Buying an Apartment in New York
One Single Woman's Struggle to Make the Right Decision
By Nicole Alper
When Marie finally decided to buy an apartment, she breathed
a sigh of relief. The back and forth--should I? shouldn't
I?--had wracked her otherwise decisive mind for months. But
now, with the paperwork finally falling into place, Marie
was joining the ranks of homeowners in New York City--one
of the most expensive cities in the world.
A single woman, who moved from her native Dublin six years
ago, Marie no longer wanted to be a member of the throw-rent-away-every-month-possibly-for-the-rest-of-your-life
club. She wanted to accumulate assets.
As a trader on Wall Street, Marie was savvy to the financial
advantages of owning her own place: significant tax deductions,
diversifying her investments, and, most importantly, no longer
throwing away money on rent.
Even still, she wasn't 100% sold on the idea. Then she was
forced to move out of her shared apartment and began paying
twice the rent on an apartment half the size. So the decision
to buy was made-but where?
Real estate prices in Manhattan are outrageous--even neighborhoods
such as the East Village, once known for being funky (and
reasonably priced)--were becoming less and less affordable.
And in the trendy downtown areas of the West Village and Soho,
prices were at an all-time-high. Not to mention that along
Riverside Boulevard, Trump developments were sending prices
as high as the high rises.
Marie settled on the Upper West Side-an attractive family-oriented
neighborhood, with plenty of restaurants, cafes, even a few
nightclubs, and only a few blocks away from the city's much-loved
oasis, Central Park.
Next on the agenda was determining what kind of building
to target. Buildings, Louise discovered, fall into roughly
two categories: condo and co-op. Buying a condo is an outright
purchase of property in a building. The unit belongs to you.
Condo prices are usually a bit more expensive, but banks prefer
them and therefore sometimes offer buyers better rates. A
co-op appeals to buyers who like to control their neighbors.
When you buy a co-op, you purchase shares of a co-operation.
You hold the property lease to the unit, but you are really
purchasing shares--not the unit itself. Prices tend to be
a bit lower than condos, but there are many restrictions ranging
from a Board of Directors that has the power to approve (or
reject) all sales to strict limitations on subletting.
Marie opted for a condo--an avenue with far fewer hurdles
and limitations.
As she began looking, another pressing issue was lurking
at the back of her mind: money. When someone is considering
property in one of the most expensive cities in the world,
she needs an "I-won't-go-a-bit-over-x" amount to narrow the
choices. Marie had such a number. It was $450,000. But it
wasn't long before she realized what $450,000 got her. Nothing.
At least nothing she wanted to call home.
So Marie, as about 60% of first-time home-seekers do, according
to Bellmarc Realty agent Svjetlana Kabalin, upped her maximum.
To $600,000. Sound daunting? She too thought of what that
amount could get her somewhere--almost anywhere--else in the
United States. But she loved New York, and she wanted to be
a homeowner.
After looking at close to 100 apartments, Marie found one
she loved.
The building was part of a trio of luxury buildings--featuring
a 24-hour concierge, dry cleaning service, maintenance crew
available for everything from changing a light bulb to moving
furniture, and magnificent views. The building was perfectly
located in her target neighborhood on the Upper West side,
safe, and-most miraculously--a great investment.
On March 2, 2000 Marie moved into her new apartment on the
22nd floor, overlooking the lights and bustle of Broadway.
As she and I sat on her hard wood floor, gazing out on the
hundreds of other apartment windows, wondering which were
owned, which merely rented, I thought to myself, "Maybe it's
time for me as well."
Since then, I've been looking. Whether I actually make the
leap depends, I suppose, on whether I find two things: the
perfect apartment, and the courage to make it mine.
Learn more from MsMoney.com
about buying a home.
|
