280 Rector Place #7F - $775,000 - 915 sq. ft.

This is a real 2BR 2BA (although it does have somewhat of an awkward layout) and as we mentioned in a prior post, we still think it's really difficult to make 900 sq ft into a 2BR.

With that said, this apartment has good "bones" (a creepy expression, but it gets the job done). The small living room has quite a pretty (small) window that has direct Hudson River views. Both the kitchen (especially the kitchen) and the bathroom need updating.

This apartment is one of those that doesn't "show well". There are stains on the walls, the floors are a mess, and the ceiling looks like it has some kind of water damage. We think renters live here and may not have been giving this place the love that it deserves.

Although $775k is a decent price in this location, the apartment's condition, tiny living room and high carrying costs (welcome to Battery Park) of over $2100 per month make this unit a big fat uh uh.

71 Nassau Street #7D - $895,000 - 830 sq. ft.

We like to believe in the best of listings, but this apartment felt way less than 830 square feet to us. Closer to 750 or less. The apartment is renovated and attractive - with beautiful blonde wood floors and a great kitchen. The view from the living room isn't terrible - a mix of buildings and beyond. Good closet space etc. but overall, the unit felt awfully small.

The iron beam in the living room is certainly distinctive and we definitely appreciated the presence of a W/D. I would look for this unit to decrease in price dramatically over the next few months as it is quite small and the particular block on Nassau is a smokeshop/diner/New York & Company extravaganza.

1 Wall Street Court #1309 - $899,000 - 949 sq. ft.

Ah, the Cocoa Exchange. This 2 BR has 45 John Street written all over it. Cramped living room at the expense of two reasonably sized bedrooms. Views of the building across the street really complete the picture here.

Not a bad building (what, with a Haru downstairs, how could it be terrible?), although still seems overpriced. The pictures make it look larger, but there is only so much you can do with 949 square feet and a true 2 BR (which this place is).

200 Rector Place, #24N - $550,000 - 650 sq ft.

The first problem with this unit is that 30% of the apartments in this building (Liberty Court) are professionally managed (they have a leasing office down the street) rental units. When we were looking to rent in this area last year, I actually saw three rental units in this building through that leasing office.

The sales agent that showed us this apartment last week "skirted" the rental issue over and over again until I finally gave up asking. Overall, this apartment is really, really small and needs a major overhaul. On the bright side, the price is "very negotiable" and the outdoor space is TREMENDOUS. The balcony is much larger than in the ad and when you go out there, it's kind of like standing on a floating platform in the middle of manhattan. Truly spectacular.

We still wouldn't touch this no W/D, parquet floor mess for $550,000 (or even $350,000), but go check out that balcony!

20 Pine Street, #1006 - $799,000 - 1,070 sq ft.

Ah, 20 Pine, how we lust after
you. This building has such a cool vibe. The beautiful dark wood floors, "W Hotel" like fixtures and ambience, plus the New York Stock Exchange views in the unit that we saw almost made us forget about the terrible financial problems that have been plagueing this building for the last 6 months.

But...although we would like to imagine ourselves 20 pounds thinner and 6 inches taller as we strut around these magical units, we can't help but be reminded that there are 55 units for sale on Streeteasy.com and that the building recently tried to sell these units plus more at rack rate to a VC (or whoever else can pony up).

Would we like to buy here one day? You bet your Armani slippers we would. Would we buy here today? I guess su Casa is not mi Casa.

45 John Street

We visited 45 John Street a couple of weeks ago. They still have the "model" 7th floor, where you can walk around and see apartments with a variety of floorplans that will (one day) become available on higher floors.

Overall, we thought this building was daaaark. Dark. Dark. There was only one layout (the tiny 589sq ft corner "A" line) that we saw that had any natural light at all. Believe it or not, this was our favorite unit on the 7th floor (because of the light). Unfortunately, the kitchen was in the tiny living room (pasta sauce spatter on the couch anyone?) and the bedroom was a prison cell at 10'x8'. The other apartments definitely had larger bedrooms at the expense of the living room (not our ideal) and were basically pitch black at 1PM on a sunny day.

Combine that with <50% sold and we're thinking no way. If you want to take a financial risk in this area, 20 Pine has much nicer layouts and District is beautiful.

District, The Movie

I have to admit that when we finally saw District yesterday (that sexy building on the remarkably unsexy Fulton Street), we were mildly turned on. We saw two beautiful apartments, with cool kitchens, very high ceilings and big windows. Not even the inevitable views of the building across the street changed our minds about the pretty apartments.

The amenities are pretty much complete (the pool is filled, the upstairs roof deck looks better than the pictures, the media room is done, and the spa and gym are very, very cool). Despite this building's well-documented financial problems, we were quite tempted.

All of this despite the Developer's vaguely mysoginistic, porn-tastic ad campaign which culminates in perhaps the worst movie that I have ever seen created by a professional. I wonder how much they paid per square minute for this shaky beauty shot by a handheld (huh?) camera. Is that the Odeon in the background?