And....we're back!

So...hi everyone...it's ummm...been awhile. Even though we feel a little sheepish at how long it's been hello August 2009, are you there? It's us Downtowny since we've posted on our beloved real estate blog, we are in fact back.

First of all, we'd really like to say "thanks!" to everyone who sent us emails encouraging us to continue to write. We started Downtowny almost a year ago as a way to chronicle our Manhattan real estate search and have met many extraordinary readers and characters along the way, many of whom wrote to us to tell us how much they love the blog (we heart you too).

So why did we stop writing in the middle of this lovefest? Well, it's going to sound super boring (which it is) but basically, we got kind of tired of looking for an apartment. See, right around mid-summer last year we were faced with a typical New York City choice: do we buy a tiny overpriced shithole that our families will laugh at when they come to visit downtown 1BR now or do we sign another one year lease and wait?

Although we hate to admit it, last summer it was an easy decision. In a rental market filled with concessions galore and facing a sales market filled with unrealistic sellers galore, we happily renewed our lease (at at 17% reduction to the prior year, thank you very much) and said "buh-bye" to searching for a hidden gem in the inflated downtown market.

Fast forward 6 months, and we must say, things look a lot better (though still not good enough) for us buyers. Even though we stopped "officially" looking for an apartment more than 6 months ago, we've never quite managed to kick our real estate habit and so now, feeling rejuvenated and slightly punchy, we are back in the game.

So stay tuned, as over the next few weeks, we are going to look back on some of our favorite buildings and properties. Some have sold at prices we never thought imaginable, but most have experienced a path downward to price points that a chimp or a focused dolphin person with a calculator and the ability to determine whether x is larger than y could have easily predicted even 6 months ago.

We missed telling you our stories and we really missed hearing yours! Thanks for hanging in there while we've gotten our shit together - don't hesitate to drop us a line and let us know how you've been!