Welcome to It Happened One Weekend, our weekly roundup of The New York Times real estate section...
1) Rich people. What are they spending millions of dollars on? What are they complaining about? This is What's Up With Rich People?
For certain subgroups of rich people, "gentrifier" is almost as undesirable a classification as "sex offender." With that in mind, this profile of a longtime Brooklyn resident—the delightful Peggy White—is bitter-sweet. Over the years, Ms. White has watched the transformation of Cobble Hill, from middle-class immigrant enclave to a real estate boomtown, full of wine-swilling yuppies, insolent children, realtors licking their wolf-like lips, and other stereotypes of our age. But hey! On the other hand, some rich people love being gentrifiers! Either way, it's an interesting look at a changed neighborhood, its history and its future. ["A Witness to Gentrification in Cobble Hill"]
2) Every "The Hunt" column begins with the Hunters describing the apartment they want, and ends with them rationalizing whatever they came away with. This is The Hunt: Dreams vs. Reality
The Hunter: a young couple looking to buy after a drastic rent-hike
Price
Dream: up to $800,000
Reality: $700,000
Neighborhood
Dream: Upper West Side, "parts of Brooklyn"
Reality: Upper West Side
Amenities
Dream: good light, good kitchen, room
Reality: good kitchen, roof garden
Summary
Oy. This was a rough one. A couple on the Upper West Side decided to move out of their one-bedroom rental, hoping to buy a larger two-bedroom. They looked at a goddamn cavalcade of apartments in Brooklyn and Manhattan and got outbid at pretty much every turn. Finally, they found a one-bedroom in the West 90s with a nice kitchen and good closet space, but with mediocre light (key for the husband) and a small bathroom. So not perfect, but with enough space, they seem happy. Still, rough going, guys. [The Hunt/"Outbid, but Not Down or Out"]