Buying my first apt - would appreciate advice from NYC people

[MoogieBoogie]

Hi everyone,

I'm taking the plunge and decided to buy my first home.

The decision is between two places - one on the upper west side, near 70th and Amsterdam. The complex is well known in the area [Lincoln Towers] for being these behemoth of buildings in a park setting.

The other is in midtown East / upper east side, on 2nd avenue in the lower 60's.

Monthly payments will be about the same. The east side building benefits from lower maintenance offset by rental income from a large commercial tenant. The west side has much higher maintenance (about $400 more per month). The buildling on the east side is priced higher to reflect the lower maintenance.

East side has more convenience due to proximity to multiple subway lines, but is a much higher traffic area with the Queensboro / Ed Koch bridge nearby. The view is not as nice and the apartment does not have windows in every room. West side apartment has a wall of windows, natural light, and is very quiet. There's an express subway near by [1/2/3] but only the red line.

Any opinions on the two places based on location alone? Or maybe even personal experiences with Lincoln Towers? I would appreciate any opinions!

Thank you,

Brian

 

[RSO 34]

I lived in Chelsea for seven years, went to school in Lincoln Center not far from the Lincoln Towers and had family on the upper east side in Yorkville. If I couldn't live in Chelsea/Greenwich Village I would take upper west side over east 60s every time. There are definitely "two groups" of city dwellers when it comes to living above 57th street, the Upper West Siders and the Upper East Siders and even though I'm a city kid it is difficult to explain. The best "example" would be Woody Allen and Mia Farrow never living together because each had their distinct preference for their apartments on opposite sides of Central Park.

I never really cared for the Upper East Side and found it to be too congested and not having what I was looking for in a neighborhood. I still prefer Chelsea/Greenwich Village but after spending 7 years in the Lincoln Center area for school I would make that my only second choice if I picked up another place in the City.

 

[MoogieBoogie]

Thank you for sharing your experience, Robert. Very helpful.

Interesting that you mention Chelsea - that was my first choice, but the prices there are through the roof now. Seems like everyone wants to live "downtown" these days. I was actually outbid on two places there by people who were able to pay cash.

Thanks!

Brian

 

[RSO 34]

Chelsea became white hot shortly after I left (I wonder if there was a correlation......) I lived near the seminary and you can't touch anything there these days with bidding wars on almost every listing. To me, Chelsea and the Village had everything I needed and all within walking distance (although if you live in the City you learn that everything is actually walking distance). The UWS is similar but with a bit more congestion that is more noticeable since there are more hi rises compared to more brownstones downtown.

 

[RPM217]

I have a client in Lincoln Towers, and have also spent much time on the West Side. My father owned a retail business on west 57th St and I spent much of my early years working in his store. As Bob has pointed out, both areas have very different feels. It depends on what you want, we know that you're relatively well grounded, as you're a NSX person, but other than that, the best advice is before you buy, hang out during a day/night (weekday and weekend will be different as well). Noise, sun, view, people, ambiance, all should help you make the right choice. Good luck!

 

[docjohn]

you will own? how is each building structured...condo co-op?

 

[MoogieBoogie]

Chelsea became white hot shortly after I left (I wonder if there was a correlation......) I lived near the seminary and you can't touch anything there these days with bidding wars on almost every listing. To me, Chelsea and the Village had everything I needed and all within walking distance (although if you live in the City you learn that everything is actually walking distance). The UWS is similar but with a bit more congestion that is more noticeable since there are more hi rises compared to more brownstones downtown.

Haha, I doubt there is a correlation unless you were secretly terrorizing the neighborhood at night.

Even though everything is technically walking distance, I've met some people who refuse to date or go somewhere that is xx blocks away from a subway or xx number of transfers. This was actually why I initially wantd to move to Chelsea - super convenient to multiple subway lines and the neighborhood has almost everything you need.

I have a client in Lincoln Towers, and have also spent much time on the West Side. My father owned a retail business on west 57th St and I spent much of my early years working in his store. As Bob has pointed out, both areas have very different feels. It depends on what you want, we know that you're relatively well grounded, as you're a NSX person, but other than that, the best advice is before you buy, hang out during a day/night (weekday and weekend will be different as well). Noise, sun, view, people, ambiance, all should help you make the right choice. Good luck!

Sadly, I'm no longer a NSX person. It's something that I had to give up in order to make the home purchase. Hopefully I'll be back someday.

I lived near Lincoln Towers (west side) before so I'm familiar with the area. It's definitely a lot more quiet than the east side. Something that bothered me about the east side was that 2nd avenue would get so congested from the Queensboro / Ed Koch bridge traffic. In addition, there was a subway ventilation tower nearby. The building itself made the most sense financially because of the low maintenance, but little things bothered me about the location and unit. As you can probably tell, I'm leaning more towards the west side. I will try to walk around the east side after work on of these days and see how it is. Thank you for the suggestion!

you will own? how is each building structured...condo co-op?

They're both co-ops. Interesting story about Lincoln Towers - it was originally built as a development for middle-income people, after razing a slum area. When it turned co-op in the 80's, the sponsor allowed all tenants to remain as rent-stabilized tenants. Eventually people moved out or passed on and now the buildings are over 90% owner occupied.

 

[syam]

I would vote Upper West Side. I lived in several areas around Manhattan during my college years, 8th and 3rd, 49th and 8th, 84th and York, 10th and 2nd, 13th and 3rd. While I enjoyed living in the East Village the most (closest to school and friends), I enjoyed living in 49th and 8th a very close second most. I had several friends living near Lincoln Center and the areas was much more entertaining during the day and night than the UES. The Upper East Side was too dead at night and the 4,5,6 line is super slow at times (average took 30-45 minutes to commute from 86th and Lexington to Union Square during rush hour). Being the only subway line up that way also was a bad thing (don't count on the 2nd Ave subway being finished any time soon either).

My girlfriend is a real estate agent in NYC and a lot of people start the process wanting to live in the Upper East Side. They usually change their mind after visiting the area, staying close by, and seeing what else is available in Manhattan. I also feel the UES will not appreciate as much as the UWS in the years to come mostly because of what there is to do in the area, and also the stereotype of people living in those areas. That is my opinion though. It really all depends on what you want/can afford.