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Doctors Leave Rental Buildings; Boring Hunt Ends in FiDi

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Welcome to It Happened One Weekend, our weekly roundup of The New York Times real estate section...

As the realities of running a medical office change, more and more doctors are leaving their longtime offices in residential buildings, with many prospective brokers eying the properties as ripe for conversion into residential units. Often located on the first floor of Upper West or East Side buildings, these offices generally leave a lot to be desired, with problems such as light and noise factoring into expensive gut renovation efforts. However, because this is New York, such units still manage to fetch pretty high prices, with three converted apartments in a Carnegie Hill condo recently selling for $2.9 million, $2.7 million and $1.5 million. Some people, like veterinarian Dr. Jack Biederman, actively seek out these spaces, having moved into his second ex-doctor's office in seventeen years ["When Doctors Leave the Building"; photo by Joe Schumacer/Curbed Photo Pool]

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 Hunters: a couple looks to expand
Price
Dream: $5,000/month
Reality: $$6,895/month
Neighborhood
Dream: N/A
Reality: Financial District
Amenities
Dream: Spacious, great cell reception
Reality: Spacious, cell reception, views, enormous tub
Summary
Like any good TV showrunner, The Times knows that you need to follow last week's instant classic of a Hunt with something low-key and boring. And good lord, is this week's Hunt ever a snoozefest. A guy named Brad who's retired because he got in on Apple stock early bought a one-bedroom apartment in Union Square, but after his girlfriend Talitha moved in, it became obvious that they needed to look for a bigger place. They're only real requirements were good cell reception and enough space for Brad's home theater setup (again, boring) and with a budget of $5,000/month, they started looking for two-bedrooms downtown, finding a two-bedroom in the Financial District's William Beaver house. They're happy, but somehow surprised that there's basically nothing to do in the Financial District. [The Hunt/"Giving Up the Ultimate Bachelor Pad"]

William Beaver House

15 William Street, New York, NY 10005