is a large depressing box. Lobby is surprisingly nice by contrast. Cigarette smoke smell from adjoining apartments permeates the carpeted hallway outside the apartment. Apartment was nice and clean with an odd mix of upgrades (marbled renovated bathroom, granite kitchen countertop)and cheap... [more]

visited 2 205 West end 17LW: Lincoln Towers, 3br/2ba $1.45 million First visit to this building. Exterior is a large depressing box. Lobby is surprisingly nice by contrast. Cigarette smoke smell from adjoining apartments permeates the carpeted hallway outside the apartment. Apartment was nice and clean with an odd mix of upgrades (marbled renovated bathroom, granite kitchen countertop)and cheap fixtures (kitchen cabinets, closets). The layout is not bad -- roomy, and the light is good. Despite presenting a bright and cheery facade, the apartment exudes the depression associated with the noveau Super8 carpets, juxtaposed on the view of junky balconies from the adjoining tower -- a reminder that the $1.45 million buys you a place in the Ritz with odors of the ghetto. Really, one could like this place in the right frame of mind, and the price is competitive with past closings of similar apartments there. Yet, the young person showing the apartment is wedded to her cell phone, perhaps dealing with matters of the heart. She acknowledges that there have been no other visitors, and is not terribly interested in us or the sale. 272 W 107 Apt 14d $1.595million 3br/2ba By contrast, this one is humming with a steady parade of prospective buyers for the 30 minutes we spent there. Young, with children in tow. Older empty nesters, with tales of their sales on Riverside drive. Bundles made, bundles lost. Two competent realtors at work, attending to each and remembering to take notes, replaying details, pointing out features of the apartment. The apartment itself is quite nice and at $1.2 or so would be hard to resist. The master bedroom wing is separated from the other two bedrooms. All rooms are of average size, ceilings lower than in the pre-war setting, but reasonable. A testament to tight modern construction with floor to ceiling windows and decent closets. Bathrooms and kitchen are very nice. Quite the upgrade from Lincoln Towers even if this is quite a bit smaller.Amenities include a roof deck and a small but nice gym. [less]