Articles on NYC Condos

Home Buyers Offered Test-Runs in NYC Condos

Many Manhattan condos now offer home buyers a chance to test-drive an apartmentWhen it comes to taking to finally taking the plunge and making a life-changing purchase, feeling apprehensive is natural. When it comes to buying a condo, potential residents want to feel that their massive investment will pay off in every possible way: all amenities should be present and useful, all rooms must live up to the standard in the listing, and the neighborhood should live up to expectations. While being truly certain about these conditions is normally a difficult task, a recent trend of “test-driving” apartments in NYC has made the decision of whether or not an apartment is suitable much more tenable. That’s right, several condominiums now allow a test rental of an apartment before making the decision to buy.

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New Condo Construction Makes a Comeback

New York City is witnessing a revival in the condo marketBefore Lehman Brothers collapsed and caused the housing market to begin its downward spiral in 2008, New York City was the desired destination for several luxury condo projects in Manhattan, Brooklyn and the Bronx. There were a number of high-rises expected to add to the city’s already impressive skyline, but the recession cast an awful pall over the condo sector, and several of these planned projects were thrown into oblivion. But with the city now making a slow but sure economic recovery, developers are expecting to see a “development renaissance,” with about 1,500 new condominiums are expected to rise in the next few years in the area below 96th Street in Manhattan.

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Manhattan Sales Market Healthier Than Ever

As the first half of 2012 ends, the Manhttan condo market is moving on upAs we bid farewell to June 2012, it’s fair to ponder: how exactly has the Manhattan real estate market done so far this year in comparison to the past few years? Since the collapse of Lehman four years back, the buying trends of Manhattan apartments has been a subject of intensive analysis and concern. From the perspective of supply (amount of available inventory) vs. demand (amount of sales), 2012 has brought about the strongest 6 months of market activity since 2007. With such a disparity in the statistics of condo sales since 2009, it’s obvious that, as a whole, confidence in the Manhattan real estate market has revived enough for a solid surge in sales.

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The Numbers Are In: 15 Central Park West Is The Richest Address In Manhattan Real Estate

One thing is certain about Manhattan luxury condominiums -- they are luxurious condominiums located in Manhattan. That particular tautology aside, though, the world of Manhattan luxury real estate can often seem like an especially well-amenitized bit of science fiction -- a sort of parallel universe in which new luxury condos compete for potential buyers by jockeying to see which new condo boasts the most impressive golf simulators, best-landscaped rooftop terraces and highest ceilings. We love it, of course, but it does make even us here at New Construction Manhattan -- whose job, as you've probably noticed -- is to observe and cover this particular scene wonder just how much luxury even this wealthiest of boroughs can afford.

Well, wonder no more. The astronomical figures are in, and a winner has been named. In a recent blog post, Property Shark announced that residents of 15 Central Park West has the highest gross income in Manhattan. Grossing approximately $1,883,936,235 since January 2005, 15 Central Park West beat out The Plaza, the iconically extravagant Fifth Avenue hotel that offers a handful of luxury condo-style residences, by nearly $608 million. And not only does 15 Central Park West have the highest gross income in Manhattan, but in all of America. The average sale price for condos in 15 Central Park West is a little over $8 million. The highest sale in the building was a whopping $45 million for a 39th floor duplex. So, what makes 15 Central Park West so irresistible to the super-rich, you ask?

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Dancing To A New (Construction) Beat In West Chelsea

Construction in West Chelsea Even in a city that doesn't sleep, West 27th Street in Chelsea has long had a reputation for staying up late. That rep came courtesy of a bunch of clubs that, for a decade, set the pace for late-night revelry in a neighborhood that was, for years, Manhattan's club capital. Of course, no party lasts forever, and with those clubs closed -- and with Manhattan's club scene now doing its things behind the velvet ropes of the Lower East Side -- West Chelsea's former club capital has become something more upscale, a lot less messy and generally much more... residential. In the Wall Street Journal, Laura Kusisto notes that the stretch of West 27th Street between 10th and 11th Avenue, formerly the site of several notably noisy nightspots, has recently been home to a different kind of boom -- this time, as the home to some new luxury condominium development. With promising new Chelsea condominiums as 200 Eleventh Avenue, 245 Tenth and 133 West 22nd leading the way -- and with the newly opened second leg of The High Line giving the neighborhood some high-gloss glamour (and some high-end green space) -- it looks like the party may not be over in West Chelsea just yet.

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Toll Brothers Re-Claims NYC as Part of Its Empire

Toll Brothers moving back to New York City

For nearly 45 years, Toll Brothers has prided itself on -- and marketed itself as -- being America’s top “luxury home builder." From golf course mansions to poolside townhouses, Toll Brothers created an ever-increasing empire, if one that -- until a few years ago, at least -- was confined largely to the 'Burbs. That changed in 2008 with the arrival of Toll Brothers City Living, a branch of the company specializing in housing in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Hoboken and Philadelphia. Of course, as anyone who followed Manhattan real estate -- or the economy, or anything else -- could tell you, '08 was an especially inopportune time to be starting a real estate business. Unsurprisingly, Toll Brothers City Living got off to a rough start with Northside Piers, and later that year Robert I. Toll, chief executive of Toll Brothers, claimed that New York City had “joined the rest of the country” and was no longer a place to buy homes. Toll even pleaded with Congress to subsidize the prices of homes because of the number of clients cancelling contracts. But that was 2008, and this is 2011 and, thanks to a batch of new construction condo listings, Toll Brothers is showing all appearances of being back in force.

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High Five: High Line Phase Two Will Extend to 30th Street -- Will Real Estate Boom Follow?

NYC condos for sale near High LineIf you follow Manhattan real estate, you are familiar with The High Line. And if you don't follow Manhattan real estate, and are in town for a convention or to see the sights or check out Anything Goes on Broadway or whatever... well, welcome to the New Construction Manhattan blog, and we'll presume you're also familiar with The High Line. After just a few short years on the West Side, the winding, lushly landscaped park that runs on the former freight train tracks above 10th Avenue has become both one of Manhattan's must-visit venues and one of the greatest success stories in Manhattan real estate. While Chelsea condo listings were, truth be told, doing pretty all right before the High Line went from random-old-elevated-train-tracks to hugely popular public park, the arrival of the park gave a huge boost to apartment listings near the High Line, and helped occasion the development of such blockbuster, star-architect-designed high-end condominium listings as HL23, +Art, 456 West 19th Street and Nouvel and Chelsea Modern. And with the opening of the High Line's second stage -- which will run from 20th Street all the way up to 30th Street -- on June 8, the High Line looks likely to work its real estate magic again, this time for North Chelsea and the emerging and highly promising Hudson Yards neighborhood bearing the goofy-ish nickname The Linc.

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Are Two Bedrooms Now Number One in the Manhattan Condo Market?

After the 2008 market crash the prices of one-bedrooms and studios recovered fairly quickly, but the two-bedroom has held out until now. According to The Real Deal, overall inventory of apartments has grown by 13.4 percent since March, but the inventory of two-beds has grown much slower. True to the laws of economics, the ever-present high demand of Manhattan real estate coupled with a low supply means that prices of Manhattan two-bedrooms has hit a new peak -- and the competition to secure one is getting fierce. The New York Times interviewed Tracie Hamersley, a senior vice president of Citi Habitats, whose two-bedroom listing in Murray Hill closed at the asking price after only a single week on the market. It was the buyer’s third attempt at securing a two-bedroom.

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Roosevelt Rising: Manhattan's Newest Condo Frontier Is Directly To Your East

Roosevelt Island Manhattan Luxury CondominiumsAs we have written often here at New Construction Manhattan, there's a reason why Manhattan condo listings remain in high demand, whatever the state of the economy, the NYC real estate market, the phase of the moon, or any other salient factor. That simple reason being that Manhattan condominium listings are located in Manhattan, and therefore have an advantage no luxury condominium listings anywhere else can match. But while it's easy to understand the high-gloss, high-culture appeal of SoHo condo listings or the old-Manhattan graciousness of Upper East Side condominiums, what of Roosevelt Island condo listings? For one thing, they're not even on Manhattan (although for our purposes we consider them as such), and are instead located to the east of Manhattan, in the middle of the East River. For another... well, for a long time, Roosevelt Island wasn't exactly a high-profile part of the NYC condo scene.

But things change fast in Manhattan real estate, and things have changed for the better in Roosevelt Island, both thanks to the spruced-up Main Street and the rise of some very appealing new construction condominiums on Roosevelt Island. Once saddled with the less-than-flattering nickname "Welfare Island," this former backwater in the middle of the East River is an afterthought no longer, thanks in large part to a boom of new construction luxury rentals and condominiums. And here's the biggest sign of Roosevelt Island's rising prosperity: People are actually moving there. Quickly and in serious numbers.

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The New Classics? Is the Glassy Luxury Condominium Out of Fashion?

Luxury Condominium NYC Central Park West 15Imagine walking through New York City in the 1920s. What was different? Well, cars rolled around on what looked like bike tires, women had just received the right to vote, prohibition was in effect, and it was notably harder to find a decent wi-fi signal. But while the Manhattan skyline was notably lower during the Coolidge Administration, the brick and limestone apartment buildings -- today's sought-after pre-war apartment buildings -- were then, and still are, high-style standouts. Which perhaps has something to do with why so many new construction Manhattan condominiums are opting for a look that hearkens back to Manhattan's architectural heyday. Yes, today's classic-style luxury condominiums tend offer all kinds of modern conveniences and luxuries -- the LEED-certified 456 West 19th Street, for instance, pairs classic lines with floor-to-ceiling windows. When it comes to Manhattan condominium aesthetics, though, everything old is seemingly new again.

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