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Living on 500k article, what is Barbara Corcoran talking about?

Started by 407PAS
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1289
Member since: Sep 2008
Discussion about
"Barbara Corcoran, a real estate executive, said that most well-to-do families take at least two vacations a year, a winter trip to the sun and a spring trip to the ski slopes. Total minimum cost: $16,000. A modest three-bedroom apartment, she said, which was purchased for $1.5 million, not the top of the market at all, carries a monthly mortgage of about $8,000 and a co-op maintenance fee of... [more]
Response by 407PAS
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1289
Member since: Sep 2008

From the top of the article:

"Mortgage: $96,000 a year.
Co-op maintenance fee: $96,000 a year."

I think the reporter messed up the numbers twice. Oh well, it is an article from the Style section, what can you expect. Those poor reach people, though, they may have to learn to live on less. They've got lots of options, unlike people with no health insurance or jobs.

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Response by 407PAS
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1289
Member since: Sep 2008

sorry, I meant poor rich people.... I have to get another cup of coffee.

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Response by columbiacounty
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 12708
Member since: Jan 2009

not an expert by any means but the numbers are really crazy. apt for $1.5 million with a $1.2 million interest only 5 to 7 yr arm maybe tops 6% i.e. $72 K per yr less 40% tax deduction. net maintainance more likely $2,500 per month after tax. plus...who has a $4 million summer house but a lousy $1.5 million apartment? this just throws gas on the fire for no good reason. hope the times is doing a better job reporting on the stimulus and job losses!

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Response by patient09
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1571
Member since: Nov 2008

They are trying for the trifecta. Real estate + journalism + analytics = NY Times garbage...and end up on the third rail.

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Response by 407PAS
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1289
Member since: Sep 2008

Yeah, that article is a complete mess and does not make sense. I guess it is a composite person, one person with a $4 million dollar beach house, somebody else with $8000 maintenance, and a third person with a $1.5 million dollar apartment. Who knows.

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Response by angler7
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 193
Member since: Oct 2007

I can't believe the 3-bdrm was for $1.5M, based on the lifestyle being profiled. Must have been around $3.5M and in a co-op that requires at least 50% down.

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Response by hypnotik
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 40
Member since: Jan 2009

oh boo hoo, cry me a river please

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Response by 407PAS
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1289
Member since: Sep 2008

the horror, the horror...

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Response by scoots
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 327
Member since: Jan 2009

Articles like this are why the rest of the world hates New York. Its irresponsible journalism written by desperate for attention shitty reporters.

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Response by ca12ny
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 26
Member since: May 2008

so true scoots, I quit reading the Corcoran Times long ago because of their hyperbolic bull*** articles

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Response by wishhouse
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 417
Member since: Jan 2008

That article was all over the place. It made no sense.

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Response by nyc10022
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 9868
Member since: Aug 2008

Yes, because Barbara Corcoran has always been a source of good advice.

She's the genius who managed to buy in Brooklyn in the one neighborhood that didn't go up...

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Response by antirealestateagent
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 4
Member since: Feb 2009

dudes, whatever the expenses are, you're buying a "non-moving asset" and put yourself in debt with a mortgage & you are stuck to a typical uneventful life. How come noone realizes that yet?

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Response by antirealestateagent
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 4
Member since: Feb 2009

live within your means people!

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Response by manhattanfox
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1275
Member since: Sep 2007

I spent $3.5K maint on a $3 million apartment - $8K a month maint. is more for a $10 million apartment -- not $1.5 million apartment.math is off

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Response by falcogold1
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 4159
Member since: Sep 2008

Money, success, and fame can often go to ones head. This phenomena can, in some cases, force some or all of ones brain to relocate to ones ass. Barbara has truly accomplished the amazing. Thats not to say that as of today...she is sitting on her brain. That why it sounds like bullshit. Great people say some pretty stupid shi..............................

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Response by jojo10
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 60
Member since: Dec 2008

Columbiacounty, don't forget that one can only deduct the interest on the first $1MM of a mortgage. The interest on the extra $200,000 in your example isn't deductable.

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Response by columbiacounty
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 12708
Member since: Jan 2009

so..200K over the limit at 6% is $12 K at 40% = $4,800 that easily brings it up to $96K! what is your point?

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Response by jojo10
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 60
Member since: Dec 2008

My point was nothing more than clarifying what can be deducted and wasn't a comment on the figures in the NYT article (which I agree were idiotic).

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Response by 407PAS
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1289
Member since: Sep 2008

The sad thing is that this stupid article is now #3 on the most popular articles and it is not an article that you can append a comment to. So, people are going to thing all that nonsense is somehow true.

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Response by 407PAS
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1289
Member since: Sep 2008

"dudes, whatever the expenses are, you're buying a "non-moving asset" and put yourself in debt with a mortgage & you are stuck to a typical uneventful life. How come noone realizes that yet?"

Duder, true, but moving assets, cars, are a terrible investment and depreciate fast. I don't own one of those moving assets. Everybody has to live somewhere. Renting is not necessarily better than owning, although many will argue this point, forever.

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Response by 407PAS
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1289
Member since: Sep 2008

Now that stupid article is #1 on the Times list of most popular articles. I think it is time we all wrote a letter to the Times, telling them about the ridiculous nature of that article. Are they that clueless over there?

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Response by UESBandit
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 328
Member since: Jan 2009

Yes, they are clueless (and stupid) over there. The NYTimes is probably the most biased, waste of a newspaper in the country. The things they report in their "tecnology" section tend to be 2 years old, and their front page "headlines" tend to be baseless hate mongering. Really a shame too, since it used to be a very influential paper.

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Response by 407PAS
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1289
Member since: Sep 2008

Oh goodness, now this article has hit New York Magazine:

" Barbara Corcoran’s Children Came at a Price Real-estate mogul Barbara Corcoran airs some startling figures in today's Times: the price of her... "

I can't reach the article at the moment. Somebody should stop this thing, it is going viral.

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Response by uwsmom
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1945
Member since: Dec 2008

Is this what you were referring to: http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2009/02/barbara_corcoran_reveals_the_p.html?mid=streeteasy

Sad.

BTW - I LOVE the username "Fluffernutter"! Wish I thought of it!

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Response by 407PAS
almost 17 years ago
Posts: 1289
Member since: Sep 2008

Yeah, thanks for posting the link. I finally got to the article. I don't know if that article in New York Mag is referring to the same article in this thread. I must say that this real estate business is very profitable for Barbara Corcoran. Maybe one of these days the buyers and sellers will join forces to lower their transaction costs. It seems doubtful though, but a downturn is the best time to make such a change.

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