Let's Catch Up - Pt. 2 The Home

I feel like I need to rush through the catch-up part as the renovations are moving along and I want to start updating the blog with more current happenings. So, this is going to be the quick and dirty version of how I found myself in my new home.

Back in 2004, I had found my first apartment, a studio on 82nd and 3rd, by browsing the NY Times Real Estate section. Today, it's a totally different game thanks to StreetEasy.com.

With StreetEasy I was able to find listings, open houses, see the property sale history, Google map view and even create my own comp report. I could do all of this without a broker! I still think brokers are an important part of the buying and selling process but StreetEasy has definitely leveled the playing field.

After living in a modern high rise for 10 years, I was ready for a "real home". I suppose it's all relative, what you consider a "real home". Some people are perfectly comfortable in a full service building.  I often felt like I was living in a hotel.

Wants and Needs

For my next home, I had a few must haves:

• Quieter street - This was easy as anything is more quiet than living on 42nd St. near Times Square
• Townhouse/Brownstone - Something old and with a bit of interesting history.
• Laundry in unit - No explanation needed.
• Outdoor space - My dream home has a garden where I host fabulous dinners. Twinkle lights? Obviously.

Neighborhood:

• Upper West Side (UWS)

There is something about UWS, to me at least, that is quintessential New York. The shops, the families with their strollers, the beautiful brownstones and of course the proximity to the parks. I mean, look how happy Meg Ryan is skipping out of her UWS brownstone apartment building off to (unknowingly) meet Tom Hanks at Riverside Park.

After weeks and weeks of open houses and appointments with two amazing brokers, I just wasn't finding the right one. I came very close to a unit on 91st and West End. It was a top floor apartment with an enormous two level deck.  The problem was, the outdoor part was nicer than the indoor part. Let's be honest, the inside of your home should be nicer than your garden. Plus, I think that was the day I brought the most judgmental person in my life, my mom, to take a look at the apartment. She pointed out so many things that weren't right with this apartment.

TIP: If you are ever home shopping, bring your most judgmental, sarcastic, critical friend or family member with you. Their honest opinion is so worth it. If you don't have such a person in your life, you can borrow my mom.

It was time to expand my search. I had accepted an offer on my current apartment and was starting to get nervous.  Where was I going to live?

 

I narrowed it down to a few neighborhoods:

• Greenwich Village
• West Village
• Lincoln Square

Notice how I didn't consider anything on the East Side. I think some parts of the East Side are really nice but most of what I do is on the West and with my commute to NJ, it just wouldn't be ideal.

A few more weeks passed by and still nothing. Then, one day while browsing StreetEasy.com, I found an apartment in an unlikely of neighborhoods, West Chelsea.

 

West Chelsea?!

"West Chelsea, by popular definition, runs from Ninth Avenue to the Hudson River and from West 14th to West 30th Streets." West Chelsea: From Industrial to Chic - NY Times.

The area consists of:

• The High Line
• Insane amounts of construction and insanely priced condos
• Chelsea Market
• Dozens of art galleries
• Two large public housing complexes

If you really are interested in reading up on the neighborhood, The New York Times article "West Chelsea: From Industrial to Chic is a great start.

West Chelsea wasn't exactly what I was looking for in a neighborhood. It was a bit more grimey than I'd imagined. A bit too hip and artsy. However, the apartment I found was beautiful!

A Tale of Two Units

The first time I walked on my soon-to-be new street, I wasn't completely in love. The north end of my street is bit grimey. The only thing I like about it is the cute wine bar. However, half way into the street are a row of federal style row houses. Each one has a gate with a "front yard" something that is not common in the city.

The apartment, a 3 bedroom 2.5 bathroom triplex, was on the top floor of an 1840s federal style building. It sat across the street from the enormous London Terrace building. Equally impressive and with its own history which I will not get into because this is already a really long post.

The apartment itself ticked all the boxes.

• History
• Quiet
• Not one but two extra rooms. I could actually have a dedicated home office!
• Laundry

So, what happened?

Well, the quick and dirty version, it was priced too high.  The unit, we'll call it Unit 1, had been on the market for some time. I came in with an offer that I could afford and was countered. I countered and they countered. We did this dance for about a week. During that week, I learned the unit across the hall, Unit 2, was for sale. It was the same layout, minus a room but it had not been renovated since the early 90's. You'll see photos in the next blog post. Scary. It was priced a bit lower but still too high for the amount of work it needed. On top of all of this, the building was a co-op, meaning the purchase and not to mention any renovations would have to go through a co-op board for approval. If you don't know about co-ops, Google it. For people who don't live in New York, you'll find the co-op procedure as it pertains to buying and selling a home the most ridiculous thing ever.  I won't go into it. Let's just put it this way, in my board package, my dog had his own resume.

The real question I was faced with was not whether to buy into a co-op but was, "Am I ready to commit to a gut renovation?"

Let's Do This!

Had I known back then what I know now, I might have reconsidered. Long story short, I ended up offering about 15% less on the unrenovated Unit 2. Offer accepted.  However, before I signed on the dotted line, it was time to bring in some contractors to give me an idea of how I could make Unit 2 look like Unit 1 and possibly even better.

All the contractors and architects I brought in to do a walkthrough gave me an idea of how much I would be spending to make the unit amazing. I was comfortable with the budget, comfortable with the timeline and ready to sign a contract to own the home.

The next few weeks, we'll call them the dark times, consisted of a stressful series of events:

• Packed up my old apartment. It will probably go down as one of the easiest moves in history as the new owners bought all my furniture. I was just moving out my clothes and a few electronics.
• Moved temporarily to NJ. Much love to my family for putting up with a very grump Steve. One week turned into one month while I waited for a co-op interview. With each passing week I grew grumpier and grumpier.
• Endured a co-op interview where I sat in front of 4 people who went through everything from my bank statements, company financial records and more.

Finally, the day came. I had passed the co-op interview and was scheduled to close. I was ready. I had an inflatable mattress on hand and was going to sleep in my own space that very night, dammit!

The closing was rather uneventful. Lots of paperwork, lots people signing stuff and making small talk. Lots of uncomfortable glances between myself and the previous owner.

Success!

The keys were mine. I remember walking from the closing and how strange it felt. All of this stress had suddenly lifted. Little did I know, it would be back because now it was time to start the renovation process.  

In the next post and the final part of catching up, I'll write about how I selected the following:

• Architect
• Contractor
• Interior designer