Reasons to Buy Now

tripel - this website was recommended to me by some kind folks on this board. Haven't thoroughly checked it out yet, but could be helpful to you.

insideschools.org

To answer the original question, I'd guess it is people who have kids and are busting out of their space. Kids really react negatively to moving. They have friends in the building, etc. People who have a long term view on Manhattan.

Rentals usually either have sub par common areas, fringe areas, or sub par kitchens and baths. Your neighbors aren't always the type of people you'd like to socialize with as neighbors. Plus, every year when your lease is up, you are pretty much your land lord's !@#$% if it is a strong rental market.

Our UWS home is our home. Redone as we like it. Our coop is a fabulous community. My kids' best friends live in the building. There are benefits to owning.

Because having sex in a rental doesn't "feel" the same as when you own :)

yeah. and when you put up "the swing" in a rental you have to contend with that awkward hole in the ceiling when you leave.

It does seem to me that non-parents should be careful about how they critique the real estate decisions of parents. Although I don't have kids, I wouldn't pretend to be familiar with the variables that influence those decisions. What makes sense for a parent might seem crazy to a single person.

sniper you got one of those too? :)

If you are moving to an area, e.g. you have a new job in NYC and have a family, you might want to move to WEstchester or LI or Bergen. That's why you'd buy. There are no good family rental options in these places, so you buy.

I don't understand why everyone says that they don't want to rent because rental apartments are not as nice as coop or condo units. Sure, generally speaking rental apartments aren't as nice, but so what. You don't have to live in every rental apartment, you only need to live in one. There are 3 million apartments in the city, surely you can find one magnificent rental unit you like.
My suggestion is to rent in a coop or condo building. Some owners are in financial distress and a vacant apartment could be a big burden to them making their prices even more negotiable than they already are (especially true in The District). Now is the time that renting makes sense. If you're renting keep renting for another year or two (or more). You'll be able to buy much more apartment for the same price.

Special K - can you do us a favor and call the broker on that listing you referred to? Looks fishy to me - I went to their website and couldn't find it there, either. Here's a reminder:
http://www.streeteasy.com/nyc/rental/460811-rental-clinton-new-york

tina24, i have no problems surfing around streeteasy and the net finding stuff. but i don't really want to call the broker because i have no interest in the apartment. just found it as a quick example.

as for the whole rent vs own quality of apartment discussion, i'll be the first to admit that generally speaking the housing stock of rentals has been of lower quality than that of owner-occupied units. but i believe that is changing and will continue to improve simply because a lot of owner-occupied units are starting to rent out. a lot of this is simply owners who have been unsuccessfully trying to sell for a while now just trying to rent as well. in the stuff that i've been looking at, i've seen a huge improvement in quality and price.

I've got to agree with the couple of poster's who have noted that there's a big distinction here between those with and without kids. For single people without significant accumulated stuff to move, it's easy to be mobile, and the costs often seem pretty minimal. I'm not yet at the point in life where I'm ready for a family, but I can only imagine it's way more difficult to move with kids. Kids get attached to their homes, rooms, schools, friends, etc. Parents invest money in all sorts of ways to make their children's lives better - it seems pretty reasonable to me that a parent wouldn't want to time the market at the cost of sacrificing a stable home environment for the children for a few years (after all, who knows when a bottom will come? 2010? 2011? 2012?....)

For those with kids, I don't see any reason in this market you can't find a very long-term lease indexed to some sort of rent inflation index (which will probably be going down for a while). Owners are truly desperate out there. If money is no object then buy. But also dont forget to factor in the value the kids will get from not having what's left of their inheritance tied up in a depreciating, illiquid asset.

Jazzman, I covered all those points earlier.
Noted the difference between rental buildings and condos.
Noted that you can get the better apts by renting from owners of said condos.
Noted that the very situation you and special_k are talking about - distressed owners of said desirable condos renting out in droves - is happening right now in 101 Warren.

Special K - When you say "i have no problems surfing around streeteasy and the net finding stuff" I think you are demonstrating one of the flaws of the otherwise miraculous internet - we can find ANYTHING to justify our position if we look hard enough.

The reason I suggested contacting that broker is because the listing you cite to prove your point seems like a fake listing. 101 Warren, cited above by divvie, is an example of a real apartment in a real development. I just think we ought to limit ourselves to the real whenever possible, especially when the OP seems to be facing a genuine dilemma.

"I've got to agree with the couple of poster's who have noted that there's a big distinction here between those with and without kids. For single people without significant accumulated stuff to move, it's easy to be mobile, and the costs often seem pretty minimal. I'm not yet at the point in life where I'm ready for a family, but I can only imagine it's way more difficult to move with kids. Kids get attached to their homes, rooms, schools, friends, etc. Parents invest money in all sorts of ways to make their children's lives better - it seems pretty reasonable to me that a parent wouldn't want to time the market at the cost of sacrificing a stable home environment for the children for a few years (after all, who knows when a bottom will come? 2010? 2011? 2012?....)"

All true, but for a few HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS?

We're talking about moving in a few blocks (no one said rent in a different neighborhood).

And I HATE moving as much as anyone. But, you know, I can give some dude a $10,000 tip for taking care of everything and still be way ahead.