Kris
December 10th, 2004, 12:18 AM
December 9, 2004
TURF
Moving On Up, Same Address
By MOTOKO RICH
FOR a dozen little reasons, Marco and Claudia Pipolo love their co-op at the corner of 59th Street and Second Avenue. The building is two blocks from the restaurant that Mr. Pipolo owns, and five blocks from the Central Park zoo, where the couple's children, Sofia and Edoardo, are regulars. Local shopkeepers know everyone in the family by name.
The only problem: The family has outgrown its two-bedroom apartment. So when the superintendent alerted the Pipolos to a for-sale sign posted in the mailroom for a spacious three-bedroom apartment on their floor, Mr. Pipolo hustled down the hall to his neighbor. Within 20 minutes, he had a deal to buy the place.
For some New Yorkers, trading up to a larger space without the trauma of moving across town has become a popular real estate quest. "We have just improved our lifestyle, but we are actually changing nothing but a number on our address," Mr. Pipolo said.
The restaurateur, who has lived in the building for 12 years, said the in-house move saved him about $100,000 in broker's commissions. Mr. Pipolo also expects to save on moving costs.
In a city where residents are parochial about their square feet, buying a larger space at the same address is an ideal option. "The neighborhood becomes the neighborhood of the building," said Elayne Reimer, a broker at Coldwell Banker Hunt Kennedy who has sold three apartments in the last year to people relocating within the Excelsior, a co-op on East 57th Street. "In this case it's 360 apartments and that becomes the neighborhood. In Texas, that could be a whole town."
A handful of brokers are noting an uptick in homeowners who are buying apartments in buildings where they live. Elaine Clayman, an agent with Brown Harris Stevens, said she had four clients buy apartments at their current addresses within the last six months. "I can't say that I remember it happening that often ever before in my career," Ms. Clayman said.
One factor behind the trend is that building residents often have the inside track on apartment sales. That provides a crucial advantage in New York's fast-moving market. According to Miller Samuel, a New York real estate appraisal firm, it took an average of 107 days to sell an apartment in the three months through September, 30 days less than a year earlier.
"Things get listed so quickly, and unless someone calls back right away, they get sold quickly," said JoAnne Steinberg, who with her husband, Kevin Steinberg, heard about a larger apartment for sale in their Murray Hill building from the doorman. The couple, who are expecting their second child in February and wanted to move out of their one-bedroom apartment, approached the sellers directly and viewed the apartment before an open house. A week later, they made a $1.1 million offer, and expect to move next month.
In co-ops, owners figure that moving in-house will be easier because they have already been approved by the board. While some boards do allow existing residents to forego interviews and personal recommendations, many still require extensive financial documentation.
When Beth Flanagan, 30, decided to buy a one-bedroom apartment in the Upper East Side building where she already owned a studio, the board reviewed her finances and told her to increase her down payment to 40 percent of the purchase price, from the 25 percent minimum. "It was a new board," Ms. Flanagan said. "They had really tightened up."
Despite the stringent financial requirements, Ms. Flanagan believed she got a break from the board because it let her store furniture in the basement while she waited for the one-bedroom apartment to be vacated after she sold her studio. The sellers of the one-bedroom, Peter and Deborah Agulnick, also allowed Ms. Flanagan to store some things in their apartment.
Meanwhile, the Agulnicks, who have two children, bought a two-bedroom apartment in the same building, too. At first, Mr. Agulnick, a civil litigation lawyer, did not want to move. But because the apartment was in the same building and was a "fairly decent deal," he said, "I finally gave in and said fine."
Some brokers are appealing directly to those who want to stay put. Toehl Harding, an agent with Coldwell Banker Hunt Kennedy, has held two residents-only cocktail parties in a prewar co-op in the Beekman Hill area this year. "Every time a two-bedroom apartment comes up it's just swarmed on," Ms. Harding said. "People try very hard to stay in my building."
Some co-op boards ask homeowners who are selling apartments to advertise to their neighbors first. Lisa Holland-Davis, a broker with Halstead Properties who helped both Ms. Flanagan and the Agulnicks sell their apartments, said she knows of at least two buildings where the co-op boards mandate insider listings.
Susanne Steward, a broker with the Corcoran Group, said about a fifth of her customers ask to move within their own buildings. Of course, those requesting in-house moves far outnumber the number of apartments available. "Unfortunately, there's not enough inventory" of in-house properties for sale, said Anne Butler, also with Corcoran.
But one couple who came to her earlier this year, Ben and Hallie Russell, scored a larger apartment in their Upper West Side co-op by sheer persistence.
After losing out on an apartment in February, they were not taking any chances. When two apartments came up for sale in the building in July, the couple, who have been crammed into a studio with their 11-month-old daughter, bid on both. Both offers were accepted, so the couple pulled out of one and proceeded with the other. They plan to move in next week.
Oddly enough, Mrs. Russell recalled, when the couple moved to the building three years ago, she burst into tears because the apartment was so run-down.
But after a gut renovation, she grew attached to the building, where she now shares her daughter's nanny with neighbors. "You get used to having your cleaners right across the street and being a block from the subway and a block and a half from the park," Mrs. Russell said. "And all of a sudden you think `Oh, I have to be a block from Central Park.' "
Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company
TURF
Moving On Up, Same Address
By MOTOKO RICH
FOR a dozen little reasons, Marco and Claudia Pipolo love their co-op at the corner of 59th Street and Second Avenue. The building is two blocks from the restaurant that Mr. Pipolo owns, and five blocks from the Central Park zoo, where the couple's children, Sofia and Edoardo, are regulars. Local shopkeepers know everyone in the family by name.
The only problem: The family has outgrown its two-bedroom apartment. So when the superintendent alerted the Pipolos to a for-sale sign posted in the mailroom for a spacious three-bedroom apartment on their floor, Mr. Pipolo hustled down the hall to his neighbor. Within 20 minutes, he had a deal to buy the place.
For some New Yorkers, trading up to a larger space without the trauma of moving across town has become a popular real estate quest. "We have just improved our lifestyle, but we are actually changing nothing but a number on our address," Mr. Pipolo said.
The restaurateur, who has lived in the building for 12 years, said the in-house move saved him about $100,000 in broker's commissions. Mr. Pipolo also expects to save on moving costs.
In a city where residents are parochial about their square feet, buying a larger space at the same address is an ideal option. "The neighborhood becomes the neighborhood of the building," said Elayne Reimer, a broker at Coldwell Banker Hunt Kennedy who has sold three apartments in the last year to people relocating within the Excelsior, a co-op on East 57th Street. "In this case it's 360 apartments and that becomes the neighborhood. In Texas, that could be a whole town."
A handful of brokers are noting an uptick in homeowners who are buying apartments in buildings where they live. Elaine Clayman, an agent with Brown Harris Stevens, said she had four clients buy apartments at their current addresses within the last six months. "I can't say that I remember it happening that often ever before in my career," Ms. Clayman said.
One factor behind the trend is that building residents often have the inside track on apartment sales. That provides a crucial advantage in New York's fast-moving market. According to Miller Samuel, a New York real estate appraisal firm, it took an average of 107 days to sell an apartment in the three months through September, 30 days less than a year earlier.
"Things get listed so quickly, and unless someone calls back right away, they get sold quickly," said JoAnne Steinberg, who with her husband, Kevin Steinberg, heard about a larger apartment for sale in their Murray Hill building from the doorman. The couple, who are expecting their second child in February and wanted to move out of their one-bedroom apartment, approached the sellers directly and viewed the apartment before an open house. A week later, they made a $1.1 million offer, and expect to move next month.
In co-ops, owners figure that moving in-house will be easier because they have already been approved by the board. While some boards do allow existing residents to forego interviews and personal recommendations, many still require extensive financial documentation.
When Beth Flanagan, 30, decided to buy a one-bedroom apartment in the Upper East Side building where she already owned a studio, the board reviewed her finances and told her to increase her down payment to 40 percent of the purchase price, from the 25 percent minimum. "It was a new board," Ms. Flanagan said. "They had really tightened up."
Despite the stringent financial requirements, Ms. Flanagan believed she got a break from the board because it let her store furniture in the basement while she waited for the one-bedroom apartment to be vacated after she sold her studio. The sellers of the one-bedroom, Peter and Deborah Agulnick, also allowed Ms. Flanagan to store some things in their apartment.
Meanwhile, the Agulnicks, who have two children, bought a two-bedroom apartment in the same building, too. At first, Mr. Agulnick, a civil litigation lawyer, did not want to move. But because the apartment was in the same building and was a "fairly decent deal," he said, "I finally gave in and said fine."
Some brokers are appealing directly to those who want to stay put. Toehl Harding, an agent with Coldwell Banker Hunt Kennedy, has held two residents-only cocktail parties in a prewar co-op in the Beekman Hill area this year. "Every time a two-bedroom apartment comes up it's just swarmed on," Ms. Harding said. "People try very hard to stay in my building."
Some co-op boards ask homeowners who are selling apartments to advertise to their neighbors first. Lisa Holland-Davis, a broker with Halstead Properties who helped both Ms. Flanagan and the Agulnicks sell their apartments, said she knows of at least two buildings where the co-op boards mandate insider listings.
Susanne Steward, a broker with the Corcoran Group, said about a fifth of her customers ask to move within their own buildings. Of course, those requesting in-house moves far outnumber the number of apartments available. "Unfortunately, there's not enough inventory" of in-house properties for sale, said Anne Butler, also with Corcoran.
But one couple who came to her earlier this year, Ben and Hallie Russell, scored a larger apartment in their Upper West Side co-op by sheer persistence.
After losing out on an apartment in February, they were not taking any chances. When two apartments came up for sale in the building in July, the couple, who have been crammed into a studio with their 11-month-old daughter, bid on both. Both offers were accepted, so the couple pulled out of one and proceeded with the other. They plan to move in next week.
Oddly enough, Mrs. Russell recalled, when the couple moved to the building three years ago, she burst into tears because the apartment was so run-down.
But after a gut renovation, she grew attached to the building, where she now shares her daughter's nanny with neighbors. "You get used to having your cleaners right across the street and being a block from the subway and a block and a half from the park," Mrs. Russell said. "And all of a sudden you think `Oh, I have to be a block from Central Park.' "
Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company