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? Brace yourself, because if you thought the tale of NYU undergrad Vanessa Csordas-Jenkins was just a little too insane, this latest story will cause your eyeballs to roll out of their sockets and skitter across the floor.
The fascinating article profiles the apartments of millionaires under 40. But brave, humble Sasha Bikoff, a 26-year-old interior designer who is just "the type of person that will walk into Barney's in [her] sweatpants," definitely steals the show. Bikoff recently bought a one-bedroom triplex at 471 Washington Street after visiting listings from Chelsea "all the way" to Tribeca. Her new place is enormous, with an "Old New York" feel (nothing says Old New York like a crocodile skull with a mouth full of gold-plated teeth) that's completely "unique," because that's what these fabulous young captains of industry/their parents' money desire (neigh, demand) in today's high-octane real estate market. In fact, it's so unique and so unlike any of the other $10 million+ units in shiny new condo buildings currently scattered across lower Manhattan, that it hails from a Lovecraftian dimension of horror and beauty that defies the very nature of human understanding. Tremble before the Old Ones, mortals! Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn!
Oh, and there's also a walk-in-closet converted from a second bedroom that's "reminiscent of the one that Mr. Big built for an awed Carrie Bradshaw in the 'Sex and the City' movie." What strange, terrible times we live in . . .
· "When Age Belies Buying Power" [NYT]
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 transplant from San Francisco returning to New York
Price
Dream: $700,000-$800,000
Reality: $939,000
Neighborhood
Dream: "Downtown"
Reality: Lower East Side
Amenities
Dream: exposed brick, outdoor space, washer-dryer, bright
Reality: washer-dryer, bright, private rooftop
Summary
A Bay Area native with plans to move to New York first looked for apartments in Brooklyn "because it is more San Francisco-like." Alas, that gift is also its curse, and she decided she liked Manhattan more, seeking out a one-bedroom with lots of light, exposed brick, outdoor space for container gardening, and a decent washer-dryer with a budget of $800,000. She eventually landed on the Lower East Side, in a new midrise with a private rooftop and big, bright windows (none of that coveted exposed brick, though). She paid the asking price of $939,000 and is delighted with the takeout options her new neighborhood has to offer. [The Hunt/"A New York City State of Mind"]
Loading comments...